{"id":5619,"date":"2024-03-06T09:31:45","date_gmt":"2024-03-06T17:31:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foodconnectorproduction.com\/pizza2024\/?page_id=5619"},"modified":"2026-03-18T20:21:35","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T03:21:35","slug":"home","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/","title":{"rendered":"Home"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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NOW ACCEPTING ENTRIES TO THE
2026 REAL CALIFORNIA PIZZA CONTEST<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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The California Milk Advisory Board is thrilled to launch its eighth annual search for the nation's top pizza recipes showcasing Real California cheese and dairy.<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The contest is open to professional chefs and culinary students across the United States and includes two categories: On the Menu & California Freestyle.<\/strong><\/p>

The online entry submission period opens on March 1, 2026, and closes April 24, 2026. Eight selected finalists will receive an all-expense-paid trip to compete head-to-head at a live bake-off event on July 13-15, 2026.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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CATEGORIES<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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ENTRY FORM<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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FORMAT<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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For a list of the more than 250 varieties and style of Real California Cheese and the approved brands that produce them, please refer to the California Cheesemaker list<\/a>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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8 FINALISTS
2 CATEGORY WINNERS
1 GRAND PRIZE WINNER<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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DETAILS<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Judged by a panel of professional chefs, the 8 selected finalists \u2013 4 in each category \u2013 will prepare their pizza recipes on July 13-15, 2026 at the Culinary Institute of America at Copia in Napa, California.<\/p>

The chefs will all compete on an equal basis. The pizza tasting and evaluation process will be conducted blind. The top entry in each category will be selected as the Category Winner.<\/p>

The Grand Prize Winner will be selected by the judges based on the best overall score.<\/p>

Category winners will each receive $5,000. The overall Grand Prize Winner will receive an additional $2,500, for $7,500 total.<\/p>

Finalists who are not category winners will receive $1,000 each.<\/p>

Chefs can choose from a selection of more than 250 varieties and styles of award-winning Real California Cheese to create the most innovative, interesting and inspiring recipes!<\/p>

Refer to realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/dairy-product-search\/<\/a> for approved Real California Cheese brands and varieties.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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CATEGORIES<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tON THE MENU\t\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tAn innovative pizza recipe already on your menu or a recipe available as a seasonal item or special Limited Time Offer. Dairy must be a key ingredient, as each recipe must contain Real California Mozzarella and a minimum of one other Real California cheese or dairy products.\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tCALIFORNIA FREESTYLE\t\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tAn original, cheese-centric pizza recipe using a minimum of three Real California cheese or dairy products including Mozzarella alongside ingredients and toppings grown or popular in the Golden State.\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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ELIGIBILITY & ENTRY FORM<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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ELIGIBILITY<\/strong><\/p>

The contest is open for recipe submissions from March 1, 2026 through April 24, 2026. Eligible entrants are:<\/p>

Professional restaurant and pizzeria pizza chefs from anywhere in the United States
Culinary students from accredited U.S.-based culinary schools<\/p>

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS<\/strong><\/p>

  • Pizza Name & Photograph(s) \u2013 an engaging name with 1-2 photos of it prepared and baked, based on the recipe<\/li>
  • Recipe \u2013 specific ingredients including brands and varieties of Real California Cheese as well as preparation and baking instructions for the recipe.\u00a0
    Note:<\/strong> All entries in both categories must include Real California Cheeses and Dairy products, and have no more than three (3) additional toppings (crust\/dough, sauce, and spices do not count as toppings). All entries in both categories must include Real California Mozzarella as one of the required cheeses or dairy products.<\/li>
  • Pizza Description \u2013 How would you describe this pizza on a menu? Write a 2-3 sentence description capturing the flavors, style, etc.<\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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    FORMAT<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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    There will be two rounds to the Real California Pizza Contest.<\/p>

    PRELIMINARY ROUND<\/strong>
    All entries will be scored by an esteemed panel of champion pizza chefs, with the top four entries per category advancing to the final round. Judging criteria includes:<\/p>

    • Use of Real California Cheese \u2013 40%<\/li>
    • Flavor Expectations \u2013 40%<\/li>
    • Pizza Name & Description \u2013 10%<\/li>
    • Photographs \u2013\u00a010%<\/li><\/ul>

      FINAL ROUND<\/strong>
      The 8 selected finalists \u2013 four in each category \u2013 will compete in a live bake-off event at the Culinary Institute of America at Copia facility in Napa, California on July 13-15, 2026.<\/p>

      The pizzas will be tasted and scored by our esteemed panel of champion pizza chefs. A single chef in each category \u2013\u00a0On the Menu & California Freestyle\u00a0\u2013 will be selected as the Category Winner. Following the main competition, the judges will select an overall Grand Prize Winner from all of the finalist pizzas made at the contest.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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      Category Winners:
      $5,000 each<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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      Grand Prize Winner:
      ADDITIONAL $2,500<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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      Remaining Finalists:
      $1,000 each<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      NOW ACCEPTING ENTRIES TO THE 2026 REAL CALIFORNIA PIZZA CONTEST The California Milk Advisory Board is thrilled to launch its eighth annual search for the nation’s top pizza recipes showcasing Real California cheese and dairy. The contest is open to professional chefs and culinary students across the United States and includes two categories: On the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-5619","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5619","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5619"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5619\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9244,"href":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5619\/revisions\/9244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/realcaliforniamilkfoodservice.com\/pizza-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5619"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}