Hooray for Loaf Love Tour in San Antonio!

Max’s Wine Dive’s delicious grilled cheese sandwich and mac n’ cheese both feature Tillamook Three Year Vintage White Extra Sharp Cheddar. Can’t make it to Max’s on Thursday? The Loaf Love Tour will be in San Antonio through June 2! See the full schedule at LoafLoveTour.com!

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You bring the grill. We’ll bring the cheese. Shop the Red, White, and Moo Sale this Memorial Day for 10% off all red, white, and blue items on the Tillamook Shop and our new Facebook Shop!

Our friends from Denver

This is my second year traveling with these awesome Baby Loaf Buses and while they often steal the show … our friendly Brand Ambassadors are some of the most memorable people you’ll ever meet!

One of my favorite stories from the 2011 Loaf Love Tour happened on our day off while in Northern California. We were checking out of hotel in Oakland, CA and all of our staff was dressed in their regular clothes (no awesomely orange Loaf Love t-shirts in sight) when @JamminJason was stopped by another hotel guest. She and her family had met Jason more than a month before at a grocery store over 350 miles away! She recognized him immediately, called her family over to say “hello” and wanted a full update on our travels. Jason remembered her as well and reminisced about the store where they had all met; this is no small feat considering the thousands of people Jason interacts with – often in a grocery store setting! What a small world!

Then just this last week I was at a Kroger store on one of our last  days in Houston and a nice family wandered over to our Baby Loaf Bus. I stopped to chat with them and the first thing said was, “we saw you guys last year in Denver!” Wow! It’s a whole year later, we’re in a different state and they remembered us?!

We’ve just arrived in San Antonio and the only thing I am thinking about is, “which of my old Loaf Love friends will I get to see again soon?” Stop by and see us! The cheese is just as yummy, the smiles just as big, and we’d love to hear what you’ve been up to.

See you around San Antonio!

Susan

Follow me on Twitter @SmilinSusan

Marshall Allen, 8 years old

You would think working at Tillamook gives us working moms a leg up in the Tillamama movement: We would never run out of hugs or Tillamook products. (OK – who are we kidding, we would never run out of Tillamook on purpose, but we are human, and we are busy moms!).

At home, our Dairy Products Quality Manager, Jill Allen, keeps up with three very busy kids. Her oldest, Marshall, is an active eight year old, and I wondered what he thinks about what his mom does at work (and home):

What does your mom do for a job?

She tastes the cheese.

What does your mom do at home?

Takes me swimming and cleans.

What makes your mom special?

She takes me swimming and bike riding and we love her.

What is your favorite thing that your mom makes with Tillamook cheese?

Melted cheese sandwich and cheese and crackers.

What is your favorite Tillamook product?

Grandmas Cake Batter Ice Cream.

Can you tell Marshall likes to swim?  He is a member of the Tillamook Sharks swim team.

And he’s right, his mom does taste the cheese.  She actually tastes Tillamook Cheese, Ice Cream, Sour Cream, Cutter and Yogurt and manages the technical staff of other “cheese tasters” through our sensory program, ensuring that all of our products meet the high Tillamook quality standards.

Thanks Marshall for telling us about your Tillamama!

Hooray! We received more than 80 amazing entries for our Tillamama Contest, and after much deliberation, we’ve selected our winners!

• 1st place: Jane, who was nominated by her daughter Stephanie Sabin Galusha
• 2nd place: Marian Scadden, who was nominated by her daughter Erin Scadden Tate
• 3rd place: Antoinette Brunton, who was nominated by her husband Jonathan and daughter Natalia

Thanks to everyone who entered, and congratulations again to our winners!

