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Merry Christmas + Happy Holidays ~ December Newsletter 2015

It's that time of the year when things around the farm are finally quite. This typically only lasts for about two weeks then it's right back to work we go. But it is convenient that the two weeks happen to be around the Holidays. 

When we start working again it will be time to start pruning the blueberries, this will take up the majority of our time for the foreseeable future.  Normally it takes around two months, but depending on weather (snow, freezing temps, etc.) it can be more like three. 

If you have plants that need to pruned please feel free to check our blog post we did on pruning blueberries. Click here to see the blog post. 

We Need Your Help!

We are in the mists of making changes and gearing up for new projects. But we need your help! We would appreciate it very much if you could fill out our survey. At the end of our survey there is an awesome coupon as a thank you for helping us out!

Click this link to help us out.

Food For Thought

In recent weeks we have seen a rise in nutritional information articles about Black Raspberries, and Aronia berries. We will be sharing all articles we find on our Facebook and Twitter accounts. But these are a couple of articles that we really like. 

Looking for the best antioxidant fruit? Search no further than Black Raspberries. 

Black Raspberries has big health benefits.

We will have Black Raspberries + Aronia Berries available to purchase in the Harvest of 2016. 

Freeze Dried Powder Update:

We are about a month away from receiving freeze dried powder for our Blueberries and Blackberries.  

We will not have raspberry, or strawberry still. 

More details will be in our January Newsletter (finally! yay!)

Cold Weather Shipping is Back!

We know a lot of you guys have been waiting for our cold weather shipping to come back. For those of you who are new to our site, every winter we are able to offer better shipping prices on our frozen berries. We are able to do this by shipping by ground rather than by 2-day air, which is standard in our store online. To take advantage of our ground shipping this winter, give us a call at 541-752-0460 (10 am to 4 pm, PST). 

Winter + Holiday Office Hours

Our office hours right now are Monday to Friday 10 am to 4 pm PST.

Our office will also be closed from December 21, 2015 to January 4, 2016. ( During this time we will still be filling online orders.)

Website Changes on The Horizon

We are going to be making changes to our website, so if you see something wonky, or weird. Please have patience as we will be improving and changing it over the next few months. Our goal is that in 2016 we will have a brand new site, that is educational, and user friendly.

Savings for this month:

Here are they ways for you to save this month:

1. We are starting to send out Holiday flyers in orders, so if you buy from us you can receive a coupon that way.

2. We have gift boxes that make great gifts for this time of year. They also make for a great sampler if you want to try any of our products. Click here to see our gift box section in our online store. 

3. We are having random sales, that are being announce through our facebook page. Please keep an eye on it for sales and details though out the month. 

Blueberry Noel Cookies

Blueberry Noel Cookies

Ingredients:

2- 4oz Salted Butter at room temp.
1/2 Cup Sugar
2 TBSP Milk or Cream
1/2 TSP Vanilla
1/2 TSP Salt
2 1/2 Cup Flour
1/2 Cup chopped Walnuts
3/4 Cup chopped dried SVO blueberries
1/4 Cup extra sugar
Squeeze of Lemon
Red or Green Food Coloring

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2.  In a medium size bowl mix butter and sugar and mix together until the mixture has a fluffy consistency.
OPTIONAL:  Add red or green food coloring to the batter to make it more festive. Add food coloring to your liking of desired color. 
3. In a separate bowl, Combine milk, vanilla, flour, and salt. Then add the the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix until combined.
4. Mix in blueberries and nuts into the rest of the mixture.
5. Take the mixture and roll out into two logs, wrap them in saran wrap, then place in the freezer for 30-60 minutes or until firm.
6. Remove from freezer and unwrap. Place cookie rolls on parchment paper, and cut cookies rounds about 1/4" thick.
7. Place cookies on a lightly greased cookie sheet (or lay parchment paper down) and bake for 10 to 15 minutes.
8. Remove from oven and cool on racks, then serve and enjoy!

Merry Christmas + Happy Holidays

Merry Christmas + Happy Holidays!

December is here! It seems like we were just in spring, and talking about getting ready for harvest. This month there are so many great things going on! We are going to be focusing on healthy alternatives for during the Holidays. It's such a hard time to keep within your healthy living choices, and cheating once in a while is ok, but the better you do during the holidays the less work you have to do later to get back on track.

