Most onsite dining operations need monotony breaker events, and most like to engage customers (and expand their off erings) by soliciting recipe ideas. At Philadelphia University, contract management firm Parkhurst Dining Services came up with an innovative way to combine a high-profile theme (the annual “March Madness” NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament) with a competition among students for a spot on the dining hall menu.

In the initial phase, students were asked to submit recipes (including ingredients and preparation directions) for a vote of the camps then prepared by Parkhurst chefs and served to students, who voted to pick the Final Four, and then the two finalists. In the Finals, the students who submitted the two finalist recipes prepared their creations and served samples in the school’s Ravenhill Dining Hall and Common read retail food court.

The winning recipe was Pea Nut Jobs, a chocolate/peanut/butterscotch/coconut dessert concoction made in a brownie pan.