Photo: LPritchard/Flickr

Nobody makes it like Dad, and the winner of the Tillamook Dad’s Ultimate Dish contest is no exception! Congratulations to Jamie Martin and her fantastic father. Here is the winning nomination:

“My dad taught me how it make this recipe when I was about thirteen years old. Every Saturday night became spaghetti night, where he and I would spend a few hours in the kitchen, cooking and laughing! Even though I live far away now, I still eat spaghetti every Saturday night; sometimes we make it together over Skype, just like old times. In a few years, I’ll be passing the tradition along to my own daughters, so they can have Saturday night spaghetti with their dear old dad as well!” - Jamie Martin

• 5 garlic bulbs
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 red onion
• 1 lb of spaghetti
• 1 can of clams
• 1 cup of Tillamook Cheese
• 1/2 can of olives
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Cooking spray
• Pinch of salt

Directions:
Open up the can of clams and drain them. Begin to boil water; shake the salt shaker around in there a little bit. Put the spaghetti in there. Peel and slice the garlic and onion, set them aside. Then chop up the olives into slices. Put the peas in another pot of boiling water. At this point the spaghetti should be done, so grab your frying pan, spray it with the cooking spray, then throw the onions and garlic on to sauté. Whilst you drain the spaghetti, throw some butter into the spaghetti pot to mix with the spaghetti, with both the clams and peas. Then, the veggies should be done, so go ahead and stir those in. Top with Tillamook Cheese, and enjoy!

Thanks Jamie (and huge thanks to your dad)! Congratulations again on winning the Dad’s Ultimate Dish Contest and a custom BBQ kit (with lots of Tillamook Cheese)!

Runner up:
This was a very close call, so we are honored to also celebrate Zach Petzold and his father! The story behind his recipe:

“Every holiday and family gathering of our family on Dad’s side is pretty big (sometimes as many as 32 gather together and squeeze into someone’s house). With a family that big, you can be sure there are always lots of pot-luck dishes. Grandpa seems to know these gatherings are his time to reach back into his memory and recall one of his famous stories about his life in Wisconsin and his move to California. We’ve all heard the stories hundreds of times, but with Grandpa turning 86 this year, we know it may be the last.

Sometimes the appetizers are our favorite part of the meal. Grandma has said, “Sometime we should just have appetizers and skip all the fuss with the dinner.” Our favorite appetizer is Dad’s Hot Artichoke Dip. You can try using other cheese, but only Tillamook Cheese gives dad’s dip the uniquely creamy texture we all love. Our family gatherings may be big, but they are always filled with love and Dad’s Hot Artichoke Dip made with Tillamook Cheese – our family recipe for a guaranteed good time.” – Zach Petzold

Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix the following in a glass dish:

• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup chopped green chilies
• 1 cup chopped marinated artichoke hearts
• 1 cup grated Tillamook Cheddar Cheese
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Heat in oven until hot and bubbles form on sides. Enjoy as a hot dip with tortilla chips or spread on toasted sourdough bread.

Thanks to everyone who entered, and thanks to all those dads out there cooking up tasty dishes for and with the family. Happy Father’s Day!

By Loafy

A vintage photo of Lisa and her family in their first boat - she's holding the net in the white sweatshirt

If you haven’t had a chance to enter the Dad’s Ultimate Dish Contest yet, don’t wait too long! It ends June 17. Need some inspiration? A Tillatastic fan, Lisa Lankins, shared this great story with us. It’s so great, I couldn’t keep it to my cheesy self.

“Hello Fine People of Tillamook Cheese,

My Dad’s recipe, which I have eaten since a small child, is very simple. It’s freshly boiled crab (which we picked and ate from the shell), alongside a Baby Loaf of Medium Cheddar Cheese (or Sharp), and a box of saltine crackers, along with some very cold beer.

