We loved Haylie Duff in Napoleon Dynamite, Material Girls and as Sandy on 7th Heaven. When she wasn't entertaining us on screen, she was gracing us with songs like "A Whatever Life" and "Once in This World."

Now Duff has taken her talents to the kitchen, showing off her cooking skills in her online blog, a cookbook  and on Cooking TV's The Real Girl's Kitchen. Catch her this fall in her new series Haylie's America.

Duff partnered with Philadelphia Cream Cheese to host a contest on social media where fans were encouraged to submit their most creative snack ideas and use hashtags #PhillyFlavors and #contest. From July 13-July 21, fans can vote for their favorite ideas with a winner heading to New York City for the ultimate prize of $5,000. Duff will choose the lucky winner.

Enstarz caught up with Duff to get details on the contest, what one needs to do to show creativity and her transition from acting to celebrity chef.

Enstarz: What got you interested in being part of this contest?
Haylie Duff: Well, when they first asked me to take part in this contest, what drew me to them is that Philadelphia is the brand that I work with all the time in my own kitchen. I eat it on a regular basis, I put it on my recipes so right off the bat- that was something I was excited to work with because it's a brand that I truly love. But I'm also a sucker for a good contest and when I found out what the plan was and how people were asking to submit their favorite flavor combinations and I was gonna get to see how people were pairing things with what, I was just really excited to be a part of that.

What are you looking for in this competition to be impressed?
What I'm looking for is just creativity. Honestly, the wacky combinations are gonna probably be the ones I take the most notice of because, for me, that's what I'm drawn to when it comes to snacking. Iif I see a unique flavor combo I'm instantly drawn to it. So I'm looking for that and obviously things that are delicious.

What creative ideas do you have when it comes to snacking?
Well, I feel like I'm just a snack queen so I could talk about that for a long time. For me, I love the cream cheese spreads that are olives or veggies or the jalapeno, I love the really savory flavors...with that being said, I also really love a sweet and savory combo.

Are there any snacks you think would be ideal for the summertime?
One thing I really love is the jalepeno cream cheese on top of watermelon for summer. I feel like that's a really fun combo. You could dress it up with fresh mint. I also love the olive or the veggie spread on top of flatbread with tomatoes and cucumber.

What can fans expect from Haylie's America?
I think what people can expect is a lot of fun. We've been in the south, we're heading to Vegas, we're headed to Denver so we've been really on the road and we've been calling it the Snapchat version of Real Girl's Kitchen, it's a little less polished, it's a little more real-life feeling. I also think people are going to be surprised at the places I end up cooking.

What was it like going from playing fictional characters to just being yourself on camera?
That was a little strange to me at first. Season 1 of Real Girl's Kitchen, I can remember one of the first episodes sort of being like, 'This is hard not to be playing myself.- basically to not be somebody else.' My crew from my show is very small and I've had the same people on the show since day one and I think that plays a big part of it. I'm looking at people that know me very well so I really feel I have the freedom to just be myself versus feeling like I'm entertaining someone or putting on a show.

With fast food being a convenient way to have a meal, what suggestions do you have for recipes that are healthy but fast to prepare?
One of the things I noticed being really popular on my blog in the last few months is quite a few one-skillet suppers...I think that's one of the things that people are really looking for in their meals- not a lot of dishes to clean up afterward and something they can take leftovers from. I feel like that's one of the good ways to eat healthy and keep it easy, all made in one dish. Also simple snacks that don't require a ton of cooking. Even if you don't submit an idea [for the contest], you can still go through all the hashtags and look at what people are snacking on.

Does your fiancé Matt Rosenberg ever cook with you in the kitchen? Has he learned a lot from you when it comes to cooking?
He is the cutest, sweetest, best guy ever, but he does not cook [ laughs]. He's made me a couple things that have been really good- he makes a homemade mac and cheese, but for the most part, he leaves the cooking to me, which I'm okay with. He definitely has a list of his favorite recipes that I have to make on a regular basis.

Would you ever consider going back to acting or singing?
I actually just did a movie for Lifetime a couple months ago and it honestly surprised me how much I had kind of missed that and being in that world. But I'm so creatively fulfilled in what I'm doing with Real Girl's Kitchen and this new series. I'm definitely not closing the doors to anything. I've certainly loved every part of my career, but I think right now I'm focusing on this and kind of letting the inspiration take me where it's going to.

Tags: Haylie Duff