Our 9th annual Hands-On Cook-Off contest challenge just wrapped and we’re thrilled to announce the winners! Each year, this contest is driven by a passionate message: family meals matter. We want to inspire kids and teens to cook together and reap the lifelong benefits of sharing family meals.

This year, we are truly amazed by all of the creative and inspirational entries that were submitted! Each entry tells a unique story about the joy of cooking and eating together! Thank you!

We are extremely pleased to announce this year’s winners, as follows:

Multigenerational Category

Grand Prize: Gluten-Free Singapore Noodles

Runner-Up: Pie Making Day with Bea

People’s Choice: Kale Sushi

Youth Category

Grand Prize: Apple Crisp (with a Twist)

Runner-up: Buttercream Pasta with Calamari

People’s Choice: Delicious Baked Matcha Donuts

Random Draw for Submission of a Contest Recipe

Vanilla Custard Fruit Tart

Congratulations to each of you! We received so many great entries this year, and our panel of judges would like to acknowledge the following Honourable Mentions:

Multigenerational Category:

Breakfast Crescent Rolls

Murphy Monkey Banana Pancakes

Lila Cooks Mama Feng’s Famous Wontons

Youth Category:

Deya and Renee’s AMAZING Vanilla Cupcakes

Delicious Baked Matcha Donuts

To everyone who entered, your videos will inspire many youth and families across BC to get into the kitchen and start cooking together!

All of our judges and team were inspired by the positive energy of participants, the teamwork shown, the stories told, and of course all of the delicious recipes shared with us this year!

Here are a few comments from our judges:

• “What a treat to watch this delicious dessert made so simply; I was totally inspired to make it at home. I loved the sense of humour and fun that the two girls were having while making this. I hope to see more from them in the future!” - about Making Baklava with Judi and Iman
• “Excellent dish for busy days” - about Easy, No-bake Brownie Trifle
• “You can tell they are really having a great time.” - about Breakfast Crescent Rolls

In addition, we loved the enthusiasm and excitement we received from contest participants who said things like: “I’m pretty happy to [make a video] again with my grandkids—they were stoked to do it (making memories).” And: “The girls had a blast with the video - and honest to goodness all I did was hold the camera and separate two eggs.  They did all the cooking, baking and decorating themselves as well as editing of the video…”

One of the teachers who participated with her class shared the positive impact of the contest: "I wanted my students to be involved with cooking beyond the classroom and to be part of something bigger... it encouraged them to make a recipe of their choice with the budget that they had. For many, students got to make family-owned recipes that drew them closer to their roots while sharing it with their friends and peers."

Highlights of the 2018 Hands-on Cook-off Contest:

• We received 46 awesome contest videos! Which you can peruse here.

• A variety of recipes were showcased - from wontons to quinoa salad to baklava to doughnuts to hamburger soup and more!

• Some children were so excited about the contest that they took the lead and filmed their video entirely on their own!

• Family traditions and recipes were shared with us and showcased through the videos.

• Cooking videos were submitted from 18 different communities across the province.

Thank you to everyone who participated this year, and to all of our amazing judges and community supporters who helped share the news about the contest. The Hands-on Cook-off contest has become an annual celebration of the family dinner movement in BC and we hope that it inspires you to continue making time for family meals.