The beauty of quiche is that you can make almost any flavor. Do you like bacon? Add it. Do you like spinach? Great, add that too. Once you know what ingredients you’re using, the only real question is, what cheese are you going to pile into your delicious quiche?

In an experiment to find out which Tillamook Cheese goes best with onion and leek quiche, I headed to the store and purchased both Tillamook Swiss Cheese and Shredded Tillamook Sharp Cheddar. I divided the recipe below in half and used Swiss in one and sharp cheddar in the other.

Placing two quiche on everyone’s plate, my friends were asked to pick their favorite. That’s when disaster struck. No one was willing to pick a favorite. It turns out both Swiss and Sharp Cheddar are excellent in quiche. I walked away from this experience learning that whatever Tillamook Cheese is in your fridge, it can be used in a quiche. My next experiment will be with bacon and Tillamook Smoked Medium Cheddar. I have a filling it will be a hit.

Ingredients
1 box frozen puff pastry
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
½ yellow onion
1 leek
6 eggs
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup of your favorite grated Tillamook Cheese
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Salt and pepper
6 tablespoons melted Salted Tillamook Butter

Preparation
Let the puff pastry defrost and preheat oven to 350 degrees. Thinly chop both the onion and the leek then add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a sauté pan and cook the onion and leek over medium low heat until translucent (5-10 minutes). Let the ingredients cool.

While the onions and leeks are cooking, combine eggs, cream, Tillamook Cheese, chopped parsley, salt, and pepper. After, stir in the cooked leeks and onions and set aside.

Carefully remove one sheet of puff pastry and place on a cutting board. Cover the puff pastry with melted butter using a brush and add another puff pastry onto of the butter. Repeat until you have 4 layers covered with butter.

Cut the puff pastry into squares slightly larger than your circular tins. We used mini muffin tins with a 2 inch diameter and cut our pastry squares to 2¾ inches. You want your puff pastry to be able to line the wall of your tin.

Fill your pastry cups about ⅔ of the way to the top and place in the oven for about 12 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy!

By Kelly

Let’s face it. Kids can be picky eaters and that makes meal time extra hard. When my kids only want to eat cereal for weeks on end, it’s hard not to just give in at some point. There are loads of tricky ways to sneak in vegetables but I have found myself going crazy trying to figure that all out. I finally stumbled across the theory of options. It turns out, when I give my kids a choice between multiple healthy foods, they are more likely to pick one. Armed with this knowledge, I’ve been able to gain back a whole lot of time I use to spend stressing in front of the fridge.

I now keep little bags of cut up veggies in the fridge. Each bag is a different vegetable and I let my kids pick out which bag they are going to eat. Here are some more tips from Tillamook fans for keeping variety in the kitchen:

1. “Just to mix it up I sometimes create a ‘cheese platter’ for my 8 year old son. He loves the idea of sampling all his favorite Tillamook cheese’s with a variety of crackers. I even put it on a special platter just for him.” – Audrey Arcuri

2. “I always buy red and green grapes at the store. When I put both colors of grapes on my son’s plate, he always seems to eat more, thinking they are different.” – Carol Gragg

3. “I take a few different Tillamook Yogurt flavors and layer them in a little glass jars for my kids. They love to see all the colors and they have fun trying to eat them separately or mixing them all together.” – The Tillamook Team

4. “When I make my kids sandwiches, I cut them in four sections and put a different flavor of Tillamook Cheese in each. My kids always take one bite from each and then spend lunch time talking about what section they like the most.” – Linda Warren

What tips do you use to get your kids eating healthy meals?

By Kelly

With the holiday season over, the kids are heading back to school. College kids are packing up all the clean laundry they did while home and hitting the road back to late night study sessions, cramped dorm rooms, and frozen pizza meals. To make sure your college kid starts their winter term off on the right foot, here are few Tillamook care package ideas:

1. Who doesn’t love getting food in the mail? College kids may appreciate a good gift box most of all. The Tillamook Online Shop has cheese filled Gift Boxes for all the Tillamook fans far from home. If your college kid can’t get Tillamook at school, these boxes can be the perfect reminder of home and you.

2. College students seem to live in comfy t-shirts, grabbing whatever is “almost” clean to toss on before class. Sending a new clean tee is a great way to say, I’m thinking of you.

