Chef Michael Watz, instructor at Washburne Culinary Institute in Chicago, is the winner of a $2,000 cash prize for his recipe entry in the Mars Foodservices Chef Showdown 2013 Dessert Recipe Contest. His original recipe, Mascarpone Twix and Shout, combines Twix Caramel Cookie Bars and mascarpone cheese to create a filling for cream puffs topped with roasted mangoes, fresh raspberries, and chocolate sauce.

“It’s a new recipe, and it was developed with Twix Caramel Cookie Bars as the inspiration,” Watz says. “I wanted a unique way to present the candy in a new and meaningful way. It’s a contemporary dessert that can be marketed in an upscale restaurant, but also would be appropriate as a mid-price range recipe at a steakhouse wanting to add something different. The Chef Showdown recipe contest was a great opportunity to work with a quality product. I certainly enjoyed the creativity aspect of it, and I look forward to working with Mars candy brands in any capacity.”

Mars Foodservices awarded two runners up. The first was Adam Hegsted, executive chef at Coeur d’Alene Casino in Worley, Idaho, for his dessert creation, Molten Snickers Cake with Whipped Peanut Butter and Warm Caramel Sauce. The second was Amber Croom, head pastry chef at Bellini’s Ristorante & Bar in Birmingham, Alabama, for her recipe, Twixmisu Cocktail.