CIS Competition Celebrates Diversity of Chili and Raises Money for Food for Lane County
CIS Competition Celebrates Diversity of Chili and Raises Money for Food for Lane County
The 2nd Annual Chili Cook-off Competition was held on Friday, February 27, 2015 to raise money for Food For Lane County (FFLC) as part of the Governor’s State Employee’s Food Drive. FFLC is a division of the Oregon Food Bank Network that strives to alleviate hunger by creating access to food in the Lane County area.
Chili is a spicy stew containing chili peppers that originated in the American Southwest. Regional variations include tomatoes , meat, and sometimes beans.
This year the competition featured six unique chili entries, with titles such as:
- Dr. Pepper Chili
- Ain’t No Beans
- Texas Vindaloo
- New Mexico Chili Verde
- Smokey Chili of Darkness
- Crockpot of Compassion
With adjectives like “spicy”, “hearty”, “smokey”, and “comfort food”, this event was a big hit for everyone who attended this year. Attendees were encouraged to donate 3 cans of food or $10 to become Tasting Judges and vote for their favorite chili entry. Prizes were awarded to the top three winners of the competition, which included a set of bamboo soup spoons for third place, a bamboo cutting board and mineral oil for second place, and a $25 gift certificate to “Down to Earth Home, Garden, and Gift” in Eugene for first place.
After all votes were tallied, the winner of the 2nd Annual CIS Chili Cook-Off was Matt Cranor, the Grant Administrator for the Computer and Information Science Department. Congratulations to Matt and his “Texas Vindaloo” entry, a creative take on blending the flavors of a classic “con carne” America Southwest chili with Indian aromatics.
Thank you to all the faculty, staff, graduate students and undergraduate students attended the Chili Cook-Off Contest this year. With 32 attendees, this event raised $220 for FFLC and contributed several additional pounds of food to our Governor’s Food Drive donation barrel. Overall, the department Computer and Information Science Department raised over $1180 over the course of the month of February to contribute to FFLC.
Thank you and we hope to see you next year!
CIS Department Head Joe Sventek