3. Everyone loves a surprise! A Tillamom recently told me she hid a loaf of her son’s favorite Tillamook Cheese with a note in his car before he left for college. The first thing he did after unpacking his car was to call his mom. “I know it was the cheese but I like to think he called because he already missed me.”

4. Once your college kid moves out of the dorms and into their first place, it can be the first time they are in charge of all the cooking. Sending them the Tillamook Cookbook is a great way to help them get a handle on yummy tasty meals that remind them of home.

5. Tilla-Moos are not just for little kids. Big kids love quick delicious snacks that are easily stuffed in backpacks for hunger stopping moments in class. You can send a big bag of Tilla-Moos to your big kid at the Online Shop.

By Kelly

Scones remind me of times spent with family. They seem to always be present at big family gatherings, festive occasions or any time a scone lover pleads for them to be made…which means, in my house, they are made often. With so many scones being eaten, it’s helpful to change up the recipe to keep things fresh. One of my favorite recipes is for Tillamook Cheddar Scones. They are rich, buttery, flaky, light with just the right amount of savory cheesy goodness to go with any dinner, or lunch…or breakfast! Enjoy!

Ingredients
4 cups and 1 tablespoon flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1½ teaspoon salt
¾ pound and 1 tablespoon Tillamook Salted Butter
5 eggs
1 cup heavy cream
8 oz Tillamook Special Reserve Extra Sharp Cheddar
½ cup chopped scallions
1 tablespoon milk

Preparation
Prepare your ingredients. You want your butter cold. Really cold! It’s the secret to flaky scones. Cut up a ¾ pound of the butter into small cubes, place them in a bowl, and stick them back in the fridge until it’s time to use them. Cut up the scallions. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter into a fry pan over medium heat. Add the scallions to the pan and saute for a few minutes (about 4 minutes). Set aside and allow to cool completely. Cut up ½ pound of the Tillamook Cheese into small cubes and set aside.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the over to 400 degrees.

Use an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add 4 cups flour, the baking powder, and salt. Mix, being careful to go slow so the flour doesn’t shoot up at you. Add the super cold butter to the flour and mix until the butter becomes the size of peas and is covered by the flour mixture. It’s important that you can still see little chucks of butter in the mixture. Lightly beat 4 eggs in a small bowl. Add the heavy cream and the eggs to the flour and butter. Combine, being careful not to over mix. Add 1 tablespoon of flour to the cheddar cubes and mix to cover the cheese with a light coating of flour. Add the cheddar and the scallions to the batter, mixing as little as possible.

Flour a counter and place the dough on the counter. Knead the dough for a minute or two, until the cheese is distributed. Roll the dough out to a ¾ inch thick sheet. Cut dough into 22 trinagles.

Mix one egg with milk in a small bowl. Brush on top of scones. Bake in oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops of scones are lightly brown. Recipe makes 22 scones.

By Kelly

Does anyone else have a hard time getting healthy school lunches ready for their kids each week? It’s hard to find the time to prepare lunches kids will eat, let alone lunches that are good for them! Tillamoms and Tilladads are here to help! Fans from all over the country have sent in their quick meal tips and, along with a few of our own, we have compiled our favorites here to you and your Tillakids. We are always looking for more ideas, so send any quick & healthy lunch ideas our way!!

“The best way to get my picky kids to eat a healthy lunch is to pack them a container of lunch meat, Tillamook cheese slices, and crackers. Tons healthier than a Lunchable and I don’t have to feel guilty about feeding it to them! ” – Me Too

“I make mozzarella and apple sandwiches the night before. They are perfect for kid’s lunches and making them the night before allows the flavors time to mingle and get extra yummy!” – Kelly Sanders

“My kids love making things. So, I give them jars of Banana Vanilla Yogurt and then little bags of things they can stir into the yogurt. Some of my kids favorites are cereal, oatmeal, chocolate chips, and fresh fruit.” – The Tillamook Team

“I freeze Light Marionberry Yogurt cups to put in my children’s lunch boxes. They help keep everything cold and by their lunch time, they are thawed enough to eat! My children love it!” – Pamela Summers

“I love making homemade trail mix! You can control how nutritious it is and your kids can have fun making it.” – Amalya Haver

“By the middle of the week, I put a note in their school [lunch] letting them know what fun thing we have planned for the weekend. It makes them happy and gives them something to look forward to.” – Mary Kay Janssen

“I make homemade popcorn on Sunday night. I put it in little baggies that can be added to lunches all week long. The best part is, I add Shredded Italian Blend cheese or other tasty toppings to make each bag a little different.” – The Tillamook Team

By Kelly

Oregon is home to so many delicious foods! While Tillamook Cheese is always the first food I think of when I dream of tasty Oregon treats, hazelnuts are a close second. Often called filberts in Oregon, these distinct little nuts have been combined with desserts by many great chefs for hundreds of years. With an Oregon themed dinner party on the horizon, I knew I needed to combine these tasty nuts with Tillamook Ice Cream to make the perfect Oregon inspired dessert.

