I’ll admit it…I LOVE cooking shows…LOVE them. The Food Network is sort of my “go-to” channel when nothing is on, and time can slip away awfully fast when I settle in to watch my favorite tv chefs. Another thing I love, (and have become passionate about since beginning to blog) is community! I began to brainstorm ways I could bring another layer of community to Chasing Supermom, and thought it would be so much fun to combine my love of cooking with my love of interacting with my amazing readers! Each Tuesday, I will post a new cooking challenge, inspired by one of my favorite cooking shows! I am so excited to be able to share resources and ideas with each other every week!

This week’s challenge is inspired by Iron Chef America. While I can’t supply each of your kitchens with commentator Alton Brown (although, admittedly, that would be awesome!), I can supply you with a secret ingredient and a way to gain new recipes and ideas! (And trust me, it will be much more practical than MANY of the items on that show!) I’m what I like to call a “pantry chef”, and like to use sensible, practical, on-hand ingredients to create meals that EVERYONE in my family will eat! I always mention the “Supermom Trifecta” when I blog about recipes…Cheap, Easy, and The Kids Will Eat It! I will try to select ingredients and challenges that are practical for the typical Chasing Supermom reader (busy parents!) You can expect to see Iron Chef challenges, Chopped challenges, 30 minute meals, $10 dollar dinners…etc! I’m very excited to pool our recipes and give each other new ideas!

Each Tuesday, I will post the recipes that were sent in during the week, along with the next week’s challenge. There are no prizes….This isn’t sponsored by any company, and if you send in a response that fits the challenge, I will publish it! The real winner here is YOU. I’m so excited to hit the jackpot of new recipes and ideas each week…learning from other moms, and finding new ways to feed my family! Are you ready for your first challenge?

(It’s killing me not to say, “And now, in the words of my uncle…” but I don’t have a Japanese uncle, and I don’t think any of my uncles are all that passionate about cooking at all…) So, your secret ingredient for the week is……cream of mushroom soup! I’m starting us off pretty easy just to get the ball rolling! (They may get harder, and I have some great seasonal ideas as well!)  Ready to participate?!

1. Find your favorite recipe that includes cream of mushroom soup. ANY type of recipe will work for the challenge…any meal…any time of the day! I do ask that you send in recipes that you have personally made before, so that only “keepers” are shared with our community!

2. Email me your recipes! (You can use the Contact Me form located at the top of my Chasing Supermom blog, or you can click HERE!)

3. Be sure to include the name of the recipe, the ingredients, and the instructions on how to prepare the dish! You can also include a 1-2 sentence summary of how your family responded to the dish, or things to note! Ie- “My kids LOVED the casserole, and even asked for seconds!” or “You can omit the fresh basil and use x amount of dried if necessary,” or “This freezes well,” etc.

4. Stay tuned for NEXT Tuesday, when the recipes that are shared will be posted, and have fun surfing through lots of new recipe ideas!

Dig through your cookbooks, or jot down the go-to favorite that uses cream of mushroom soup, and send them in! This feature won’t work unless you get involved! The more people that share, the more we all benefit! I’m so excited! Can’t wait to read your recipes!! Have fun!