May 2017 News & Updates

What a wet spring we have been having!

Oregon is home to rain but some sun every once in a while would be nice too! With a little luck the fields will start drying out and we can get on with preparing for the coming harvest. The rain has caused us some disruptions, but the berries have been doing well with all the wet weather and our blueberries are starting to bloom. 

WE HAVE NEW PRODUCTS!

What a great reception we have received from our powders! We are so happy to hear that so many of you enjoy them! For those who missed last months newsletter, we have new berry powders up in the shop.  You can now purchase:

• Red Raspberry Powder
• Blackberry Powder
• Aronia Berry Powder
• Black Raspberry Powder
• Blueberry Powder

Our berry powders are a supercharged way of getting your daily fruits into your diet. You can mix our powders into baking, oatmeal, smoothies, milk, ice cream, and more! Just like our dried berries, there are no additives or preservatives, so we're keeping the product as natural and nutritious as possible! 

*Note: Our powders are not soluble*

We've also added a new size to our powders. Now you can purchase all of our powder varieties in 2 lbs. quantities for $110.00.  

We would also like to mention that our free shipping amount has increased to $235.00 after coupons are applied. Our spreads and frozen do not qualify for free shipping. 

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Changes Are Coming:

Most of you are aware that last summer we were crazy busy during harvest. In the summer of 2016 we harvested about 2 million pounds of fruit, this year we are projecting at least 3 million. With that much fruit to be harvested we have had to make some hard choices in where to cut back so a balance can be achieved. This has resulted in our decision to not have a U-Pick this summer. We are sad that we can not continue, but our harvest is our first priority. 

We will still be offering already picked & washed blueberries in 30 pound boxes and 5 pound bags. For these you pull around to our office and we help you there. The price for those this year will be the same as in the past at $100 (30 pound box). 

We would like to thank everyone who has come out and supported us over the years. We hope you will continue to enjoy our berries. 

We will have a blog post late May/early June about all the changes we are making why we are making them. 

And did you see our delicious post this month? No-Bake, Nutrient Dense Energy Bites! YUM! 

Our normal office hours are:

Monday - Friday 10 am to 4 pm PST  

Cold Weather Shipping 

Cold Weather Shipping is still going! Since spring is here, if the temperature gets above 75 degrees where you are please call us and we will discuss if it's safe to ground ship berries to you. May is the last month we will be able to ship, and it might not even be available the whole month. It just depends on what the temperature decides to do. 

Thank you to everyone who has taken advantage of our Cold Weather Shipping! 

For those who are new to this, every year when it’s cold (nation-wide) we are able to send our frozen berries by ground rather than 2 day air, which saves a lot of money! We can only offer this while it’s cold out, usually fall through the early part of spring.

You do need to call us if you would the ground shipping though. Our online store is not set up for it. You can call us at 541-752-0460 Monday through Friday 10 am to 4 pm Pacific Standard Time.

**PLEASE NOTE: We are not responsible for shipping delays due to weather conditions**

LEMON BLUEBERRY SWIRL CHEESECAKE

Original Recipe from quartzandleisure.com

Ingredients:

BLUEBERRY FILLING INGREDIENTS:

• 1.5 Cups fresh blueberries
• 1 Cup sugar
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1 oz. water

CRUST INGREDIENTS:

• 1.5 Cups Graham cracker crumbs (I used all 3 blocks from the package – we’ll reserve some of the leftover crumbs for topping)
• 1/3 Cup melted butter

CHEESECAKE INGREDIENTS:

• 3 Packages cream cheese (8 oz. each)
• 1 Cup sugar
• 3 Eggs
• 1 tsp. Pure vanilla extract
• Zest of 2 lemons
• 1 Cup heavy cream (or whipping cream)

Instructions:

BLUEBERRY FILLING DIRECTIONS:

1. Pour blueberries & sugar into a pot over medium-high heat. Simmer for about 10 mins.
2. Add the cornstarch to the water and mix well.  Pour this into the berries.
3. Continue to stir until it thickens up.
4. Remove from stove and allow to cool completely (approx 1 hour).

CRUST DIRECTIONS:

1. Place graham crackers in a Ziploc bag and smash into crumbs.
2. Measure 1.5 cups of crumbs and mix with the melted butter until evenly coated.
3. Press into the bottom of a spring form pan and set aside.

