The Kansas Wheat Commission, King Arthur Flour, Inc. and Fleischmann's Yeast invite you to attend the third National Festival of Breads, June 22, in Manhattan.

Eight finalists selected from more than 500 entries from across the nation will vie for the NFOB Grand Prize package worth $5,000. All eight finalists will prepare their bread recipes in miniature kitchens inside the ballroom of the Hilton Garden Inn Convention Center in Manhattan.

Visitors can watch finalists prepare their recipes live in the Convention Center ballroom; peruse items at a miniature tradeshow; gain baking insight and information at several baking sessions, enjoy fresh-baked bread and take part in several activities designed for kids, including pretzel-shaping and flour milling.  

Local professional and amateur bakers will help end childhood hunger, through the Share Our Strength's "Bake Sale for No Kid Hungry;" meanwhile, Kansas wheat weaving artisans will show how they make straw art. Finally, the hallways will be filled with the aroma of fresh-baked bread - free to taste - courtesy the Nebraska Wheat Growers Association baking trailer. Participants can register for door prizes, which include a KitchenAid mixer and Panasonic Bread Machine; a host of other door prizes await those who attend the Festival.

The contest sponsors are making a special effort to encourage home baking among military families; folks serving our country will receive free baking ingredients, including flour and yeast.

Those attending the National Festival of Breads can take part in several free educational seminars, each of which lasts about 45 minutes, beginning at 9 a.m. in the Hilton Garden Inn Ballroom.

Speakers and topics include:

• 2013 NFOB Youth Winner Mardi Traskowsky or Herington, Kansas who will demonstrate how to make her winning recipe, "Family Italian Bread."
•   From King Arthur Flour's "Life Skills Bread Baking Program," Paula Gray will present the topic., "Bread 101 and More! With King Arthur Flour." 
•   Sharon Davis from the Home Baking Assoc., and Diane McElroy, ACH Food Companies, have a presentation on creating flat breads, titled "Rise to a New Level."
•  Aaron Clanton, who grew up on a Kansas wheat farm and now works for AIB International, will focus on the many positive attributes of grain foods with his topic, "Baking With Whole Grains."
•  And finally, a panel discussion featuring experts from Fleischmann's Yeast, King Arthur Flour and the Home Baking Association, will focus on Baking Questions and Answers.

The 2013 Grand Prize winner will be announced at a contestants' banquet the evening of June 22. One finished product from each of the eight contestants will be auctioned off in a fund-raiser for Share Our Strength's "Bake Sale for No Kid Hungry."

For more information, log onto the Festival's website, nationalfestivalofbreads.com.