First Place Winner:

First place winner Jane and her daughter Stephanie

“Tradition, tradition! Tradition!” My Tillamama, Jane, is all about tradition! My mother raised her six children as a single mother, and so a trip to the beach was a grand and exciting adventure for all of us. I do not remember the first time we stopped in Tillamook and went to the cheese factory, but I know it stayed with me! It was so exciting to walk through the cheese-making process, get in line to sample all the different cheeses, pick out a special treat to take home with us, get some yummy ice cream! Of course, I cannot forget the “squeaky cheese!” It is my mother’s favorite treat from Tillamook and we always return home with a bag of it (or sometimes two!) Honestly, I do not recall a trip to the Oregon Coast where my family has not stopped at the Tillamook Cheese Factory. It is tradition for my family to stop there every time, and it is a tradition that we never want to break! We even made the trip to Tillamook just after my brother had passed away because the memories there made us feel closer to him (I had even bought a Tillamook beef stick for his birthday just before he died, no joke.) My most recent trip to Tillamook, in March 2012, was one week before I delivered my second baby. I just HAD to go before he arrived so I could get some cheese and a waffle cone! My neighbor came with me because she had never been there! When I asked my mother what she wanted me to bring home to her, she replied in a text message, “get me some squeaky cheese!” :-)

I love my Mom! She deserves to win the title of Tillamama not only because of her loyalty to Tillamook cheese, but because of her love and loyalty to her family. She has always been there for all of us, has always worked so incredibly hard without being rewarded. She deserves to win the title of Tillamama because she is the most wonderful mother in the world and I would love to see her be publicly rewarded for being such a great mother. I would love to see her excitement at winning something; especially something she would put to good use. My Tillamama deserves the very best, and believe me, my family thinks Tillamook cheese is the very best!

Second Place Winner:

Erin's creative entry for her mom, Marian

3rd Place Winner:

Third place winner Antoinette Brunton!

My mom is THE Tillamama and Biggest Fan!
Each week she has a shopping and cooking plan!
She fills her shopping cart with Tillamook Galore!
Each day we tell her “we want MORE!”
Tillamook butter for morning toast
and Tillamook yogurt is what I like the most!
Tillamook sour cream and Colby omelet
or maybe my mom will make nachos, I’ll bet!
Tillamook cheddar slices on hamburgers for lunch
the taste is the BEST and “Loaf” a whole bunch!
Tillamook shredded mozzarella on pizza a winner
I’m happy my mom will make it for dinner!
The best part of all is the Tillamook ice cream
our favorite Oregon Strawberry, Chocolate Peanutbutter, and Marionberry Pie are a heavenly dream!
Please, oh please crown my mom the ultimate Tillamama Queen!
Because she feeds us Tillamook for breakfast, supper, and all day in between!

It’s an exciting day here at Tillamook…National Chocolate Chip Day! Here are a few ways we’re celebrating this delectable holiday. What’s your favorite way to enjoy chocolate chips?

*New* Tillamook Vanilla Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Grab a spoon!

Chocolate chips in their natural habitat! We take our delicious Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and add in premium chocolate chips for a simple, delicious treat perfect for a beautiful Oregon day like today.

Chocolate Chip Cream Scones from The Food Librarian

Chocolate Chip Scones from The Food Librarian

Check out these delicious breakfast scones from food blogger, The Food Librarian. As blogger Mary says, scones are a great recipe because you can make everything in one bowl! Less time cleaning and more time celebrating National Chocolate Chip Day!

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies from MarthaStewart.com

Chocolate Chip Cookies from Martha Stewart

These soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies from Martha Stewart feature a secret ingredient that’s close to our hearts here at Tillamook – Sour Cream! If this is a new concept for you, don’t be scared. The ingredient adds flavor depth to the cookies and makes them extra creamy and soft. Prepare to share!

Cheese sampling!

Do you like helping others? Are you upbeat and cheery and looking for a fun place to work? Do you have experience in a retail environment? Our busy Tillamook Cheese Factory needs you this summer! We’re looking for team members with strong customer service and cashier skills to assist visitors with friendly, knowledgeable service.

