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Enter Our Recipe Contest for a Chance to Win a $450 Vita-Mix Blender

By: Stepfanie Romine : 10/19/2009 6:00:21 AM : 46 comments : 6,049 Views

Chain restaurants are convenient, and their large menus are full of tasty temptations that try to veer us off our healthy path. Salt, sugar and fat are their ingredients of choice.

You've learned how to maneuver the calorie jungle and avoid chain restaurants' fat bombs and salt-laden landmines. Now we want you to share your secrets!

Introducing the SparkRecipes Un-Chained Recipe Contest.

Entering the contest is easy.

Choose a dish from your favorite chain restaurant and make it over. Then share the recipe with us. (Need inspiration? Check out Tanya's Food on the Run and Diet-Friendly Dining series.)
Upload your recipe--and at least one photo of your creation--to SparkRecipes.com. The title must include the name of your recipe and the words "Unchained Recipe Contest."
Your recipe must be original--not from a cookbook or website.
One recipe per person per category (fast food and casual dining).
The recipe must be created specifically for the contest.
In the description of the recipe, tell us what dish you're making over, what restaurant it came from, and why you chose that particular dish.
Be sure to include all the nutritional info for your dish (recipes that have incomplete or false nutritional info will be disqualified) and give a complete list of ingredients and directions.
Each member may submit one recipe in each category: Fast Food and Casual Dining.

Members can make and vote on the recipes, helping SparkPeople will choose 10 semi-finalists. Our tasting panel will make all the semifinalist recipes, and we will choose a winner.

All semifinalists will win a $25 Spark Certificate for merchandise at SparkPeopleStore.com, and the two winners will receive a high-performance Vita-Mix 5200 blender, worth $450.

Click here to see the official rules and terms for the contest.

Don't miss your chance to enter. Below is the timeline for the contest!

Saturday, Oct. 31: deadline to enter recipes

Nov. 2-7: SparkPeople chooses the top 10 recipes.

Nov. 9-13: SparkPeople's taste panel will test the top 10 recipes.

Nov. 2-13: Members will vote on their favorite recipes by rating them at SparkRecipes.com.

Friday, Nov. 20: Winners will be announced on dailySpark and the SparkRecipes homepage!

Are you going to enter the contest? Have questions? Ask them in the comments below. I'll be happy to answer them!

Click here to to redeem your SparkPoints

You will earn 3 SparkPoints

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Comments (Scroll to end to leave a comment)

