We have a lot of fun in the Adventure Kitchen!  We plan to transform these games into online games or apps you can play at home or anywhere.  But for now, read below to learn how to play Ingredient Smackdown or LunchMania in the real world (you know, without electronic devices). 

You can play Ingredient Smackdown at the grocery store!

Choose a product you like, such as hot chocolate mix.

Choose two (or more) brands of hot chocolate mix (or whatever product you choose) and look at the front label.  Which one do you like the best, just based on the front label?  Form teams based on which front label looks the best to each team.

Now, have someone from each team find the ingredients list on each label.  (Careful!  You have to find the OFFICIAL ingredients list, not just part of the front label!  The official ingredients list always says "Ingredients:"  followed by a list.).

Have each team read the official ingredients out loud.  The winner is the brand that has the most ingredients from nature instead of from factories.

Play LunchMania to see if you have the power to make a super lunch.

A good lunch has super powers - not only does it fill your stomach all the way until the next meal, but it also helps you feel good, act nicely, and think quickly and clearly.  And of course, it tastes delicious!

To play at home, print out a copy of the MyPlate logo, or draw it yourself based on the picture.  Your picture should have the same sections, about the same size, as in the official MyPlate design.

Next, draw or print out pictures of your favorite foods - peanut butter and jelly, broccoli, roast chicken, peaches, pizza, corn, rice, apples, salad, mashed potatoes, tomatoes, pasta - whatever!  The more you have, the more fun the game is.

Mix up all the food pictures into a pile, or stack them up like cards.  Set a timer and race to see who can make a complete meal the fastest by placing the food pictures onto the MyPlate design.  You have to make a full lunch, with something in each section.  If you pick up a picture of something that doesn't have a space on your MyPlate (like birthday cake), it goes in the discard pile.  If you get more than one discard, you're out!

Whoever makes a complete MyPlate meal the fastest, with no more than one discard picture, wins!

More games in development...

Wampanoag Ball -

A ball game like the one played by the native Wampanoag people who were at the first Thanksgiving.  The winner gets to decide what food should be served at the Wampanoag feast!

Adventure Kitchen Trivia -

Test your knowledge from Adventure Kitchen recipe books and classes: 

• Do you know what the term "pate brisee" means in French? 
• Do you know the name of the Aztec emperor whose kingdom was conquered by the Spanish? 
• Do you know what ingredient is considered "sacriledge" in a Cornish pasty? 

You could be a winner!