We are seeking Visitor Customer Service Representatives to work part-time, between 16-40 hours per week.  Applicants must be available to work weekends and weekdays throughout the summer and early fall season. You will operate computerized cash registers, stock merchandise, help with cleaning and assist at the fudge and cheese sample counters, as needed.  You must be able to stand for a full-shift and obtain a Food Handler’s card within 30 days of being hired. The pay range is $8.80 to $12.00 per hour, depending on experience.

To apply please visit our Careers page: www.tillamook.com/ourstory/careers

Tillamook County Creamery Association is an Equal Opportunity Employer and a Drug-Free Workplace.

So many to choose from!

Yummy fudge!

Ice cream, please!

He's ready for the Zoo!

It’s been three months since we first arrived in the Lone Star State. From Dallas to Austin to Houston, we’ve been loafing our time in Texas! Our Texas fun continues on Saturday, May 19 with Loaf Love Tour at the San Antonio Zoo! Stop by to see us between 9am and 5pm to enjoy some cheese samples, play games and get Tillamook goodies!

The first 100 people who come to the zoo wearing Tillamook Orange will get in to the zoo for free! Anyone after the first 100 will save $1 off zoo admission. Inside the zoo, we’ll be sampling cubes of our yummy natural cheeses and handing out bingo cards that you and your family can take around the zoo to find fun animals and Tillamook Cheese! When you’re done, swing by the sampling station to collect a special prize! And don’t forget to grab a coupon book with coupons and delicious recipes for you and your family!

We hope to see you at the San Antonio Zoo on Saturday, May 19 to have some fun with Tillamook!

My family!

Growing up in a traditional Hmong house, cheese was not a part of our diet.  Mom cooked rice, simple soups, meat and vegetables.  The truth is that it was Dad who was the cook.  He was more creative and experimental, and Mom stuck to the traditional Hmong food.  Some of you might be wondering, what is Hmong food? Well, quick story is that the Hmong are from the mountains of Southeast Asia, and our staple food is white rice, which is usually eaten with a variety of vegetables and boiled or fried meat.  You can see how cheese doesn’t fall on the menu.

It wasn’t until I got older that the kids took control of the kitchen and started to introduce the ‘American’ dishes that we loved to the rest of the family. When I say kids, I mean my mom gave birth to eight of us.  With me as the eldest pioneering us into this new world of food, we have had our fair share of hits and misses.  In the beginning we just started to insert some different dishes into our meals and then we graduated into having full on different cuisine meals.  My parents would attempt to try them all, but mom was always more hesitant with the dishes that contained cheese. It was just too different from her usual foods.

I am happy to say that after years of trial, we finally succeeded in creating a dish that mom loves and has requested again and again.  With new additions such as my brother-in-laws, sister-in-law and nieces, it is always a party when we all get together and we have had a lot of fun with this recipe.

Here’s the recipe to my mom’s favorite cheese dish!

Chicken Hawaiian Pizza

Toppings:

• Tillamook’s Mozzarella
• Tillamook’s World’s Best Medium Cheddar
• Grilled chicken
• Pineapple chunks
• Tomato paste

Pizza crust:

• English muffins

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Place the English muffin halves cut side up onto a baking sheet. Spoon some of the pizza sauce onto each one. Top with the cheeses and toppings. Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the cheese is melted and browned on the edges. Enjoy!!!

How have you introduced cheese to other people? I’d love to hear about it!

Happy Mother’s Day to you all and happy cooking!

-Pepper Corny Pakou, follow me on Twitter @peppercornypaku

You’ve probably served mom breakfast in bed before, but now it’s time to serve up breakfast Tillamook style. We’ve rounded up Tillamook recipes that are simple to make and easy to eat in bed… And most important, they will make mom smile!

Cheddar Bacon Waffles

Breakfast Burrito

Strata (a.k.a Savory Bread Pudding)

Chilaquiles

Bronson Sunrise Smoothie

Happy Mother’s Day!