First step: Make the meringue!
Yields: 16 disks for 8 sandwiches

Ingredients
1½ cups toasted hazelnuts
1½ cups sugar
5 egg whites
Pinch of salt
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon almond extract

In a food processor combine the toasted hazelnuts and 1½ cups sugar. Mix until the nuts are as fine as the sugar. Use a spoon to fluff up the nuts and make sure there are no large nuts left.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a pencil and a round glass about 3 inches in diameter, trace 8 circles on each sheet. Flip the sheets over so the pencil side is down.

In a mixer, beat the egg whites on low speed until they foam. Add the salt and cream of tartar. Continue beating until soft peaks form. Leaving the mixer on, slowly add the 3 tablespoons of sugar, vanilla, and almond extracts. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat until hard shinny peaks form. Turn mixer off and using a spoon fold in the almond-sugar mixture. Place the meringue in a pastry bag and starting with the outside of the circle, pipe the mixture onto the cookie sheets ending in the middle of each circle. Place in oven and cook for 1 hour or until the meringue will move around on the sheet when poked. Take out of the oven and allow to cool completely.

Once the meringue disks have cooled. Take out your favorite flavor of Tillamook Ice cream. (I used Tillamook Mudslide but I suspect many other flavors, like Espresso Mocha, would be delicious.) Let the ice cream melt a little so that it is easily molded without breaking the meringue cookie. Place a scoop of ice cream on top of a meringue disk, smash it down so it’s level and place another disk on top. Wrap each cookie in saran warp and place in the freezer until you are ready to eat!

These little Oregon treats are great for a quick dessert whenever you’re ready for a Pacific Northwest snack!

By Kelly

“Well, do you want to make somethings unbelievably delicious?”

I was sitting at my mother’s house, trying to figure out what to make for a family dinner when my mom posed this exact question. I looked up from the cookbook I was flipping through for inspiration, raised an eyebrow and responded with, “I can’t imagine saying no to that question.” Somehow, my mom had knowledge of a corn pudding that is both silky smooth in texture, balanced between a savory base and bursts of sweetness, and so satisfyingly good that each bite leaves you feeling warmed from the inside. It seems like an exaggeration, sure, but then you haven’t tried this corn pudding, YET!

The recipe is based off The Barefoot Contessa Sagaponack Corn Pudding recipe but has been tweaked over the years by my own mother.

Ingredients
¼ lbs of Tillamook Salted Butter
1 ½ jalapeno peppers
5 cups fresh corn kernels cut off the cob
1 cup chopped onion
4 eggs
1 cup whole milk
1 cup half and half
½  cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons chopped basil leaves
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon salt
¾  teaspoon black pepper
10 oz grated Tillamook Special Reserve Extra Sharp Cheddar

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a 2 quart backing dish by greasing with butter.

In a saute pan add butter and allow to melt over medium heat. Add jalapenos and saute for about two minutes. Turn heat up to medium-high and add corn and onion. Saute entire mixture for about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.

Add eggs, milk, and half and half in a large bowl and whisk together until combined. Slowly add in the cornmeal and ricotta. Mix well. Next, add in basil, sugar, salt and pepper. Finally, add in corn mixture and approximately 6 ounces of the Tillamook Cheese. Pour mixture into the prepared pan and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Fill a larger baking pan half way with water. Place the baking pan containing corn pudding mixture into the water bath. Place into oven and bake for about 45 minutes or until the top has browned and a toothpick placed in the middle of the pudding comes out clean.

You will want to eat the pudding immediately, while it’s still warm. Enjoy!

By Kelly

Looks fancy, tastes delicious

There are many party themes out there. You can have an Italian party, a murder mystery party or even a chocolate themed night. But when I was planning my next dinner party I could think of no better party theme than Oregon! An Oregon party lets me celebrate all the things I love! My home state makes so many tasty foods, the party is practically planned before you even get started. What better way to start an Oregon party than a salmon dip?

