Time to enter the 2010 Great Garlic Festival Recipe Contest and Cook off

Time to enter the 2010 Great Garlic Festival Recipe Contest and Cook off
1. Recipes for the 2010 Great Gilroy Garlic Festival Recipe contest and Cook off must be original and specify at least six (6) cloves of fresh garlic, or the equivalent packaged form(3teaspoons minced or chopped). Recipes must serve six(6), be fully prepared plated and ready for presentation to the judges within a maximum of two (2) hours. Contestants may enter as many recipes as they wish one entry per envelope or internet transmission. Each entry must be typewritten or hand printed legibly in recipe format. A photo of each entry should be included with the recipe submission. Recipe format lists ingredients in order of use with amount/quantity, followed by step by step method of preparation. The contestant name, address and telephone number must be included with each recipe submission.
2 Professional chefs, cooks, food stylists and other food specialists are prohibited from entering this contest. Previous Gilroy Garlic Festival Cookoff contest winners( first, second, third place) are in eligible to enter for three full years. Contest is open to Us and Canada residents only, twenty one (21) years of age and older. Void where prohibited, taxed or restricted by state or local law.
3 Recipes must be mailed, or transmitted via the Internet to Gilroy Garlic Festival Association I nc 2010 Great Garlic Recipe Contest and Cookoff Po Box 2311, Gilroy CA 95021-2311 and postmarked no later than May 1, 2010. The internet address is clove@gilroygarlicfestival.com All recipes submited as entries become property of the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association, Inc. By entering the contest, all participants consent to the commercial use of their name, picture, likeness and recipe for advertising and publicity purposes without further compensation.
4 Food professionals will consider qualifying entries. These food professionals select the eight (8) finalists. Notification and details of the Cookoff participation will be made to the eight finalists prior to June 15, 2010. A certification of recipe originality will be required from each finalist.
5 Finalists provide the ingredients necessary for their recipes( with the exception of garlic which the festival provides) as well as all required cooking utensils (stoves, sinks and refrigerators will be provided.) Include a picture of the prepared dish with your entry. The photo does NOT have to be professionally done , it serves as an aid in the initial review process.
6 On July 24, 2010, dishes prepared by the finalists on the festival Cookoff Stage, will be judged by a panel of five judges food experts and celebrities. Selection of the five judges is at the sole discretion of the Garlic Festival Cookoff Committee. The basis for the judging will be ease of preparation, flavor, texture, creativity, appearance and use of garlic. The decision of the judging panel is final and binding.
7 On stage participation during the cookoff is limited to the contestants and volunteer helpers provided by the Gilroy Garlic Festival. Family and friends of the contestants are NOT permitted on stage during the cook off.
8 Prizes at the Great Gilroy Garlic Festival Recipe Contest are offered only to those finalists who participate in the Cookoff on July 24, 2010. The prizes are $1000 for first prize, $750 for second place, and $500 for third place and $100 for each of the other five finalists. All taxes are the sole responsibility of the winners.
9 Hotel accommodations for two nights are provided at festival expense. Finalists are expected to make their own travel arrangements to Gilroy California. If appropriate, air travel will be reimbursed at coach class fare and rental car at mid size or smaller rate for a maximum of two days, rental car costs not to exceed $55 per day. Any other arrangements will be at the discretion of the Garlic Festival

"Top Chef" Fan Favorite to Host Garlic Showdown
Jun 15, 2009
By Staff Report The Gilroy Dispatch
Fabio Vivani, the Fan Favorite for Bravo TV's "Top Chef" will host this year's Gilroy Garlic Festival Garlic Showdown July 26, officials said.
Vivani grew up in Florence, Italy and is known for incorporating Italian, French and Spanish styles into his food. He specializes in molecular cuisine, and uses cutting-edge technology to prepare food. He is the owner and executive chef of Cafe Firenze Italian Restaurant and Martini Bar. He is also William Shatner's private chef.

As host for the Garlic Showdown, Vivani will talk about what the chefs are doing, how hard it is to cook in such a short amount of time, and cooking in general, said 2009 festival President Kirsten Carr.

"He's the host, the MC," she said.

Carr described Vivani as "incredibly energetic."

In the competition, four Bay Area contestants will have two hours to prepare and serve a dish that uses a "secret ingredient."

While Vivani didn't win "Top Chef," he won the love of his audience.

"In the week after I got kicked out from the show I received over 2 million e-mails. Now you have an idea of how many two million e-mails are? Well I did not and all the computer servers at my restaurant went down and we had to update all of them with a new Internet provider," Vivani said in his Bravo TV blog.

Since the show, he opened two restaurants in Ventura Country, published a cookbook and opened a foundation that focuses on encouraging children's health through proper nutrition