The Pillsbury Bake-Off® Contest has narrowed the field from tens of thousands of entries to the 100 recipes and their creators who will compete for the $1 million grand prize at the finals in Dallas, Texas, April 13-15, 2008.

The 100 competitors range in age from 27 to 72 and include eight men and 92 women. The finalists come from 36 different states, including one from Kodiak, Alaska.

‘It was no small task to determine the best recipes for the competition,’ said Jann Atkins, Pillsbury Bake-Off® kitchens manager. ‘Entrants really embraced the categories and eligible products and created many great recipes that I know consumers across the country will enjoy.’

On April 14, the finalists will prepare their recipes in 100 GE mini kitchens set up especially for the Bake-Off® Contest at the Fairmont Hotel & Resort. The kitchens are equipped with hundreds of measuring cups, bowls, spoons, pans and other equipment the finalists will need to prepare their recipes for the judges. Working in secrecy behind closed doors, a panel of food experts will taste the recipes prepared by the finalists and select the contest winners, who will be announced on April 15.

Each of the 100 finalists won a trip to Dallas for the Bake-Off® finals and a GE microwave with enhanced cooking performance (estimated retail value of $460) and $100 in cash. In addition to the million-dollar prize, the grand prize winner will receive a GE Profile™ Double Wall Oven with PreciseAir™ Convection and chooses $7,000 in additional GE Profile™ kitchen appliances (combined retail value of the Grand Prize is approximately $1,010,000).

America’s Favorite Recipe Award of $5,000 will go to the finalist whose recipe receives the most online consumer votes. (Editor’s Note: Up until March 31, you can vote here)

The 100 recipes were chosen from among consumers’ best original entries in five recipe categories: Breakfast & Brunches, Pizza Creations, Entertaining Appetizers, Old El Paso® Mexican Favorites and Sweet Treats. Finalists had to use at least two or more different eligible products in their recipes, with at least one ingredient from the primary list of products and a second from either the primary or secondary list.

The primary list featured returning eligible products to the contest, including Pillsbury® Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls, Pizza Crust, Create ‘n Bake™ Cookie Dough, Grands!® and Golden Layers® Biscuits, Cinnamon Rolls, Breadsticks, Crusty French Loaf, and Pie Crust; Frozen Oven Baked biscuits; Brownie Mixes; Pillsbury BEST® Flour; and Old El Paso® Tortillas and Taco Shells.

The secondary list featured Old El Paso® Chopped Green Chiles, Refried Beans, Salsa, Red Enchilada Sauce and Taco Seasoning and Green Giant® Frozen Boxed Vegetables. Jif® Peanut Butter, Smucker’s® Jams, Jellies, Preserves, Fruit Spreads and Ice Cream Toppings, Crisco® Cooking Oil, Eggland’s Best Eggs, LAND O LAKES® Stick Butter, Domino® and C&H Sugar and Fisher® Nuts also were new eligible ingredients on the secondary list.

The official contest rules are available at http://www.bakeoff.com; they list the specific eligible products and the amount of each required in a recipe entry.

See our interview with one of the Top 100 finalists, Alison Strunk, by clicking here.

Find Alison’s recipe for Red Pepper and Goat Cheese Bites.

See our story about your chance to vote for your choice in the Top 100 by clicking here.