Hey Ladies!

Just when you were startin' to get weepy about this phase of the competition comin' to a close, we have just the remedy - in the form of $40,000! Are your ears perked now? I thought so!

So, here's the deal, girls. We need all of you! We're starting the "Recipe" portion of the competition, beginning July 19th, and here are the exciting details, hot off the press! Every Monday through Friday, for 16 weeks, we're going to ask y'all to send in your Cream Cheese recipes in four different categories - no videos required! We will choose a winning recipe EVERY DAY, and get this - each winner receives both 500 bucks and the chance for their Cream Cheesy recipe to be featured in the big community Cookbook I've been talkin' about!

Yes, you read that right! I keep rubbin' my eyes to make sure this is really real! I am so thrilled that the great people at Kraft are making this all possible for us - I promise you, it's a true dream come for yours truly as well! Bein' at the helm of this amazing community has totally taken over my life, and Philly Cream Cheese and Philly Ladies are all I think about! I don't count sheep anymore, I count bricks of Philly Cream Cheese!

I bet y'all have questions, so let me give some details here. This time, both women AND men can enter! I know it's the Philly sisterhood, but we can open our doors and arms to all our clever cookin' dads and brothers and husbands and sons, right? I'll be happy to get some boys participatin'! Now, while you don't need a video to accompany your recipe, we always love and welcome photos, so feel free to include a sassy shot of your scrumptious dish. The categories we'll be working with each week are Make to Impress, Time Crunch, International, and Anything Goes! Now, we will do each of these categories in conjunction with Side Dish, Appetizer, Entree and Dessert - four weeks of Side Dish in each separate category and so on. This way, you can be inspired by all of the categories for each dish! Can you send us your recipes from the cooking competition? Sure! We would also love some new ones, too!

I just wanted to remind y'all, FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS! Yowza! And remember, we'll be giving out this cash prize to one winning recipe every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday for 16 weeks! That means we're giving away $40,000 buckeroos to all of you!

You can find some questions and answers HERE, and there will be more info to come, so stay tuned. Be sure to start thinkin' about what you'll be makin' for me - I can't wait to see all your recipes start to pour in on July 19th, y'all!

Love and Best Dishes!

Paula