An Inspirational Day in America’s Most Trusted Kitchen

to Celebrate Betty Crocker's 90th Birthday

My mom was given a Betty Crocker Cookbook for a wedding present and for every Christmas I can remember we would make Betty Crocker’s sugar cookie cut-outs for the holidays. It’s not Christmas until we have those sugar cookies with almond cream frosting and all kinds of colored sprinkles and decorations.

This year Betty Crocker held a contest asking members of Betty's website to plan a birthday bash for Betty's 90th birthday and submit the plan in 1500 characters or less along with a selection of five recipes from the Betty Crocker website. The prize - ten people would be selected to take a trip to Betty Crocker's home in Golden Valley Minnesota.

When I was notified I was a finalist and invited to visit the Betty Crocker Kitchen’s I was thrilled at the opportunity but did not anticipate how inspirational the trip would be. And icing on the cake - my dear friend Merry was also selected.

When you think of a large company like General Mills (# 155 in the fortune 500) it’s easy to think about a corporate entity instead of all the people who make such a machine operate. In the case of General Mills - a behind the scenes look did not reveal a cold operation but a wonderful group of people who clearly love their jobs and truly care about their consumers and providing quality resources to us.

The environment was so welcoming and warm (despite the cold Minnesota climate) it made me want to pack up and move to Minnesota to work with these people in a field dedicated to helping people improve their quality of life through one of life’s necessities – food.

In our day-long visit to the General Mills Headquarters we were given a behind the scenes look at many different aspects of the Betty Crocker operations.

The Photo Lab & Prop Room

We saw food shoots first hands in the GM photo labs. There were numerous sets and a wonderful variety of kitchens.

This area was particularly fascinating to me since I really want to get better at taking pictures of my own creations. I was happy to hear that the photos are not touched up with anything inedible - only natural ingredients are used such as water and oil. One set of stylists was working on the perfect cake ball and another groups was photographing the perfect fajita. it was so interesting to see them hard at work.

The prop room for the photo shoots was one of the highlights of the day - I wanted access to that room to plan my next themed party - there was every color and shape of plate that you could imagine.

The Betty Crocker Kitchens

And yes I do mean kitchens. There were numerous kitchens (I think 19 is the count) all fully functioning and used to test the recipes for various aspects of Betty Crocker and other areas of General Mills. After seeing the operation in action they deserve the honor of America's Most Trusted Kitchen.

Not only did we get to see the Test Kitchens – which were magnificent – but we actually got to cook in the kitchens and prepare items for the closing cocktail party. Our group was assigned the chocolate coal lumps. A simple recipe with cocoa puffs mixed with melted marshmellows and formed into squares and coated with chocolate. A great recipe to make with the kids during the holidays.

Here I am with my guest Felicia and one of the other finalists Beverly with her husband Gerard.

We also got to see the archive room, the food pantries, and the library. GM really opened their doors to us and made the trip incredibly memorable.

The Grand Prize Winner

The grand prize winner was Catherine from Arizona and she was the winner I would have chosen. Her party included a recipe exchange, make your own aprons, a picture with Betty Crocker and a room adorned with red roses but most importantly a reminder that there is a little Betty in all of us. Here she is signing Betty's birthday card.

The Party's Over

But thanks to betty will never end as the inspiration she provides continues. Our night ended with a wonderful cocktail party and presents for the ten finalists and our guests including the newest version of the Betty Crocker Cookbook and a wonderful gift basket of Betty Crocker items.

Happy Birthday Betty and thank you for your continued hard-work and dedication to make our lives easier. I am truly thankful to the wonderful team that planned this amazing day for us including Heather, Jodie, Kristen, Amy, Karen and the countless other members of the GM team that shared so much with us including the staff in the archive room, the photo lab, and all thew wonderful cooks in the kitchens who cooked our food and cleaned up after we cooked in the kitchens. You all made this day so special.

Thank you also for giving me new found inspiration in my culinary education. That inspiration has lead to me create my next blog series:

12 Days of Culinary Education

My holiday gift to me is to teach myself 12 cooking techniques or recipes I have wanted to learn but just haven't gotten around to. From the simple poaching of an egg to the more complicated and ever illusive souflee. Stay tuned and join me in my culinary education.

Happy Cooking and Remember

Take Time to Enjoy a

Little Gourmet Everyday!!