These are not your usual contests. We have a slightly nutty system but it works. Together, the Food52 community has created two cookbooks this way -- there’s no stopping us now.
With two books under our belt, we thought we’d try some new projects on for size. First up: The Food52 Holiday Survival Guide for iPad (out Thanksgiving 2011). Here's how it will work:
1. Every other Wednesday between now and early November 2011, we'll ask for your best recipes on a certain theme (e.g. Your Best Pears, Your Best Holiday Roast). You'll have just over a week -- until midnight the following Thursday -- to submit your recipes. (We’ll also be on the prowl for all manner of holiday Wildcard winners that might not fit into any one contest theme -- so don’t hesitate to share your best recipes on Food52, even if they have nothing to do with the contest at hand.)
2. We'll test a bunch of the entries, whittle them down to 2 finalists (which we'll photograph), and then post them a week later. We'll also award Community Picks to recipes we've tested and loved (and photograph them too). And we'll nominate other entries that we weren't able to test, but think are promising and turn them over to you — the Food52 community — to test for Community Picks. All of these -- the winners, runners-up, and Community Picks -- will be given priority in our recipe search on Food52.
3. Then, you'll have 5 days to check out the finalists and anonymously cast your votes (good old democracy).
4. We'll tally up the votes and announce the winner. Winning recipes will be published in the app, plus handy tips from Amanda & Merrill and the community, videos, and more. Runners-up and Community Picks will be eligible for inclusion in the app too. And we haven't even mentioned the prizes! See the main Contests page for the current prize pool.
We'll end up with a beautiful app that has everything we need to get through (and actually enjoy) the holidays — created by all of us!
And after that, what’s next at Food52? Only time will tell what we’ve got up our sleeves.
Recipe Contest Rules
1. If a recipe is not chosen as a winner for one contest, you may re-submit the same recipe for a future contest. (For example, Mom's Mud Pie could be submitted for Your Best Farm to Table Recipe and later for Your Best Kid-Friendly Recipe).
2. You may only vote once for each contest, but you may vote for your own recipe.
3. This is all in the spirit of good fun. No harassing your fellow competitors, or instead of prizes we'll send you a year's supply of durian.
4. You may only submit recipes that are your own. If your recipe was inspired by another source, that's okay — just tell us how you changed it. We'd love for the inspiration behind your recipes to be part of the conversation. Plagiarism, however, is not encouraged. If you plagiarize, people will call you out and you'll look lame. In case you're wondering how we interpret an acceptably inspired recipe, here you go:
Magnolia's Vanilla Cupcakes
From More from Magnolia: Recipes from the World-Famous Bakery and Allysa Torey's Home Kitchen by Allysa Torey
Cupcakes:
- 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.
- In a small bowl, combine the flours. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk and the vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not overbeat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended. Carefully spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them about three-quarters full. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean. Cool the cupcakes in the tins for 15 minutes. Remove from from the tins and cool completely on a wire rack before icing. Makes about 2 dozen cupcakes.
Icing:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 6-8 cups confectioners' sugar
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, about 3-5 minutes. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency. You may not need to add all of the sugar. If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly. (Use and store the icing at room temperature because icing will set if chilled.) Icing can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Makes enough for 2 dozen cupcakes.
Example of acceptably inspired recipe:
Anise Cupcakes with Chocolate Icing
Inspired by Magnolia's Vanilla Cupcakes in More from Magnolia: Recipes from the World-Famous Bakery and Allysa Torey's Home Kitchen by Allysa Torey
Cupcakes:
- 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons crushed aniseed
- 1/2 teaspoon anise extract
- Zest of 1/2 a lemon
- 1 1/4 cups milk
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line two 12-cup muffin pans with cupcake papers.
- Combine the flours.
- In a the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk, cream the butter on medium speed. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the aniseed, anise extract and lemon zest. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients, alternating with the milk. Mix just until smooth. Divide the batter among the cupcake papers. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool the cupcakes in the pans for 15 minutes, then remove from the pans and cool on a baking rack. Makes about 2 dozen cupcakes.
Icing:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
- 5 cups confectioners' sugar
- 1/2 cup milk
- Place the butter in a mixer fitted with a whisk. Beat in the melted chocolate. Gradually beat in 3 cups of sugar, then add just enough milk to loosen the icing; continue beating until very smooth, about 3 minutes. Gradually add the remaining sugar, beating well after each addition. The icing should be smooth and spreadable. Makes enough for 2 dozen cupcakes.
