“I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Cascade. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.”

I hate doing dishes. A lot.

Even with a dishwasher I still don’t like doing them for some reason. I suppose that it’s all the rinsing and making sure that nothing is dried to or really stuck on the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. Thankfully, I have kids who are old enough to help out with the daily task of rinsing, filling, and putting away of the dishes. Oh, they like it as much as I do, but between the 3 girls and myself it’s only every few days that one of us has to do them if we rotate!

When it comes to dishwasher detergent I switch from brand A to B to C… usually whatever is on sale and I have a coupon for, but one of my favorites is Cascade Complete. Well, it was my favorite until recently.

I gave the new Cascade Platinum packs a try and I really made them work hard to get my dishes sparkling clean and free of all the food that I didn’t rinse off. Yes, you read that right! I filled the dishwasher without rinsing all the food off of the dishes… I did get the big chucks off though.

Pots, pans, silverware, plates, and cups all went into the dishwasher just as you see them in that picture. Covered in pasta sauce!

You know what? It worked! Every single thing came out of the dishwasher super clean, sparkling, and free from all the food. Pretty amazing, right? Now, I wouldn’t always fill the dishwasher that way because I’m sure that after a while all that food on the dishes will break the dishwasher or something. But I know that if the dishes aren’t rinsed all that well they’ll still come out clean.

Now, more than ever, people eat with their eyes, and this is so true with all the pictures that we post Facebook and Instagram. With that in mind, Top Chef judge and editor of Food+Wine magazine, Gail Simmons, has partnered with Cascade to discuss why presentation is just as important as preparation.

You can learn more about Cascade’s partnership with Gail Simmons by viewing videos available on the Cascade Facebook page and Cascade YouTube page.

Here’s the fun part! You can also enter the Cascade “My Platinum” four-week Instagram contest which encourages everyone to upload photos related to the weekly contest themes. Show off how sparkly Cascade makes all your pots, pan and plates!

• Visit the contest landing page for information on how to enter and submit images:
• The landing page will prompt you to signup for Instagram if you don’t use the app (but who doesn’t?).
• Each week, two contestants will be selected to receive a brand new Whirlpool dishwasher. Additionally, one lucky grand prize winner will receive a Platinum kitchen

To win, users have to both register and upload a photo with the #MyPlatinum hashtag and tag @MyCascade. Participants that have not registered will be disqualified from winning.

Each week will have a 6-day entry period where Instagram users can enter the contest with their #MyPlatinum Photo. Cascade will choose two weekly winners and one final grand prize winner after the entry period has ended. Please be sure to include both the #MyPlatinum hashtag and tag @MyCascade in your entries to the contest!

Week 1: My Platinum Plate (Entry Period: 6/3-6/9) Show us your best dish styled from the sparkling plate up!

Week 2: My Platinum Bite (Entry Period: 6/10-6/16) Show us your best bite and most creative use of sparkling silverware!

Week 3: My Platinum Clink (Entry: 6/17-6/23) Show us how you serve up creative concoctions in sparkling glasses. Cheers!

Week 4: My Platinum Table (Entry Period: 6/24-6/30) Show us your sparkling tablescape for your most special celebrations!

Grand Prize Winner (Entry: 6/3-6/30)

How do you keep your dishes clean & sparkling?

“I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Cascade. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.”