Our featured recipes this month will be Blueberry "Noel" Cookies, Brandy Snaps featuring some awesome berry fusion, and Pate de Fruit, or fruit jellies. We will also have some great recipe alternatives for side dishes and appetizers, we would also love to hear from all of you, how you try to stay healthy over the holidays! You can send us an email, or connect with us on any of our social media. We really do love hearing and talking with all of you.

We post new recipes every Saturday!





ANNOUNCEMENT: We will be having a very special sale on Tuesday, December 8, 2015. In our online store use code HOLIDAY15 and save 8%. This coupon is good for dried, spreads, and gifts. Offer valid only on 12.8.15. If your close by, feel free to come see us and take advantage of the savings, just mention that you know about the sale. We are open from 10 am to 4 pm.

Additional Note: If your ordering a gift from us this holiday season please do so by December 16, this way your gift will get where it needs to go by Christmas.

Newsletter for November 2015

Happy November! 

Happy November everyone! Wow fall is moving so fast this year! In Oregon where we are, we actually just started to have rain and to feel like it is truly an Oregon Fall. Our blueberries bushes are mostly red now, there is still a bit of green on some of the plants. Did you know different varieties of blueberries turn colors at different times? For us our Duke Blueberry plants turn first, and our Jersey Blueberry plants are the last to fully be red. They also vary in tone of red, Blue Crop Blueberries like to be more of this deep red, and Jersey Blueberries are more orange red.

News From Around the Farm

We have finished putting our blueberry plantings to bed for the fall and winter, and have been working really hard in the raspberries and blackberries tying up the canes and getting the plants ready for next year.

So I know we have been talking about our freeze dried powder, and our freeze drier. Well I sort of have good news. (Just bear with me here guys…) We still have a broken freeze drier, and we are still at that 90% mark. The good news is we have found a company that we can work with to make some blueberry powder for us. We will only have blueberry powder for a while. So it’s better than nothing.  When we have blueberry freeze dried powder available we will be posting on our blog, Facebook, and Twitter. As well as of course having it available in our online store. 

Cold Weather Shipping is Back!

We know a lot of you guys have been waiting for our cold weather shipping to come back. For those of you who are new to our site, every winter we are able to offer better shipping prices on our frozen berries. We are able to do this by shipping by ground rather than by 2-day air, which is standard in our store online. To take advantage of our ground shipping this winter, give us a call at 541-752-0460 (10 am to 4 pm, PST). 

Winter + Holiday Office Hours

Our office hours right now are Monday to Friday 10 am to 4 pm PST.

Our office will be closed for Thanksgiving: November 26, 2015 and November 27, 2015.

Our office will also be closed from December 21, 2015 to January 4, 2016. 

Website Changes on The Horizon

We are going to be making changes to our website, so if you see something wonky, or weird. Please have patience as we will be improving and changing it over the next few months. Our goal is that in 2016 we will have a brand new site, that is educational, and user friendly.

Savings for this month:

We don’t have any coupons this month but there are a couple of different ways for you to save.

1.     We still have an ad in the Pet Press magazine, to use it just bring it in when you visit us at our farm. (There is no code, not valid for online & phone purchases)

2.     We are starting to send out Holiday flyers in orders, so if you buy from us you can receive a coupon that way.

3.     We have gift boxes that make great gifts for this time of year. They also make for a great sampler if you want to try any of our products. Click here to see our gift box section in our online store.

Social Butterflies!

We now have an active Instagram account. You can follow us@SVOrganics . On our Instagram you can see more details about anything that is happening around the farm. Check out our Pinterest board this month! We are adding to our Healthy Thanksgiving board and we are also always adding to our Blueberry, Raspberry, and Blackberry Inspired boards, as well as Harmonious Berry Blends. 

Our Blog theme is follows along the lines of healthy thanksgiving but focused on being  diabetic friendly, every weekend you can find healthy alternative for goodies and treats for this Thanksgiving.

Healthy Thanksgiving: Carrot-Mushroom Stuffing, Diabetic Friendly!

It can be hard during the holidays to cook for everyone, especially those with diatry restrictions, however keeping healthy during the holidays is important, and if you can make it through the holidays healthy then that is an achievement within itself!

