My Pillsbury Bake-Off in Las Vegas Top 10 {part 2}

This is a continuation of my article from yesterday. CLICK HERE to read Part 1…..

6) Swooning over GE Appliances: The floor of the actual bake-off is lined with rows and rows of GE ovens. As you can see below, there were 4 rows of 25 ovens preheated to 350 degrees F with a drawer set and countertop for each contestant. GE has been a longtime sponsor of the bake-off and I understand why. Their appliances are beautiful and reliable. I have to say, I have never seen so many ovens in one room! Prior to the event we heard about the new line of GE appliances and how they are constantly evolving to fit the needs of the marketplace. Right in front of the stage they set a beautiful pair of electric double ovens. I’ll definitely be researching those for our upcoming renovation!

7) The Energy of the Bake-Off: I’ve watching many contests on television but never in my life have I truly felt the excitement and positive energy like I did on the floor of the Bake-Off. Roaming the floor and chatting with the contestants was exciting. Their energy was infectious, I found myself rooting for every single one of them. I wish they all could’ve won! During the Bake-Off the contestants have three hours to make their recipe three times at their kitchen station. That is a lot of cooking! During this time they are also taking to press, setting food out to sample, and chatting with the Pillsbury Dough Boy. It is no joke! My hats off to each and every one of them for performing so well under pressure.

8) Sampling the Entries: Pillsbury receives thousands of submissions for the Bake-Off and whittles the entries down to just the 100 that attend the bake-off. By the time they reach the Bake-Off they’ve been made and photographed countless times which is how everyone knows it is so good. And let me reiterate, everything was SO GOOD! Only one of the three batches each contestant makes is presented for judging. The other two are presented for sampling. And sampling I did! It is a good thing I was all about the gym the day after I got home. During the Vegas I chowed on countless treats like German Chocolate Donuts (above), Corn and Crab Bites, Mocha Pinwheels, and Spinach Squares with Creamy Wine Sauce. They were all ah-mazing. Those Bake-Off contestants really know what they are doing. I am so glad I got a book of the recipes to take home!

9) Meeting the Dough Boy: I just have to put this in because it was so darn cool. He was really there!

(photo via General Mills Blog)

10) Watching Glori win $1 million dollars (!!!): While this is number ten on my list it was probably my favorite moment of the entire weekend. Watching someone win $1 million dollars for their amazing recipe is easily one of the most exciting things I’ve ever seen. It was plain to see that Glori was shocked to hear her name called as the finalist and could barely contain herself when she won. SHE WON! Her Loaded Potato Pinwheels took top prize and at this very moment she is $1 million dollars richer. It was beyond thrilling to witness and I hope that she is sipping champagne and getting lots of love from her friends as I write. Her life has changed forever, for the better, and there is nothing better to see than that.

(Disclosure: Pillsbury paid for my travel and attendance of the Bake-Off. The opinions are entirely my own. The lighting wasn’t great for photography so some of the images above have been supplied by Pillsbury as noted.)