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Annual rice event adds cooking competitions
CLEVELAND, Miss. -- Organizers of Mississippi’s 2015 Rice Tasting Luncheon are adding cooking competitions to the Sept. 18 event.
Each year, this well-known Delta luncheon provides more than 300 dishes prepared by rice-growing families and Delta restaurants. Health screening and nutrition booths with many exhibits and door prizes are also part of the event.
The “Think Rice Cook Off” will offer four categories: appetizer, side dish, main dish and dessert. Competitors can enter more than one category. Contestants must be Mississippi residents who are at least 18 years old. Prepared dishes must be dropped off for judging between 9 a.m. and 9:45 a.m. on Sept. 18 at the Delta State University Walter Sillers Coliseum in Cleveland.
Obtain entry forms by calling the Mississippi State University Extension Service office in Bolivar County at 662-843-8371. Aug. 28 is the deadline to submit entry forms.
Winners will be announced during the Rice Tasting Luncheon, which begins at 11 a.m. In each category, first-place winners will receive $100; second place, $75; and third place, $50. One grand prize winner will receive $300.
Laura Giaccaglia, Bolivar County Extension agent and coordinator, said the Rice Tasting Luncheon attracts more than 1,000 people, and this September marks the 25th National Rice Month.
Tickets for the tasting luncheon are $5 and will be sold at the door or may be purchased in advance throughout the Delta at Farm Bureau and Extension Service offices. For more information, call the Bolivar County Extension office at 662-843-8371.