Carrot-Mushroom Stuffing
Ingredients:

• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 6 Cups freshly sliced shilltake & button mushrooms
• 1/4 Cup sliced green onions
• 1 TBSP reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 2 TSP snipped fresh oregano, crushed
• 1 1/2 rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
• 1/4 TSP pepper
• 6 Cups dry whole grain bread cubes*
• 3 Cups coarsely shredded carrots (6 medium)
• 1 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms. Cook for 5 to 8 minutes or just until tender, stirring occasionally. Add green onions for the last 1 minute of cooking. Remove from heat. Stir in soy sauce, oregano, rosemary, and pepper.
2.  In a very large bowl, combine mushroom mixture, bread cubes, and carrots. Drizzle with enough of the broth to moisten.
3.  Place stuffing in an ungreased 2- to 2 1/2-quart au gratin or baking dish. Bake, covered, for 45 to 55 minutes or until heated through. (Or to use to stuff a 10- to 12-pound turkey, prepare as above, except use 3/4 to 1 cup broth instead of 1 to 1 1/4 cups broth. Spoon lightly into turkey neck and body cavities; do not pack. Internal temperature of stuffing should register 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.) Makes 12 (3/4-cup) servings.

Additional Notes:

• Make-ahead directions: Prepare as directed through step 2. Place in a 2- to 2 1/2-quart au gratin or baking dish. Cover and chill up to 24 hours. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Bake casserole, covered, for 60 to 70 minutes or until heated through. (For safety reasons, do not make stuffing ahead if planning to use for stuffing a turkey.)
• 
  

• *To dry whole grain bread: Cut enough slices of whole grain bread into 1/2-inch cubes to equal 8 cups (10 to 12 slices). Spread out in a shallow baking pan. Bake, uncovered, in 300 degrees oven about 15 minutes or until dry and crisp, stirring twice. Cool. You should have about 6 cups dried bread cubes.

Healthy Thanksgiving: Apple Cranberry Walnut Salad

Apple Cranberry Walnut Salad + A Special Twist

Cranberries are a hallmark for thanksgiving, and this salad is a great healthy choice not just for Thanksgiving but anytime in the fall. The first version is the original then the second is our spin to make this awesome salad great for in the spring and summer as well. 

Ingredients:

6 Cups salad - any mix you like, we found that a mix of arugula and baby spinach is delicious!

1 Medium Red Apple*

1 Medium Green Apple*

1 Cup Walnuts, roughly chopped

1/3 Cup Crumbled Feta Cheese 

1/3 Cup Dried Cranberries

Dressing

1 Cup Apple Juice

4 TBSP Apple Cider Vinegar, white vinegar also works

2 TBSP Honey

1/4 TSP Black Pepper

1/4 Cup Oil

A Pinch of Salt

Instructions:

1. Core and chop apples into think slices. Toss lettuce, apples, walnuts, feta, and cranberries in a large bowl. 
2. In a small bowl, whisk together all dressing ingredients.
3. Toss with salad.
4. Serve & Enjoy!

*Apples maybe of any variety you like.

Now for a Twist!

Ingredients:

6 Cups salad - any mix you like

1 Medium Red Apple*

1 Medium Green Apple*

1 Cup Almonds, roughly chopped

1/3 Cup Crumbled Feta Cheese 

1/3 Cup Dried Blueberries

Dressing

1 Cup Apple Juice

4 TBSP Apple Cider Vinegar, white vinegar also works

2 TBSP Honey

1/4 TSP Black Pepper

1/4 Cup Oil

A Pinch of Pink Himalayan Salt

Instructions:

1. Core and chop apples into think slices. Toss lettuce, apples, almonds, feta, and dried blueberries in a large bowl. 
2. In a small bowl, whisk together all dressing ingredients.
3. Toss with salad.
4. Serve & Enjoy!

*Apples maybe of any variety you like.

Happy Veterans Day!

Happy Veterans Day! We would like to thank all who are currently serving or have served, and to thank those who made the ultimate sacrifice. We would like to offer a coupon for in our online store, use code VETERANS11 and save 11% on your total order (excludes frozen). This offer is good for today only (November 11, 2015 12 am to 11:59 pm).

We hope everyone enjoys today!

Happy Healthy Thanksgiving: Home Made Bagles

Who can say no to a bagel? I know no one around here can! So we were super excited when we found a recipe that was gluten free + vegan friendly! We have also given it our own twist! 

Homemade 

Blueberry Bagels 

(Gluten Free + Vegan Friendly) 

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups gluten free all purpose white blend
1 3/4 cups milk of choice or water
2 1/2 tsp yeast or 1 packet 
1/2 cup dried blueberries
3 tsp guar gum
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp salt (+ extra for top)
1 tbsp sugar

Instructions:
1. Heat liquid to 100 degrees F. Add yeast and sugar, then mix and allow to sit for 5 minutes. 
2. In a separate bowl mix flour, gum, dried blueberries, and salt.

