Siblings Make Semifinals in Uncle Ben's Cooking Contest

Two Land O’ Lakes kids with a passion for cooking with their parents have made it to the semifinal round in “Ben’s Beginners” contest sponsored by Uncle Ben’s rice.

Five winners from a field of 25 semifinalists will be selected to win $15,000 cash each and $30,000 cafeteria makeovers for their schools.

That suits the Tomasello children fine since sister Catie, 11, attends Pine View Middle School and brother Zach, 9, goes to Pine View Elementary.

Semifinalists’ dishes will now be judged based on creativity, knowledge of the recipe, the inclusion of healthy ingredients and a round of online voting that’s open to the public, according a media release from Uncle Ben’s.

Online voting is open through Nov. 26 at www.unclebens.com.

To make it to the semifinal round, the Tomasello children each created videos of themselves and their families making rice-based dishes while they discussed the experiencing of cooking together. The purpose of the contest is to promote not only healthy eating, but also family bonding.

“Each of these finalists have formed a unique bond with their families just by getting into the kitchen and cooking healthy meals – and that’s the heart of the Ben’s Beginners movement,” Lara McCauley, Vice President of Corporate Affairs for Uncle Ben’s parent company Mars Food North America, was quoted in the media release as saying. “Learning to cook is as essential as learning to read and write and these 25 finalists prove that an education in the kitchen is not only fun, but can lead to healthier lifestyle habits.”

Catie’s dish is a teriyaki salmon with Uncle Ben’s rice.

“I like cooking with my family because it’s a fun way to spend time with them,” she explained.

As for her passion for cooking, she says her favorite dishes to make are the salmon entered in the contest and peanut chicken lettuce wraps.

“Those are really good,” she said.

Zach whipped up fiesta rice for his video.

“I like my dish because it is fun and delicious,” he said. “Cooking with your parents helps you get to know them more.”

To check out Catie and Zach’s videos, just visit the Uncle Ben’s website at www.bensbeginnerscontest.com. Votes can be cast once daily per video.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Tomasello family