CHEESECAKE DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix cream cheese and sugar with a mixer until smooth, about 2-3 minutes.
2. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix for 30 seconds before adding the next egg.
3. Blend in the vanilla extract and the lemon zest.
4. Add in the heavy cream and mix until competely smooth.
5. Scrape down the bowl and give the batter one last mix at HIGH speed for 1 minute.
6. Pour over the graham cracker crust.
7. Make a foil “nest” that the pan will sit in while cooking.
8. Cook the cheesecake for 65-80 minutes at 300° or until the surface no longer looks shiny.
9. Allow the cheesecake to cool to room temp before moving it to the fridge to cool completely.
10. Serve with fresh whipped cream and garnish with the remaining graham cracker crumbs.

Our Featured Products in the online Shop:

Red Raspberry Powder

Black Raspberry Powder

Aronia Berry Powder 

We are almost to full bloom in our blueberries. The bees have been hard at work despite the rain we've been having.

May 2015 Favorites

Whew! What a busy month we have had! It feels like May just started, this month we focused on healthy living, and health awareness.Each week we had delicious recipes that were super healthy, and could be made by anyone. We also started selling our products at Tyee Wine Cellers. A local winery, that is just down the road from us. 

We started and finished trellising black raspberries. 

We had a huge announcement about our strawberries, click here if you missed it. 

These are some of the articles we found most interesting this month:

Vegan Diet Eases Nerve Pain of Diabetes

How A Cell Knows Friend from Foe

Cold, Flu, or Allergy? 

And this was our favorite recipe:

Rustic Strawberry Peach Tart 

from Sally's Baking Addiction 

Ingredients:

FILLING

• 2 ripe peaches, peeled, pitted, sliced (not frozen)
• 2 cups (about 300 grams) sliced fresh strawberries (not frozen)
• 2 Tablespoons (30 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

CRUST

• 1 and 1/2 cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour (careful not to overmeasure)
• 3 Tablespoons (45 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick or 115 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed*
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) ice water, plus more as needed
• 1 egg, beaten for egg wash
• additional sugar for sprinkling

Directions:

1. For the filling: Mix the peaches and strawberries together in a medium bowl. Add the sugar and vanilla, tossing well to coat the fruit. Set aside and allow the mixture to soak as you prepare the crust.
2. For the crust: In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together in a medium bowl. Using a pastry cutter (or your hands), cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse, pea-sized crumbs. Add 1/4 cup of ice water, stirring with a fork until the flour is moistened. Add up to 2 more Tablespoons of ice water if the dough seems dry. Gently knead the dough a few times in the bowl until it all comes together. Shape the dough into a ball and flatten it into a thick disk, as pictured above. Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour.
3. Preheat oven to 425F degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
4. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a 12-inch circle. Trim the rim of the circle to make a clean cut if desired. Transfer dough to the prepared baking sheet.
5. Spoon the fruit (not the juices) into the center of the dough, leaving a 2-3 inch border all around, as pictured above. Gently fold the edges of the dough over the fruit, overlapping the dough as necessary. Press gently to seal the edges. Pour most of the reserved juices over the fruit, leaving about 1-2 Tablespoons behind. Too much juice and the dough will become soggy.
6. Brush the crust with the beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until the crust is golden brown, Remove from the oven and allow to slightly cool before serving.
7. If you wish to drizzle with vanilla glaze, use the glaze recipe from here. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Additional Notes:

*Make sure your butter is very cold. I like to chill it in the freezer for about 15 minutes ahead of time.

May 2015 News from Around The Farm

We finally got some much needed sunshine and we started putting in trellising into our planting of Black Raspberries. We have also been busy feeding all of our crops and helping them along their way to summer harvest. It’s really important to make sure our crops are being fed now and during harvest so that not only does the plant produce fruit but also that the plant can take care of itself. Whether that means putting energy towards growing, fending off diseases or however else that plant needs to do.   In April we also participated in a couple of community events. If you're interested in seeing photos from our adventures click here for Earth Day event and click here for Tyee’s Open House. Office Hours This is probably the last month we will be in our Winter hours (yay!) But until we say otherwise we will continue with our Winter Hours: Monday to Friday 10 am to 4 pm PST.