3. In large bowl combine liquid and oil. Gradually mix in all the flour mixture by hand to avoid big lumps. Mix until all incorporated and smooth.

4. Use a large cookie scoop or spray a ½ cup to scoop the dough. With wet hands form dough into a ball and use a finger to poke a hole in the center. Gently shape into bagel form by expanding the hole. Place on a individual piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

5. Spray tops with oil, cover with plastic and allow to rise in a warm place for about 20 minutes. (Don't allow to double in size or else it will lose its shape and fall apart in the bath.)

6. Bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil. Gently drop a max of 2 bagels in the water and boiled each side for only 30 seconds each side. Remove individual parchment paper pieces and place back on baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt.

7. Bake at 450 degrees F for 14-16 minutes or until golden brown.

Useful Info:

Be careful moving bagels to and from the water. The extra sheet of parchment paper makes it easier to move and comes off easily after boiling. The water should be a rapid boil and only let them sit for a short while on each side or else they will absorb too much water and become soggy. If you can, allow your oven to preheat at least 20 minutes prior to baking. These freeze extremely well and can be used for sandwich bread.

Original Recipe from Petite Allergy Treats

November Themes

It hardly seems like Christmas is next month! But first we have the great month of November, we love November around here. This month we will be posting about two very important topics, Alzheimer's Awareness, as well as Diabetes Awareness. Each Saturday we will have either a stimulating recipe for Alzheimer's Awareness or a healthy alternative for Thanksgiving for Diabetes Awareness.

Alzheimer's is a progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions. It's the most common cause of dementia, a group of brain disorders that results in the loss of intellectual and social skills. Sadly scientist don't fully understand what the actual cause of Alzheimer's disease. But as research continues, it is becoming apparent that a series of complex events take place in the brain over a long period of time, it is thought that it also involves a mix of genetics, environmental and lifestyle factors. In America 5.2 million people of all ages (2013) have Alzheimer's. 5 Million of that are 65 years of age or older.

While there is no known cure for Alzheimer's there are ways of slowing the progression. Specifically we will be focusing on blueberries and their link to slowing Alzheimer's. Scientist and researchers are not 100% on what exactly the link, or magic is between the two but the theory is that because Blueberries are so high in Antioxidants.

Why are Antioxidants important? Because they help repair tissue, cells, and DNA that have been damaged specifically by free radicals. Free radicals are all around us, from being exposed to the sun, the foods we eat, even our bodies create free radicals from the process of digestion. However as long as diets are high in antioxidants then the thought is that the free radical production can be kept in check.

Another thing that is magical about Blueberries is that they have high amounts of anthocyanin, this is what gives the berries that blue & purple color. Anthocyanin can also be found in other berries such as raspberries, blackberries, strawberries,  and aronia berries.

Winter Ground Shipping Now Available!

We are pleased to announce we are now able to offer ground shipping for our frozen shipments. 

If your interested in this method rather than by 2-day air that is standard on our website please call us at 541-752-0460 (Monday-Friday, 10 am to 4pm PST) for a quote. 

Healthy Halloween: Breakfast Pops

"Candy Corn" Breakfast Pops

Who wouldn't want to have candy corn for breakfast? I know I would want to! Enjoy this healthy spin on candy corn, that you can have for breakfast or an afternoon snack!

Makes 10 Popsicles

Ingredients:
1 Cup Greek Yogurt
4 Teaspoons Honey
3 Mangos (fresh is best!) medium to large size

Directions:
1. First off your going to have to cut the mangos into cube like pieces, after you have cut and cubed all three, puree them in a food processor.

2.  Puree the mangos until the puree is really smooth, you don't want chunks to linger. When your all done pureeing the mangos there should be around three cups. If this is not the case you will be in need of more mangos.

3. (For this part you will need 3 small bowls) In a small bowl add 3/4 cup of greek yogurt and 2 teaspoons of honey. In another small bowl add 2 cups of mango puree. And in the last small bowel add the remaining puree (around 1 cup) and the remaining yogurt (1/4 cup) as well as the remaining honey (2 teaspoons). In each bowl mix the ingredients in their respective bowls.

