Waldorf Astoria Orlando hosts Pillsbury Bake-Off

The granddaddy of all amateur baking contests—the 44th Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest—returns to Orlando this week in a brand new location: the Waldorf Astoria Orlando and Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek hotel. One hundred home cooks from across the country are competing for the $1 million dollar grand prize April 11 -13, 2010. The finalists range in age from 25 to 73 and represent 36 different states, including Alaska and Hawaii, and the District of Columbia.

Held every other year, the Pillsbury Bake-Off has been held in Orlando on previous occasions, and Food Network television crews record the event for a special to be broadcast later in the year. This year the four category winners (Breakfast & Brunches, Entertaining Appetizers, Dinner Made Easy™ and Sweet Treats) will be announced in the evening on April 12th at the Hilton Bonnet Creek, and the four finalists will be flown to Chicago to appear on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” where Winfrey will announce the $1 million dollar grand prize winner on Wednesday, April 14.