What would you do with a $1,000 Gift Card to Whole Foods Market? Well, you might have the opportunity to find out! We’re collaborating with food52, an online community for home cooks, to sponsor eight weeks of recipe contests and the chance to win big.

Founded by Amanda Hesser, author and former New York Times food editor and editor of T Living, and Merrill Stubbs, freelance food writer and editor, food52 holds weekly recipe contests and uses crowd-sourcing and curation to bring its members recipes, shopping tips, blogs and conversation. Our partnership with food52 spotlights summer’s flavorful ingredients such as basil and heirloom tomatoes while giving home cooks a strong voice in creating, sharing and celebrating the season’s best recipes.

From today to July 26, a different seasonal ingredient will be announced each week here and on food52.com, and home cooks will have one week to submit an original recipe based on the featured ingredient. The following week, food52 will announce two finalists, and the online community will be able to vote on a winner from the two. Each weekly winner will receive a $100 gift card from Whole Foods Market. The eight winners from each week will be entered into a grand-prize contest for a $1,000 Whole Foods Market gift card!

Here’s a sneak peek at the whole 8-week list:

  • June 7                     Cucumbers
  • June 14                   Fresh mozzarella
  • June 21                   Cherries
  • June 28                   Summer squash
  • July 5                      Basil
  • July 12                    Swordfish
  • July 19                    Ground beef burgers
  • July 26                    Heirloom tomatoes

So get cooking with your recipe suggestions for cucumber! All recipe submissions must meet Whole Foods Market’s Quality Standards, which means that they must be free of hydrogenated fats, artificial colors, flavors, preservatives or sweeteners.

Curious to see what kind of recipes have been selected by food52 in the past? Here are a couple, perfect for your summer table:

Good luck!

Food photos by Sarah Shatz, courtesy of food52

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