Kalamazoo Valley Dishes Up Activities at Two Locations at this Weekend's Chili Cook-Off

KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Kalamazoo Valley Community College's Center for New Media is the official headquarters for this year's Downtown Kalamazoo Chili Cook-Off event on Saturday, Jan. 28. The Center for New Media is located on Kalamazoo Valley's Arcadia Commons Campus at 100 E. Michigan Ave. on the corner of the Kalamazoo Mall and Michigan Avenue.

Event organizers will be distributing Chili Cook-Off bingo cards, selling commemorative spoons and directing traffic to chili-tasting locations. The event begins at 11 a.m. and ends at 2 p.m.

Kalamazoo Valley Community College culinary and sustainable food club members will be serving up its own creation at Brewery Outre at 567 E. Ransom St. The dish is a hearty, sweet and spicy chili composed of two kinds of beef, multiple peppers and chilies and includes Brewery Outre's newest release, the Cerberus Porter as part of the ingredients.

Student chefs include Britney Flores, Ryan Egeler, Shawn Thompson, Morgan Nakayama, Jennifer Burnett and Heather McLogan.

Club advisor Kyle Mitchell said that the students have been the driving force behind the college's participation in the Chili Cook-Off. "Our students have a great passion for the culinary profession. I believe their entry will be a genuine crowd pleaser."

For 18 years, the free and family-friendly Chili Cook-Off event has been a community favorite. For more information, visit downtownkalamazoocookoff.com.

Kalamazoo Valley Community College's culinary arts program was established in 2015 as a part of its sustainable food systems program. Students are trained in state-of-the-art facilities in the Marilyn J. Schlack Culinary and Allied Health Building on the Bronson Healthy Living Campus in downtown Kalamazoo. Information about the college is available at www.kvcc.edu.