Frozen Raspberries Are Sold Out This is the first year since having raspberries that we have sold out of them. So we will not have that as an option on our website until we have this coming harvests berries are packed and ready. The good news is that we are currently guess-timating that our Raspberries will be coming on some time in June, so hopefully no one has to wait too long. Better Shipping Rates are Over Until Winter Thank you to everyone who has ordered over the last few months to cash in on those awesome shipping rates! The weather is getting warmer and that means we have to insist on shipping 2 day air again. When the weather starts getting cold again we will once again offer these better rates. Just because the better rates are gone does not mean we are out of frozen! We will continue to offer frozen berries as normal. Social Media Shenanigans We had such a great month interacting with you guys! If you missed it we have reactivated our Twitter account, and been posting far more to facebook,Pinterest, and our blog. This month on our blog we are focusing on Health Awareness. Today you will be able to find our post of what this means to us and some tips about what you can do to live healthier. Then every Saturday this month, you will be able to find delicious recipes that go along with this theme. Other posts we have coming up this month will be concerning summer activities for the farm and what you all can expect. Plus we will have a huge announcement about our strawberries! Our Pinterest board for May will be all about Mother’s Day, May Day, and Brunch! We are posting great recipes, beautiful images of wonderful bouquets, and fantastic ideas for gifts for Mother’s Day. Facebook & Twitter are great places to find out if we are attending any events, for example we didn’t know we would be attending the events we did in when we sent out April’s newsletter so we put it all over Facebook & Twitter. We also have been posting a ton of photos of this spring's bloom. As well as articles we run into and want to share with everyone! Post Card Reminders: Every year we send out postcards for reminders about our fresh season coming up. This year there will be a coupon attached to it so don’t loose it, and remember to bring it with you when you visit us! Usually when we send these out we are getting really close to our first berry being ready. Right now we anticipate sending them out at the end of May. Keep an eye on our social media for when we actually do. This year we will also be letting everyone know when we have U-Picks open as well as when each berry and variety we have is ready, via our social media, so it’s super important if you're not following us to do so. We don’t want you to miss anything! Coupons & Specials For Mother’s Day we do have a special going. For $17.99 (includes shipping) you can send your loved one a special gift that includes a Chocolate Blueberry Cluster and a 4 oz Dried Blueberry. We ship nation wide so its a great healthy gift! We also are extending our special in Willamette Living Magazine to the end of June. Raspberry & Lemon Curd Tarts Inspired From Cooks With Cocktails Ingredients: FOR THE LEMON CURD ½ cup lemon juice 1 tbsp lemon rind 4 egg yolk 1 whole egg 1 cup sugar ½ cup plus 2 tbsp butter FOR THE RASPBERRY CURD ½ cup raspberry juice 4 egg yolk 1 whole egg ¾ cup sugar ½ cup plus 2 tbsp butter FOR THE SHORTBREAD 1½ cup flour ½ cup cold butter ¾ cup sugar Icing sugar for dusting (optional) Directions: FOR THE LEMON CURD Put lemon juice, lemon rind, butter on a double boiler and heat till butter melts. Then take it off the heat. Beat eggs in a bowl till foamy with a whisk or on high speed in a mixer. Gradually add the sugar till eggs are pale and very thick. This should take about 4 - 5 mins. Put lemon mixture still in the double boiler back on the heat, add the egg mixture and whisk. Cook till it thickens. It should coat a wooden spoon well. Set aside. FOR THE RASPBERRY CURD Take a bag of frozen raspberry's and thaw. When completely thawed, blend up the raspberries, put in a strainer and strain till you get ½ a cup of juice. Put the raspberry juice, butter on double boiler and heat till butter melts then take off the heat. Beat eggs in a bowl till foamy with a whisk or on high speed in a mixer. Gradually add the sugar till eggs are pale and very thick. This should take about 4 - 5 mins. Put raspberry mixture still in the double boiler back on the heat, add the egg mixture and whisk. Cook till it thickens. It should coat a wooden spoon well. Set aside. FOR THE SHORTBREAD Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Place all the ingredient in a food processor or mixer and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for about ½ hour. Take it out of the fridge, divide into 12 equal size balls. Roll the dough ball between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Place in the pan mould or tart shell. Place a piece of parchment over each shell and fill with pie weights. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 mins. Remove from the oven. Most likely the shell will have fallen a little it down the sides of the mould. You will have to use a deep spoon top push down the crust and move it up the side of the pan. A round table spoon works really well. Cool completely. TO ASSEMBLE Take a tart shell and fill it with lemon curd almost all the way to the top. Next place a layer of raspberry curd on top. Continue with the rest of the shells. Sprinkle with icing sugar if desired. Indulge...