Yields (number of servings): About 14

Ingredients
Smoked Oregon salmon – about 2 inches wide
½ cup Tillamook Premium Sour Cream
¼ cup cream cheese
3 teaspoons capers, diced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
5 green onions, diced
2 splashes of Tabasco
Salt and pepper
2 rolls – like hoagie rolls

Oregon ingredients for this Oregon appetizer

With your fingers, shred the salmon into a bowl. In a separate bowl combine Tillamook Premium Sour Cream and cream cheese. Then combine with the salmon. Add lemon juice, onions, Tabasco, salt, and pepper to taste. Stir until well combined. Refrigerate until the mixture firms up a bit (about 20 minutes). You want it to hold its shape.

Cut the end off your rolls and hollow out the inside of the roll so you can see all the way through it. Be careful not to puncture the crust. Use a spoon to fill the roll with the salmon mixture. Cut the filled roll into ½ inch slices.

Tillamook Sour Cream and Oregon salmon start any Oregon themed party off on a delicious note!

By Kelly

Sour Cream is the perfect addition to your traditional apple pie.

Everyone has their own family traditions when it comes to the holidays. For my family, our holidays are centered around the food. Lots of food, and that can be a huge production. There is a famous incident where an aunt tried to change the typical Thanksgiving meal to all appetizers. That’s right, no turkey. No mashed potatoes. Just appetizers. Let’s just say, there was a huge revolt and the scheme was never attempted again.

We may try a new dish or two each year but there is a whole long list of dishes that never change. One such dish is the Sour Cream Apple Pie. It’s one of several desserts that is made each year for Thanksgiving but is by far the best one to eat for breakfast the next day. I secretly pray that my family picks the chocolate pecan pie, the pumpkin pie or the lemon meringue pie after dinner, wanting to ensure that my breakfast is safe. There’s something just magical about adding Tillamook Premium Sour Cream to the apple filling. The sour cream transforms the inside of the pie into a silky smooth, rich center. I promise, it’s the best dessert or breakfast pie our there!

Ingredients
1 unbaked pie crust
1 cup Tillamook Premium Sour Cream
1 egg
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon flour
4½ cups peeled and chopped green apples
¾ cup sugar
⅔ cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¾ cup room temperature Tillamook Salted Butter

Preparation
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Combine the sour cream, egg, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon of flour in a large bowl. Toss the chopped and peeled apples with the sour cream mixture, ensuring that all the apples are coated. Pour the sour cream and apple mixture into the pie crust.

In an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the sugar, ⅔ cup flour, cinnamon, and butter. This mixture will become your topping. Take about a tablespoon of the butter and sugar mixture at a time and form a small flattened tile in the palm of your hand. Place each tile of sugar on top of the pie, overlapping so that at the end, the pie is covered by the sugar mixture. You can use your hands to manipulate the mixture over the pie so it is all smoothly covered. Place pie in the oven and for about 1 hour or until the pie is golden brown. Eat right away or wait until breakfast.

By Kelly

This cheesy appetizer is an easy and delicious addition to any gathering

When it comes to cooking it’s easy to get stuck in a rut, making the same few things for dinner or having the same breakfast cereal for weeks. Every time it’s my turn to bring an appetizer, I seem to come up with the same three or four ideas. I was invited to a birthday party recently and sure enough, I was assigned to bring the appetizer. Over the phone, I mentioned that I was going to try my best to come up with something new and creative. My friend got quiet and then said, “But I asked you to bring the appetizer because we all love your spinach dip.” Well, what’s a girl to do but bring a spinach artichoke dip.

My recipe has been adopted from The Pioneer Woman. My ingredient list is slightly different but the cooking instructions are the same. It turns out, even “The Best Spinach Artichoke Dip Ever” can still be made better with Tillamook!

Ingredients
6 tablespoons Tillamook Salted Butter
4 tablespoons chopped garlic
10 ounces fresh spinach (you can use less if you get spinach in a bag that has less than 10 ounces)
Salt
Pepper
2 cans artichoke hearts
3 tablespoons flour
1½ cups whole milk
5 ounces cream cheese
½ cup feta cheese
½ Tillamook Shredded Italian Blend
1 cup grated Tillamook Pepper Jack Cheese
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

By Kelly