I grew up crabbing on the Oregon Coast. I can’t count how many times we stopped at the Tillamook Cheese Factory on our weekend crabbing/salmon fishing trips. My Dad made a crab cooker from an old beer keg, and he would set it on a gas flame burner in the driveway. We cooked and cleaned them ourselves, sometimes up to 60 crabs. As soon as we were finished we would go to the kitchen table, cover it with newspaper, and Dad would get out his home-made crab crackers (basically wooden blocks on a stick), and we would use the crab legs to clean the crab. All the while we’d be eating Tillamook Cheddar on crackers, and be drinking a beer (well, when I was younger, only Dad drank the beer). My Dad lived until I was forty, but I still long for those days crabbing and eating Tillamook Cheddar. In fact, Tillamook Cheese means family to me.

Thanks for this opportunity to share one of my fondest memories…

Lisa Lankins”

Thank YOU, Lisa, for sharing your story with us and other Tillamook fans. I am a lucky Baby Loaf to get to be a part of your family gatherings.

By Loafy

Newsflash: it’s almost Father’s Day! If you’re still looking for the perfect gift for your papa, check out these fun gifts Tillamook has to offer! As a bonus, all Father’s Day items will be 10% off through June 17.* If he’s a griller (and maybe a little messy), check out the new Grilled Cheese Apron! Or maybe he’d be more excited about one of the many fun Tillamook t-shirts? Either way, top it off with a loaf of cheese and you’re sure to make Dad proud.

Don’t forget to enter your dad’s favorite recipe in the Dad’s Ultimate Dish contest for a chance to win a custom BBQ kit created just for your dad!

* 10% off select items and valid only on the Tillamook Shop or Tillamook Facebook Shop. Sale lasts from June 4, 2012 at 12:00 AM through June 17 at 11:59 PM.

By Katie

The best part of this burger (Tillamook Cheese!) is hidden on the inside.

This Father’s Day, impress Dad with cheese-stuffed burgers! While this isn’t a play-by-play recipe, this is what I learned from making a stuffed burger of my own. Best part: I got to do it with the help of a grill master, my Dad!

My Dad - ready to grill!

 What you’ll need (for making about 4 burgers):
- Your favorite hamburger meat (about 2 lbs)
- Cheese to stuff in the burger (about 1 cup shredded cheese or 8 slices)
- All other hamburger makings that you fancy

We used Tillamook Garlic White Cheddar in our stuffed burgers.

What to do:
1. Divide meat into 8 equal patties
2. Put cheese on top of 4 of the patties.
3. Then top the chees-ified patties with the remaining patties
4. Pinch the sides of the patties together so that they form one big stuffed patty. If you are having trouble pinching the thin patties together, wet the edges and press them together to seal the cheese inside!
5. Cook the stuffed patties like you would any other hamburger. I prefer grilling them… Ahem, excuse me, having my Dad grill them for me! (Thanks, Dad!)

Add the cheese between the patties.

Pinch the edges closed!

 Tips:
- This will make a big burger – make sure you’re really hungry!
- Use a cheese with a lot of flavor. I used Tillamook Garlic White Cheddar since it’s potent, but any sharp or extra sharp cheddar will also be perfect stuffed in a burger!
- Don’t mix the cheese in with the meat! That will make the meat less dense and more likely to fall apart.
- I prefer to use shredded cheese because I like the way it melts, but slices work too! I recommend using 2 slices of cheese per stuffed burger.
- Place the cheese in the middle of the burger and don’t spread it to the very edge. This will give you plenty of room to pinch the burger and seal the cheese inside. Sometimes a little cheese sneaks out while cooking – and that’s okay!
- If you’re feeling adventurous, you can put more than just cheese on the inside of your burger. Other fillings to use: chilies, mushrooms, peppers, olives, onions, or even a different kind of meat.
- If you like kitchen tools, there are stuffed burger makers that make stuffing a burger really simple!

What are your favorite ingredients to stuff in a burger?

Cheers! Me with my Dad.

Happy Father's Day to my Dad and all the other Dads out there!

By Laura