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.  The Cascade Platinum Throwdown  —  #MyPlatinum

Happy Birthday to me!!   On my birthday I woke up to breakfast in bed (my daughter fixed me a bowl of Peanut Butter Captain Crunch) and a sunny morning.  We had a full day of fun ahead of us.   My kids had swimming lessons in the morning and in the afternoon we were planning to have some family over for a little splash time in the pool.   My husband prepared some delicious mini-cheesecakes.  Life was good.

As the day progressed, the sink started to fill up.  “Overflowing” wouldn’t be an exaggeration.  Combined with the cheesecake bowls, measuring cups, and pans (my husband “forgot” to clean up) and the plates from lunch with our family, the scene facing me was nothing less than a challenge. It was the Cascade Platinum Throwdown, Round 1.

The sink of dishes taunted me.  The crust on the cheesecake pan was impenetrable.  The batter on the bowl was tough as nails.

Dishes, cups, flatware all mocked me from their places in the abyss of my sink.   This was going to be some seriously dirty fighting. Did my blood pressure rise?  Did I need to raise my voice?   Absolutely not.  Cascade Platinum (with Dawn!) was on my side.

Cascade made it even easier by putting all of its grease fighting power into these little packets.  Packets are my favorite because there’s no waste.  I don’t have to try to drain the last of a liquid into the detergent chamber.  I don’t spend valuable seconds tapping the box over and over for the last bit of powder to make its way down.

For this challenge, I just popped a packet into the dishwasher.  Next, I put the fighters into the ring.  Ding, ding, ding!   The fight went on for one full cycle.  There was no prewash; no rinsing allowed in this fight.  Dawn planned to throw a tough right hook into the glass jaw of the mixing bowl.   It was a knockout.

I’ve gotta say that Cascade Platinum did a fan-spanking-tastic job on my dishes.  We’ve been using it for load after load since this throwdown and it consistently outperforms the generic detergent that I started using back in the fall.  In the end, saving a bit of money on dishwashing detergent was a wash when I had to do a double-take and wash it all over again. It just used extra resources and time.

We have company over at least two or three times per week in the summer months.  I try to avoid disposable serving pieces because of the increase in waste that it generates.  When it was time to serve a meal, of course I wanted my serving pieces and utensils to be sparkling clean.  Presentation means nothing if there is a piece of baked-on food from the previous meal stuck to a plate!  Until now, it was stressful to wash dishes afterwards because the two or three loads we build up during a get-together translated to five or six loads after having to double-wash things.    Using Cascade Platinum will definitely reduce the amount of time I have to spend at the sink.  Instead, I’ll be able to enjoy time with my friends and family. Thank you, Cascade!  You can connect with Cascade on their Facebook page.

Top Chef judge and editor of Food+Wine magazine, Gail Simmons, partnered with Cascade to discuss why presentation is just as important as preparation.  Here are her thoughts on the subject: · From prep to plating: It’s more than just a great-tasting recipe, but also perfect presentation.Sparkling dishes, shining flat ware and spot-free glasses truly let you put your best food forwardwith culinary creations that pop!· Gail recommends impressing with a Platinum Presentation: “The easiest recipes pop withunexpected, gourmet presentations. Drizzle bright sauces on sparkling white plates or layerdesserts in crystal-clean glassware. Keep your presentation sparkling with Cascade Platinum,which keeps dishes perfect for anytime entertaining and impromptu guests.”

Which serving pieces or casserole dishes are your hardest to clean?  Would Cascade Platinum make life easier for you?