Mushrooms take top prize in Heinz's National Tailgate Recipe Contest

"Tailgating in America is serious business, and these recipes will be a welcome addition to anyone's fall tailgating menu." - Pittsburgh chef Rania Harris

PITTSBURGH, Sept. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Just in time for tailgating season, Heinz (NYSE: HNZ) recently announced the winners of its national Tailgate Recipe Contest - created to showcase the best tailgate fare from across the country.

Beginning with last season's National Football League playoffs, noted Philadelphia chef, author and television personality, Jim Coleman, joined Pittsburgh chef Rania Harris in judging hundreds of entries for their creativity, taste and originality. After taste-testing the ten recipes that were selected as finalists, Chris Wierchowski, 23, of Venice, Florida, was named the first place winner for his winning recipe: "Tangy Sportsman Mushrooms."

"Chris' Tangy Sportsman Mushroom recipe was excellent," said Coleman. "I really liked the combination of the mushrooms, cheese, sausage, and the three Heinz products, Ore-Ida(R) Chopped Onions, Jack Daniel's(R) Original No. 7 Recipe(TM) Barbecue Sauce and Heinz(R) 57 Sauce, which gave it the extra kick I think tailgaters will love. We were very impressed by the submissions and considered all of them winners."

Chef Harris, also the host of a cooking show and a well-known Pittsburgh chef, was surprised by the creativity of the recipes. "I thought there were some extraordinarily creative recipes, which tasted great and were surprisingly easy to prepare," said Harris. "Tailgating in America is serious business, and these recipes will be a welcome addition to anyone's fall tailgating menu."

In addition to the grand prize winner, two runners-up were also selected. They were: Janice Elder, of Charlotte, N.C., for her Caribbean Quesadillas recipe; and Renee Pokorny, of Ventura, Calif., for her Kick-Off BBQ Teriyaki Chicken Grilled Pizza recipe. Chris' winning recipe is also featured in the newly released book, Heinz Field Touchdowns to Tailgating, written by Charles Reichblum, with recipes by Rania Harris. Information about the book, along with Chris' recipe and those from the contest runners-up are available on the Heinz website, http://www.heinz.com. Wierchowski will attend a special sampling event on Sunday, September 11, 1:00 p.m., at Heinz Field. His recipe as well as others featured in the cookbook will be served up for hungry Pittsburgh Steelers fans. Coverage of the sampling is invited.

Tangy Sportsman Mushroom Recipe

Ingredients:

2 pounds large mushrooms

4 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup Ore-Ida(R) Chopped Onions

1/2 pound ground pork sausage

1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

2/3 cup Jack Daniel's(R) Original No. 7 Recipe(TM)

Barbecue Sauce

4 tablespoons Heinz 57(R) Sauce

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove stems from the mushrooms, leaving caps intact. Chop the stems. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. Then lightly brush the mushroom stems with the melted butter. In the remaining

butter, cook and stir the sausage, chopped mushroom stems, and onions until tender and the sausage is fully cooked. Gradually mix the cream cheese, Jack Daniel's Barbecue Sauce and Heinz 57 Sauce into the saucepan. Continue stirring until smooth. Heat until warm. Stuff the mushroom caps with the sausage cream cheese mixture and sprinkle the stuffed caps with Parmesan cheese. In a shallow pan, bake the caps at 350 degrees for 8-12 minutes or until hot.

SOURCE H.J. Heinz Company