NEW YORK, March 21, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Chefs,
sharpen your knives. The James Beard Foundation today announced
restaurants can now begin registering for the 5th Annual
Blended Burger Project™ competition, which challenges chefs to make
burgers better by blending at least 25 percent of finely chopped
fresh mushrooms with meat*.
In addition, to celebrate the growing popularity of the blended
burger, the initiative will expand to consumer audiences with a
variety of strategic partnerships throughout the year.
"The blended burger is a great example of how plant-forward
dishes can not only be sustainable, but also incredibly
crave-able," said Katherine Miller,
VP of Impact, James Beard Foundation. "We are excited for the
Blended Burger Project competition to achieve this five-year
milestone – and we look forward to discovering and sampling the
creative entries from participating restaurants."
The Blended Burger Project launches Memorial Day (May 27) and continues through July 31. Throughout the competition, fans will
vote for their favorite "blended burgers". In August, a panel of
food experts selected by the James Beard Foundation will review
burgers from the 25 contestants who received the most online votes.
They will select five winners, based on culinary creativity, flavor
profile and presentation. Winning chefs will each win $5,000 and a trip to New York City to cook their blended burger at
the historic James Beard House.
"The Blended Burger Project lines up with our restaurant's – and
our customers' – philosophies," said a multi-year participant and
2018 winner Fiore Moletz of
Burgh'ers in Pittsburgh. "We seek
creative takes on the iconic burger, while our guests want to be
served food that lines up with their health-conscious,
sustainability-minded and active lifestyles. We call our burger
#theblend, and it now generates 10-15% of weekly revenue."
Registration Opens Today
Registration is now open for the 5th Annual Blended
Burger Project. Contestants that sign-up by April 15th will receive a special
Blended Burger Project t-shirt and knife roll, one per Contestant,
while supplies last.
To take part in the 2019 Blended Burger Project, restaurants
can:
- Develop a blended burger that consists of at least 25 percent
fresh mushrooms. (Any ground protein. Any fresh cultivated
mushroom. Any favorite seasonings and toppings.)
- Register to participate at jamesbeard.org/blendedburgerproject,
including sharing a photo, description of the burger and
recipe.
- Menu the burger and encourage guest votes from Memorial Day
(May 27) through July 31.
For more information on the chef component of the Blended Burger
Project, visit jamesbeard.org/blendedburgerproject.
*Or other protein.
About the James Beard Foundation
The James Beard
Foundation's mission is to promote good food for good™. For
more than 30 years, the James Beard Foundation has highlighted the
centrality of food culture in our daily lives. Through the James
Beard Awards, unique dining experiences at the James Beard House
and around the country, scholarships, hands-on learning, and a
variety of industry programs that educate and empower leaders in
our community, the Foundation has built a platform for chefs and
asserted the power of gastronomy to drive behavior, culture, and
policy change around food. To that end, the Foundation has also
created signature impact-oriented initiatives that include our
Women's Leadership Programs, aimed at addressing the gender
imbalance in the culinary industry; advocacy training through our
Chefs Boot Camp for Policy and Change; and the James Beard
Foundation Leadership Awards, which shine a spotlight on successful
change makers. The organization is committed to giving chefs and
their colleagues a voice and the tools they need to make the world
more sustainable, equitable, and delicious for everyone. For more
information, please visit jamesbeard.org and follow
@beardfoundation on Instagram, Twitter,
and Facebook.
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SOURCE James Beard Foundation