2/15/2016 – DOES YOUR BURGER STACK UP? 2016 DERBY BURGER CHALLENGE OPENS TODAY

February 15, 2016. Louisville, KY. – Do you have a winning burger recipe?  The Kentucky Derby Festival and the Kentucky Beef Council are looking for the next ‘Derby Burger’ Champion. Starting TODAY, hamburger recipes will be accepted for submission in the fifth annual “Derby Burger Challenge,” sponsored by the Kentucky Beef Council. Recipes can be submitted online at www.kdf.org/beef from February 15 to March 6, 2016.  All burgers must be 100 percent beef.

Derby Festival and burger fans can help choose the finalists in the competition. In March, 8 preliminary finalists will be chosen from all submissions and then posted on the Festival’s Facebook page (www.Facebook.com/DerbyFest) with instructions on how to vote for your favorite Derby Burger recipe.  Those votes will help narrow it down to the final four Derby Burger contestants who will then move on to the cook-off on March 21st .

“This partnership with Kentucky Derby Festival has been a great way to showcase Kentucky’s love for a great beef burger! We’re looking forward to crowning the fifth Derby Burger this year!” Alison Smith, Kentucky Beef Council.

The burger recipes are judged based on Taste, Appearance, Creativity and Ease of Preparation.  The winning burger will be recognized in Louisville-area Kroger stores and samples will be featured at the Kentucky Derby Festival’s BeerFest presented by American Founders Bank. Official rules of the competition can be found online at www.kdf.org/beef.

The winning chef also receives VIP tickets to Thunder Over Louisville, tickets to Waterfront Jam and BeerFest at Kroger’s Fest-a-Ville, as well as a $100 gift certificate to Kroger and a grilling package from Kentucky Beef Council.

From February 15 to April 17, all purchasers of fresh ground beef at any of the Kentuckiana Kroger stores will receive a coupon at checkout (on the bottom of the receipt).  The message includes an entry code to register online at www.kdf.org/beef for a chance to win VIP tickets to a Waterfront Jam Concert at Kroger’s Fest-a-Ville or BeerFest presented by American Founders Bank.

Since 1956, the Derby Festival has worked to bring the community together in celebration. The Festival is an independent community organization supported by 4,000 volunteers, 400 businesses and civic groups, Pegasus Pin sponsorships and event participation. This involvement has made the Festival the largest single attended event in Kentucky and one of the leading community celebrations in the world.

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