MEYLOSE 10/29/2009 2:29:58 PM	I've entered my recipe, yummy. THANKX SP!!! Again and again.	46
GLENDAJ5 10/26/2009 5:45:36 PM	Why can't they have a Canadian Contest????	45
CAROLJ35 10/25/2009 9:39:46 PM	I like to create my own recipes and love to cook, BUT rarely eat out, so I wouldn't know just what the restaurants are serving.	44
SEDFAFI 10/23/2009 10:24:37 AM	My sister has a VitaMix and it makes the best juices.	43
SUGARPUNK52 10/23/2009 3:36:06 AM	I would love to enter but I don't have a printer or scanner to do it with.I look forward to seeing the recipes though.	42
MRSDUDLEY 10/22/2009 3:43:32 PM	oops....just read the rules...only one per category.......and has to be something I hadn't already posted......wow.....I better get to work.......hmmm....what should I makeover???	41
MRSDUDLEY 10/22/2009 2:43:32 PM	OMGosh....this is right up my alley - I'm currently in the process of writing a cookbook that it main focus is recreating restaurant or family favorites to a more healthy version. It's all about adapting our plates!!!! I'll be submitting some of my favorites - check out my recreated version of the Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana Soup......I know you will LOVE it. I loved the soup so much and HAD to figure out how to make it....so I did....and I forwarded it on to a "copycat" website years ago and it has received many many great comments there. Of course that was the full fat version, but I promise this lighter version is even better!!!	40
SP_STEPF 10/21/2009 8:16:36 AM	Upload your recipe--and at least one photo of your creation--to SparkRecipes.com. The title must include the name of your recipe and the words "Unchained Recipe Contest."	39
FITITGIRL 10/21/2009 4:57:36 AM	I'd love to have one too..	38
AALYA3 10/20/2009 8:16:05 PM	i couldn't agree more with CARPENSM. SP should open up to people around the world.	37
CARPENSM 10/20/2009 6:51:21 PM	Its very disappointing that since I live in Canada I can't enter this or any other Sparkpeople contests. I really think this is something that should be addressed in the future as a good number of the members are Canadian. Thank you for listening :)	36
THE_WELL_WITHIN 10/20/2009 12:14:56 PM	I would love to enter - the Vitamix is something that I have wanted for a long time...but as a Canadian - no dice! Oh well... :(	35
LIZABAKER 10/20/2009 11:21:14 AM	We haven't eaten in a chain restaurant for a looooooooooooong time, but man, I could use a new blender! I look forward to seeing the results. I'm a bit put off by the rule that it has to be made up for the contest - I have some great tweaks on Chinese fast food/takeout, namely Panda Express' eggplant & tofu in garlic sauce, but I created it long ago for my blog....	34
AEHEGE 10/20/2009 10:17:56 AM	This is a great idea and I look forward to seeing the recipes you creative cooks send in. I'm not so good at this sort of thing, so I won't be entering.	33
JOANNEC27 10/20/2009 8:58:42 AM	Where do we post the recipe?	32
DIANE1253 10/20/2009 7:40:22 AM	my husband cooks....awe...that is my problem.....lol	31
LOVEPAINTING 10/19/2009 4:46:31 PM	I hate to cook but look forward to the recipe makeovers!	30
EARTHBABE2 10/19/2009 4:28:36 PM	I haven't cooked in years.	29
HARDMAN7 10/19/2009 3:48:11 PM	nice	28
PENNY321 10/19/2009 3:21:14 PM	Looking forward to seeing the results. I'm not too adventurous when cooking and lack imagination for clever changes!	27
AIRL88 10/19/2009 1:56:07 PM	I would but I'm not the best cook!	26
MOM2ACAT 10/19/2009 12:46:05 PM	I don't have a talent for making original recipes, but I'm looking forward to seeing the winning recipes and trying some of them out.	25
MKSELVI 10/19/2009 12:35:33 PM	wow! $450 worth blender.. I would love one.. Only thing is I am not that good cook .LOL	24
MKSELVI 10/19/2009 12:35:14 PM	wow! $450 worth blender.. I would love one.. Only thing is I am not that good cook .LOL	23
NANCY-GIRL 10/19/2009 12:30:10 PM	Wishing all the "permanent legal U.S. residents physically residing in the fifty (50) United States of America and the District of Columbia. " all the best in this contest...	22
CCFIRECRACKER 10/19/2009 12:15:29 PM	What a GREAT idea!!!	21
TERI99 10/19/2009 12:13:52 PM	Sounds fun!	20
LEANMUSING 10/19/2009 12:04:46 PM	sounds interesting I should try one...	19
GRANNYDITTY 10/19/2009 11:54:11 AM	What fun - can't wait to see the results.	18
MRSMELVIN1 10/19/2009 11:51:26 AM	I look forward to see how they trun out..	17
IVYLASS 10/19/2009 11:39:10 AM	I won't have time to enter, but I think this is a wonderful idea! I look forward to the winning entries.	16
AMYLOVESTZU 10/19/2009 11:36:56 AM	I am going to have to look and see if i can find a good recipe to enter thanks	15
SHIRLANGEL 10/19/2009 11:31:22 AM	This is exciting and fun! I'm going to see if one of my recipes is good enough to enter.	14
ELFMAGE7 10/19/2009 11:05:58 AM	Wow. This sounds really fun. Wish I could enter but not sure I'll have the time.	13
MOMMYSARA605 10/19/2009 11:05:17 AM	Not a chance of me entering (I only follow recipes, I don't MAKE them!), but I'm interested to see what recipes people come up with - especially if they can make a healthy version of Chicken Con Broccoli from The Olive Garden - it's may favorite, but way too unhealthy for my eating habits these days.	12
JMONTIE 10/19/2009 10:28:57 AM	I can't wait to see the entries!	11
SP_STEPF 10/19/2009 10:21:40 AM	Official rules and conditions: http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource /motivation_articles.asp?id=1399 (Also linked in the blog post)	10
CRICKETRO 10/19/2009 10:12:05 AM	Can non-US residents participate in the contest?	9
KALORIE-KILLAH 10/19/2009 10:07:02 AM	Yay! You know I'm excited, Stepf!	8
SP_STEPF 10/19/2009 9:44:43 AM	One recipe per person per category (fast food and casual dining). The recipe must be created specifically for the contest.	7
DIGBOI 10/19/2009 9:39:44 AM	Is there a limit on how many recipes one person is allowed to enter? Do we need to give the calorie/ nutrition chart?	6
ARCHIMEDESII 10/19/2009 9:37:25 AM	I think this is a marvelous idea ! I'm going to think about entering. I do have a particularly yummy chili recipe.	5
MYUTMOST4HIM 10/19/2009 9:17:21 AM	I would like to enter...but I also wonder if I can use a recipe of my own that I already posted in SparkRecipes. I read that I can enter one in each category but what about one I already posted?	4
NANNER2121 10/19/2009 8:17:51 AM	This Canadian cannot enter, even though I have a US alternate address because I am not a "legal resident physically residing in the 50 states." sighhhhh.	3
HOPE2BE 10/19/2009 8:07:29 AM	I have owned the Vita Mixer before and its a fabulous blender. It crushes seeds and pulverizes even the skin on oranges and apples and other kinds of fruit for a fruit smoothie. I too am wondering if you can only enter once in each catagory.	2
LEEPFROG95 10/19/2009 7:27:17 AM	Can this recipe be one that we have posted here on spark that is our own???? And it there a limit on the number of recipes you can enter?? please let me know ..... I have to decide which one to enter... thank you Mic	1