Vanderbilt Financial Group kicked off a new company wide culinary competition on December 23rd2015. Crock-Pot Wars is a 5 part competition where any member of VFG can participate in hopes of creating a memorable dish to accumulate points. There will be 5 rounds, one each month from December to May. Each round, the eaters become the voters tasting all the dishes and picking their favorite. The votes are tallied and the first, second, and third place competitors are awarded points. The contestant with the most points after the 5th round will be crowned the Crock Star.
The theme of our first round was appetizers with the only rule being that dishes must cook from 9am to 2pm when will be served. Six people participated in round one and did not disappoint. Each dish was different and delicious. Vanderbilt Financial Advisor Mark Kaplan treated us to a Kaplan family favorite of Cranberry Meatballs. Chief Compliance Officer Barry Champney prepared a large helping of Kielbasa and Kraut, while Controller Lori Panessa treated us to some tasty taco dip and Operations Manager Joe Berbenich did not disappoint with some signature spicy meatballs.
Round 1 ended in a tie between Technology Specialist Ronnie Hanif’s deadly bacon wrapped smokies, and Chief of Staff Heidi Distante’s buffalo chicken dip. Second and third place went to Lori and her taco dip while Barry and Joe shared the third place spot.
Our next Crock Pot Wars will be held on January 22nd with a theme to keep us warm – soups & stews.
