February means soup time at Simantel. This year, the annual Simantel Soup cook-off brought us many delights, but Patty Moye’s Italian Sausage Soup with Tortellini stood out from the competition. Patty claimed a cash prize of $40 and a free night stay in the lodges at Wildlife Prairie Park! Check out the recipe and more photos after the jump.
Last month’s appetizer contest was a success, if you were Sheri Kelley. Or if you were one of us who didn’t enter the contest but still got to eat a bunch of free appetizers.
Our staff documentarian was on the scene:
Recipe after the jump… Read more…
Another month, another contest – this one to see who can make the most outstanding salad. Before making their ruling, the judges gave us all a lot of baloney about how it was such a hard decision, everything was so delicious, blah, blah, blah…then made the only call that really made sense, awarding first prize to Operations Coordinator Sue Impens. Her Cha-Cha Chicken Salad was tangy and savory, with a hint of curry that made your taste buds say, “What the…?” Congratulations Sue. You deserved it. (Recipe after the jump.)
Sue shows off all that's left of her award-winning salad after a pack of dingos attacked the office.
In a brutal spanking of the staff’s collective fancy pants, Executive Creative Director/VP Maggie Whalen ran away with first prize in our annual Fancy Drink Contest last week. The winning concoction, the PB&J, was weirdly delicious, combining Franjelico with cranberry juice to create a whimsical mini-martini that outfancied the other contestants by a fancy mile.
So here’s the winning recipe:
The PB&J
Franjelico
Cranberry juice
INSTRUCTIONS: Mix ‘em up.
(More recipes after the jump.)
On March 9, Simantel staff threw down in our annual soup-making competition. Coming out on top of the nine-soup field was well-known soup lover Mike Stone, Simantel VP and Media Director, with a Tortellini Soup that ate more like chili mac than soup. Below, he has graciously shared his recipe (although he is almost certainly lying to protect his title).
Mike Stone’s Winning Tortellini Soup
In a large soup pot mix:
2-1/2 cups water
1 package frozen chopped spinach (optional)
5 cans (10-3/4 oz.) minestrone soup (I used a dry mix)
2 lbs. Italian sausage browned and drained
Cook 1 package Mona’s tortellini in chicken broth according to package directions. Add tortellini to soup and cimmer 20 minutes. If soup is too thick, add chicken broth from tortellini until desired consistency. Top with shredded cheese.
The key, Mike says, is using hot Italian sausage. Sure, Mike. Thanks.
Simantel won 5 Gold and 5 Silver ADDY awards at the Peoria Ad Club’s annual awards ceremony on February 27. We also scored a “Judge’s Choice Award” for the redesign of our office space.
Work for Caterpillar, Lakeview Museum, Illinois Central College, and Easter Seals also won awards.
Here is a photo of our glorious booty.
It was a harmless question: which guy at Simantel can grow the most awesome beard?
The answer became an office-wide quest for personal growth…