4. In the popsicle mold, carefully pour the yogurt honey mixture first. Then you can mix and match the remaining two layers of orange mango and yellow mango mixes.

Healthy Halloween: Vegan Candy Corn

Vegan Candy Corn
Ingredients:

1/4 cup golden syrup (look for Lyle’s brand)

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp melted coconut oil

1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar

1 cup gluten-free flour or tapioca flour + more for mixing

Food coloring*

Parchment paper

Directions: 

1. Take the golden syrup, vanilla, and melted coconut oil and combined using a whisk in a bowl. Then add in powdered sugar and mix until totally combined. Next add in small amounts of flower until it all blends together. 

2. Lay out parchment paper and spread the dough on to it, and knead. Add more flour into it until it becomes clay like. Once it is clay like divide the dough into three equal sections. 

3. Now add the food coloring*. You will need yellow and red, or if you have orange you can use that. If you don't just create the desired shade of orange. To mix the food coloring into the dough, just kneed it until the color is evenly distributed. Once you have achieved the desired colors, wrap the dough in parchment paper and stick in the freezer for about 10 minutes. 

4. Remove from freezer and place on parchment paper. Roll each ball out into ropes and arrange in order of yellow, orange, white. (The dough might become very soft, if this happens just throw back in to the freezer and let it harden back up.)

5. Use a knife and cut the dough into candy corn shapes. 

Storage: Keep in refrigerator or freezer until ready to serve. 

*If your feeling daring, try making different combos of colors and creating your own unique candy corn! 

Sunset Valley Organic October Newsletter

Happy October! 

We hope everyone’s fall has started off with a bang! For those who aren’t local, Oregon is starting to change color, and our blueberry plants are just starting to change from green to red and orange.  Be sure to follow us on Facebook for Autumn Photos from around our farm.

News From Around the Farm

Our harvest might be over, but we haven’t slowed down just yet. We are busy prepping ground for another planting of Aronia berries. Once we finish planting it, we will have a grand total of 70 acers of Aronia berries, and will have the largest planting of Certified Organic Aronia berries on the West Coast, which we think is pretty exciting. Aronia berries are best known for being grown in the mid west, but we are really excited to be trying this new venture.

We are also hard at work putting our berries to bed for the winter. For the raspberries we have already finished training and tying the canes, and have moved on the blackberries. We have about six weeks to two months to finish them up. For the blueberries we have started our Fall Foilers, which we have designed to encourage fruit bud set for next years crop. We are also spreading a sawdust and mulch mix at the base of the plants. 

Last month we also talked about getting our freeze drier up and running for making powders. A quick update about it is that we have made a couple of trial batches, however they aren’t perfect yet. And we want to give you all the most perfect powder. So we are going to continue to work hard on perfecting our timing with the freeze drier and finish tweeting it to perfection. Keep an eye on our social medias for some up coming photos of our process for freeze-drying. We want to thank everyone for their continued interest in this project we know it’s been a long time coming. 

Frozen Availability

With the start of fall we are nearing when we are able to send frozen berries my ground. We aren’t quite there yet, as some areas of the country are still really warm. We are looking at sometime next month being able to send frozen by ground. When we are able to, we will be posting a notice on the home page of our site. 

In order to get the ground shipping price you will need to call us to place your order, just as it has been in the past. 

Fall & Winter Hours

We will be open at the farm Monday to Friday 10 am to 4 pm. If you are unable to make it between these hours just call us and schedule an appointment. You can reach us at (541)752-0460.

Website Changes on The Horizon

We are going to be making changes to our website, so if you see something wonky, or weird. Please have patience as we will be improving and changing it over the next few months. Our goal is that in 2016 we will have a brand new site, that is educational, and user friendly.

IFBC in Seattle

This month we are doing something new! We have an opportunity to go to the International Food Bloggers Convention in Seattle, WA. We hope to learn tons of new things to make our blog, and website better.  We will also be posting about our experience there on our blog, so be sure to keep an eye on it.

• Adventures In Seattle At IFBC Part 1
• Adventures In Seattle At IFBC Part 2

Specials For This Month

This month we have a few different Coupons to offer to you guys, and since it's Halloween, we are having Three specials on our candy

1. We have an ad in the Pet Press magazine. If you see it and tell us about it you can get $5 off $25+ This offer will last as long as the issue is out. So September until November.
2. Trick Or Treat Chocolate Blueberry Clusters Special. We offered this last year and it was a big hit! So we brought it back, this special contains 10 mini chocolate blueberry packages for $12.95. See it on our site.  (Use code CLUSTER at check out when buying 2 to get the 3rd free!)