Health Awareness Coconut Bliss

Coconuts seem to be one of the many hip things to eat these days, and with good reason Coconut & Coconut Oil are packed full with useful things our bodies can use, such as:

1. Coconut Oil Contains a Unique Combination of Fatty Acids With Powerful Medicinal Properties: coconut oil doesn’t contain your average run-of-the-mill saturated fats like you would find in cheese or steak.No, they contain so-called Medium Chain Triglycerides (MCTs) – which are fatty acids of a medium length.Most of the fatty acids in the diet are long-chain fatty acids, but the medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil are metabolized differently.They go straight to the liver from the digestive tract, where they are used as a quick source energy or turned into so-called ketone bodies, which can have therapeutic effects on brain disorders like epilepsy and Alzheimer’s.

2. Populations That Eat a LOT of Coconut Are Among The Healthiest People on The Planet:Coconut is kind of an “exotic” food in the Western world, primarily consumed by health conscious people.However, in some parts of the world, coconut is a dietary staple that people have thrived on for many generations.The best example of such a population is the Tokelauans, which live in the South Pacific.They eat over 60% of their calories from coconuts and are the biggest consumers of saturated fat in the world.These people are in excellent health, with no evidence of heart disease.Another example of a population that eats a lot of coconut and remains in excellent health is the Kitavans.

3. Coconut Oil Can Increase Your Energy Expenditure, Helping You Burn More Fat: Obesity is currently one of the biggest health problems in the world.While some people think obesity is only a matter of calories, others (myself included) believe that the sources of those calories are critical too.It is a fact that different foods affect our bodies and hormones in different ways. In this regard, a calorie is NOT a calorie.The medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) in coconut oil can increase energy expenditure compared to the same amount of calories from longer chain fats.One study found that 15-30 grams of MCTs per day increased 24 hour energy expenditure by 5%, totaling about 120 calories per day.

4. The Fatty Acids in Coconut Oil Are Turned into Ketones, Which Can Reduce Seizures:A so-called ketogenic (very low carb, very high fat) diet is currently being studied to treat various disorders.The best known therapeutic application of this diet is treating drug-resistant epilepsy in children.This diet involves eating very little carbohydrates and large amounts of fat, leading to greatly increased concentrations of ketone bodies in the blood.For some reason, this diet can dramatically reduce the rate of seizures in epileptic children, even those who haven’t had success with multiple different types of drugs.Because the MCTs in coconut oil get shipped to the liver and turned into ketone bodies, they are often used in epileptic patients to induce ketosis while allowing for a bit more carbs in the diet.

5. Coconut Oil Can Improve Blood Cholesterol Levels and May Lower Your Risk of Heart Disease:Coconut oil is loaded with saturated fats, which actually do not harm the blood lipid profile like previously thought.Saturated fats raise HDL (the good) cholesterol and change the LDL cholesterol to a benign subtype. In one study in 40 women, coconut oil reduced Total and LDL cholesterol while increasing HDL compared to soybean oil. There are also rat studies showing that coconut oil reduces triglycerides, total and LDL cholesterol, increases HDL and improves blood coagulation factors and antioxidant status.This improvement in cardiovascular risk factors should theoretically lead to a reduced risk of heart disease over the long term.

This month we are all about health awareness, but that doesn't mean you can't have your cake and eat it too. And to do that we have a delicious Coconut & Lemon Ball Bliss recipe for you all!

Don't these look delicious? With just five ingredients these are a perfect way to add a delicious snack for a healthy living choice! 

Makes approx. 15 balls. Calories per ball: 151.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups shredded coconut + extra 

• ½ cup almonds 

• 2-3 tbsp honey or rice malt syrup (to taste) 

• 2 tbsp coconut oil 

• Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Directions: 

• Place all ingredients into the food processor and blend for 1 minute.

• Roll into small balls around the size of a 10c piece.

• Roll in extra coconut.

• Place on a lined tray and chill in the fridge until firm.