Carson family Real Men Cook winners

Staff Reports

Michelle and Zac Pederson of Carson City won a month of free dinners through the Real Men Cook contest sponsored by Dream Dinners meal assembly service.

"With four young kids, we really have to make our dollar work, and the opportunity to have free dinners for a month is huge," said Michelle Pederson, wife and stay-at-home mom. "It was such a relief."

Participants in the nationwide contest were required to submit a photo of their favorite griller along with their best, or worst, grilling anecdote. Hoping to get a little help feeding her busy family of six, Michelle submitted a picture of her husband Zac manning the grill while enjoying a "very manly" Capri Sun. Zac made it as one of eight finalists, and secured the top spot through an online public voting phase.

Zac Pederson is a firefighter for East Fork Fire & Paramedic Districts, when he is not busy helping the community, he can be found cooking for his crew at the firehouse or delighting his family with grilling specialties such as his homemade balsamic barbecue chicken or his secret meat rub.

"It's nice to have ready to go meals for those days I'm too busy to prep dinner or what I had planned doesn't work out," said Michelle, a Dream Dinners customer for almost three years. "Our favorites are the lemon chicken piccata and the pecan-crusted pork chops."

About Dream Dinners

Founded in 2002, Dream Dinners, Inc. provides guests with monthly menus to select from, then procure and prepare all ingredients in advance, so guests can assemble dozens of meals in about an hour, then take home to freeze. Dream Dinners is headquartered in Snohomish, Wash., and has 120 franchises in 30 states. Information, www.dreamdinners.com