Using Cherries Every Day

Recently I attended a meeting with the Cherry Marketing Institute, which helps cherry farmers in the United States get the word out about the health benefits of cherries. They compiled a list of easy ways to enjoy cherries every single day.

Unlike their fresh cousins that show up only during the summer, tart cherries are available every month of the year. You can find dried and frozen tart cherries, as well as cherry juice (or juice concentrate) anytime you want. Here are a dozen ways you can include this new "Super Fruit" in your daily routine.

1. Grab and Go – Get your antioxidants on-the-go with an easy "do-it-yourself" trail mix using dried cherries, almonds and whole-grain cereal. Or add dried cherries to ready-made granola.
2. Brighten up Breakfast – Swap your typical berries for dried cherries and add them to your cereal, oatmeal, yogurt or pancakes. Just a cup of dried tart cherries gives you one whole serving of fruit!
3. Make Salads Sensational – Add dried cherries to tossed salads, fruit salads and chicken salads for added taste and nutrition.
4. Switch from Blue to Red – Make a change from your standard blueberry muffin recipe and use dried or frozen cherries instead. Visit www.choosecherries.com for delicious cherry muffin recipes.
5. Straight from the Bag – Keep a stash of dried cherries on hand for an antioxidant-rich snack break. Buy single-serve packages or portion out those bought in bulk to keep in your purse, desk or gym bag.
6. C is for Cookie... and Cherries – Enjoy a new twist on the standard oatmeal raisin cookie by using dried cherries instead of raisins.
7. Greater Grains – Add dried cherries to couscous, rice pilaf, grits, risotto and pasta.
8. Be Smooth – Blend frozen cherries with cherry juice concentrate and lowfat yogurt. Add a straw and you have a sensational smoothie for breakfast or a snack.
9. A Perfect Parfait – Keep a bag of frozen cherries in the freezer and grab a handful when hunger strikes. Thaw them for a few minutes and then layer with lowfat vanilla yogurt and granola.
10. Fruit Fizz – Make a refreshing cherry spritzer by adding cherry juice concentrate to ice cold seltzer water – a refreshing treat on a hot summer day.
11. Mix it Up – Look for cherry juice blends, like cherry apple juice. Or, make your own blend and combine ready-to-drink 100% cherry juice with another juice favorite.
12. Juice on the Run – Grab a single-serve bottle of 100% cherry juice or fill a water bottle with diluted cherry juice concentrate as you head out to the gym. Some research suggests cherry juice may help reduce exercise-related joint pain!

Remember, you can purchase tart cherries in juice concentrate, frozen, or dried form all year long at The Red Barn.

April Events

Make sure to check out the "Events" tab for some fabulous gardening classes offered for FREE in April. Put them on your calendar now so you don't forget! See you there!

The Winner Is....

Jennifer, from "Mommyoffive", has won The Red Barn pie! Our pies are made from scratch in our kitchen using Grandma's recipe. Each pie has over a pound of fruit. You really can't go wrong with any flavor you choose (though I may suggest the cherry - I have NEVER had a cherry pie that's better than The Red Barn). Congratulations on your pie, it will make a fail-proof dessert any day of the year!

Dessert Disaster

I had every intention of creating the most beautiful and tasty cake today to feature on tomorrow's Tasty Tuesday, but like we all know, things don't always go according to plan! My goal was to create a confection with our Raspberry jam, but every part of me wanted ooey gooey chocolate! To put it all together, I decided I would bake a chocolate torte cake, and layer raspberry jam and ice cream in between. I quickly realized as my cake resembled the leaning Tower of Pisa, that my intentions were failing! I scraped off the ice cream and replaced it with Cool Whip (still didn't help much). I frosted it as fast as I could and topped it with a little decorative swirl and some thawed Red Barn frozen raspberries. I couldn't get a picture fast enough! My cake was falling apart in every direction! Don't get me wrong, it was still delicious, just a little hard on the eyes!Ahh - raspberry down! The others were close behind it! Have you ever had a dessert disaster? Leave a comment with your worst dessert disaster for a chance to win a Red Barn pie - the ultimate fail proof dessert!

Winner will be selected randomly. Must be able to pick up pie, as we are unable to ship them.

Tasty Tuesday: Meals to make in March

This time of year it becomes harder to find quality fresh fruit, but Spring always gives me hope that new crops are right around the corner! A great meal option for Spring time is Apricot Glazed Pork Roast. This is so simple, yet fancy enough for a Sunday dinner crowd.

Ingredients:

• 1 (10.5 ounce) can Campbell's® Condensed Chicken Broth
• Red Barn apricot jam (18 ounce)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons Dijon-style mustard
• 4 pounds boneless pork loin roast

Directions

1. Mix broth, jam, onion and mustard in 3 1/2-qt. slow cooker. Cut pork to fit. Add to cooker.
2. Cover and cook on LOW 8 to 9 hr.* or until done.

Footnotes

• Tip: *Or on HIGH 4 to 5 hr.
• Tip: For thicker sauce: Mix 2 tablespoons. cornstarch and 2 tablespoons. water until smooth. Remove pork from cooker. Stir cornstarch mixture into cooker. Cover and cook on HIGH 10 min. or until mixture boils and thickens.
• Tip: Serve with Idahoan® Original Mashed Potatoes and steamed broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. For dessert serve apple-cranberry crisp.

Recipe by Campbell's Kitchen