Simply Homemade Greek Yogurt Banana + Blueberry MuffinsWhile I was at the grocery store I found Fleischmann’s Simply Homemade Muffin + Bread Mix, specially for Greek yogurt. So I thought I would give it a go. And they turned out so good I just had to share it!If you pick up this box, it has directions on it for what to do. But instead of the corn oil like they suggest, I used olive oil, and I also added one cup frozen blueberries to the mix at the very end then just stirred it a couple times to get the blueberries all mixed in.With the addition of the blueberries, I ended up baking the muffins longer in the oven, on the box they recommend 15 to 20 minutes, and I baked mine for 30.Ingredients:Box Mix1 Single-serve container (5.3 oz) or 2/3 cup plain or vanilla Greek Yogurt2 eggs½ Cup oil (corn, coconut, olive, whatever you prefer)¼ Cup water1 Cup Frozen SVO BlueberriesDirections:1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees, line 12 standard-size muffin cups with paper liners or spray with cooking spray, set aside.2. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl with a spoon, stir until mixture forms a batter, about 50 to 60 strokes (or, mix 30 seconds at medium speed with an electric mixer, scrape down sides, than mix for an additional 30 seconds.3.Spoon batter evenly between prepared muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 full.

Healthy Halloween: No Bake, Pumpkin Energy Bites

No Bake, Pumpkin Energy Bites
Total Time: 10 Minutes
Makes About 25 Bites

Ingredients:
8oz (1 packed cup) chopped dates
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 tbsp. chia seeds (flax seeds work too)
1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
pinch of salt
1 cup old-fashioned oats (dry, not cooked)
1 cup toasted coconut flakes
1 cup toasted pumpkin seeds



Directions:
Combine dates, honey, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt, pumpkin puree, and chia (or flax) seeds in a food processor, and pulse until smooth and combined.

Pour the mixture into a large bowl, and stir in the oats, coconut flakes, and pumpkin seeds. Mix until mixture is evenly combined. Then cover the mixture and place in refrigerator a minimum of 30 minutes.

Once the mixture is cool, and easy to work with, use a spoon or scoop to shape it into your desired size ball. Ideally a 1-inch diameter is perfect. Alternately, you can line a small baking pan with parchment paper and press the mixture evenly into the pan, let it cool, and then cut into bars.

Store covered in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Storing them in the refrigerator helps the bits hold their shape.

Monthly Theme Healthy Halloween

This month we have a returning theme of Healthy Halloween, every Saturday we will have a hauntly delicious recipe inspired by halloween, but in a more healthy form.

We LOVE halloween and this month we have our Trick Or Treat special back in our online store. We have our delicious mini chocolate blueberry clusters up for a limited time this October. 10 mini packs come in a case. Click Here for all the details on this great special.

We also encourage everyone to go and follow us on our Pinterest, we have a really great Halloween themed board, that covers everything from sweet treats, healthy alternatives, and decorations.

Adventures in Seattle at IFBC Part 2

On Friday evening we went out in search of dinner, and we found our way to M.O.D Pizza. It's this awesome pizza place, near the convention center in Seattle, WA. I decided to get what they were calling their Seasonal Pizza Salad. It's crust with cheese, in theirs it was asiago, and the salad part was romaine, black olives, diced tomatoes, tossed in ranch dressing. It was so delicious that I just had to create my own version when I got home. 

Caesar Salad Pizza
Ingredients:
Krusteaz Flatbread Mix (Italian Herb)
1/2 Cup Aged Cheddar Cheese
1/8 Cup Chipotle Cheddar Cheese 
Hearts of Romain
8 oz of grilled Chicken, chopped
Black Olives, chopped
1/2 Green Bell Pepper, chopped
Favorite Caesar Dressing







Directions: 
1. I used Krusteaz Flatbread Mix (Italian herb), and followed the directions on the box. This was given to us at IFBC, and oh my goodness it's good. It's also super simple to make, took me maybe five minutes (+10 mins for the dough to rise). 
2.Before putting the flatbread in the oven I added cheese to the crust, we like a lot of cheese, but using however much to your hearts content is best. 
3. While the crust is baking, mix up all the salad ingredients, and toss with Caesar dressing. 
5. Grill chicken till cooked, I used a foreman grill, and then chopped the chicken into bit sized pieces. 
4. When the crust comes out, cut with a pizza cutter, then add the salad and chicken on top, and enjoy! 

