Going local with the Sears Chef Challenge

UPDATE: Please go online today, tomorrow…every day until July 10th and vote for Chef Theo. A vote for Theo is a vote for Bucks County!

I have a deep, dark secret to confess. I don’t watch the Food Network, or Channel, or whatever it is. I am not a Iron Chef junkie, or in love with Paula Dean, or whomever is the latest cooking queen. People kind of assume I am because I write about food and I cook but…to be honest I only catch it when I treat myself to a manicure a couple of times a year (they have it on at the salon).

But…add a little local interest, and I’m there!

Guess who is one of just 24 chefs selected from across the nation to take part in the first ever Sears Chef Challenge? Bucks County’s very own Chef Theo Petron, of A la Maison Personal Chef Service in Newtown! The Sears Chef Challenge aims to find the nation’s next up-and-coming chef, while raising money for the nation’s food banks and related local charities. The chefs compete by completing a variety of culinary challenges, culminating in the Sears Chef Challenge Championship Finals at the Kenmore Live Studio in Chicago.

What is really exciting is that Chef Theo has selected the Bucks County Foodshed Alliance as the designated charity. Should Theo win, the Foodshed could receive up to $20,000.

But he needs your votes to win!

Starting June 26 and lasting until July 10, the public will have the opportunity to view individual chef videos and vote for their favorite. You can (and should) vote EVERY DAY. Chef Theo’s success in this first stage will result in $5000 being donated to the Bucks County Foodshed Alliance. Semi-finals are late July in Chicago, where winning will result in an additional $5000 for BCFA. Finals are in November, and winning it all adds a final $10,000 for BFCA. Total possible: $20,000.

Can you imagine what this type of donation would do for local, sustainable foods in our area? Please get online at www.searschefchallenge.com and vote starting Saturday, June 26th. Watch a video about Theo here or stop by The Solebury Club Cafe to meet him and taste some great food.

Tell all your friends, family and neighbors.  A vote for Theo is a vote for Bucks County!

Look for Bucks County Taste on Facebook and Twitter!