Adventures In Seattle at IFBC Part 1

Last week we went up to Seattle and had a really wonderful time attending the International Food Bloggers Convention. They said there were around 310 participants and representing at least 27 different states as well as 7 different countries. Thats pretty impressive! 

Before the conference kicked off they offered pre conference excursions and we choose to go to the headquarters of Chef'n. If you don't know a whole lot about Chef'n, no worries, we didn't either. But we found out they are a really cool company and group of people. Based in Seattle, WA the company started in 1982, by  David Holcomb who is an inventor as well as the companies CEO he can be spotted in the bottom middle picture (above). For him it all started with a garlic press, and a trip to New York to pitch his revolutionary product. Since then he has gathered a crazy amount of pattens, 300+. 

We toured their industrial studio, test kitchen space, and the delightful penthouse. Their work space reminded me a lot of Wieden + Kennedy's offices in Portland, OR. They have the same vibe, really wanting to have inspiring workspaces and departing from the stagnant corporate america vibe. After meeting Mr. Halcomb I don't really see how anywhere he worked could be boring, or plain, or corporate. His energy is reminiscent of a that from the 80's and hanging out on a beach some place. Very relaxed, and energetic. I really loved seeing their industrial workshop, they had so many tools at their disposal. Above you can see an ice cream scoop being formed from PVC. They also have a 3D printer which was also working on its own project. I was really great to see how technology is playing a key role in their designers lives and how as technology is becoming more accessible they are able to make better use of such a resource. 

In the bottom right corner of the image above is one of their designers who created what they call Poptop. It's awesome, and I totally want one. What it does is essentially is air pops popcorn in the microwave. I love making my coconut oil popcorn by stove top, but if I could do it in the microwave that would be pretty awesome. Inside there is even a little place to put butter, or oil whatever you prefer for popping your popcorn in. 

We had a great time touring Chef'n and we want to thank them for opening their office and workspace up to us. They were truly amazing hosts, and we can't wait to see what they will create next! 

Limited Supply Sale

We have a limited supply of 4 pound dried blueberries available. 

Normally $90, with a sale price of $65. If you wish to purchase these berries, or have questions, please call us at 541-752-0460 Monday to Friday 10 am to 4 pm Pacific Time, or come see us at our farm. We will not be listing this on our website, as the quality is so limited. 

You can also of course email us, using our contact page. 

All sales of these berries will be final. 

Autumn is for Apples; Baked Apples - A Healthy Treat -

Autumn is for Apples 

I love walking down to our orchard and picking all the apples from our trees. For those who don't know we have what we like to call an orchard. It's not really. It's seven apple trees, a pear tree, an a couple of plum trees. But it's tucked away next to one of our younger fields of blueberries, on the lower side of our farm. We also used this space as a make shift nursery when we had extra plants from last year and the year before when we were replanting our fields. 

One of my favorite things is to have baked apples in the fall, and this is one of my favorite recipes. 

Baked Apples 

Prep Time: 20 Minutes           Total Time: 1 Hour 20 Minutes         Servings: 4
Ingredients:
4 medium sized, crisp apples (such as Gala or Honey Crisp)
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsp butter, softened
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup apple juice
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1/2 lemon)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
2. Hallow out the centers of the apples, I use a paring knife but a melon baller also works. You'll want to remove the stem and core leaving a good sized hole, around 3/4" wide. Around the top of the apple you'll also want to remove all that skin of the apple. You can do this with a veggie peeler or paring knife. 
3. Next combine the sugar, butter, ground cinnamon, lemon zest, nutmeg, and graham cracker crumbs in a medium sized bowl. I like using a rubber spatula, but a fork works just as well. 
4. With mixed filling, pack into apple holes until  level with the opening. Place the apples into an 8X8" dish.
5. Combine lemon juice, apple juice, and honey into a microwaveable cup. Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir to blend and pour around the apples in dish. 
6. Cover apples with tin foil and bake for 45 minutes. 
7. After 45 minutes, uncover the pan and baste the apples with the juice from the pan. Continue baking apples for 10-20 minutes more, or until apples are very tender. Serve warm or cold with pan juices. 

Nutritional Info (per serving): 300 calories, 1 g protein, 65 g carb, 5 g fiber, 6.5 g fat, 4 g sat fat, 41 mg sodium.