Chocolaty Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

During our time in Boise we’ve experienced 100 degree weather almost every day. There are few things I enjoy doing when the weather is this warm, as I am more of a cold weather person. I believe the warm season is meant for days at the river, baseball games, and scouting for the coming hunting season. Now, I’ve tried many remedies, but I’ve found that the best way to bring down my body temperature after these hot days is with a scoop or two of my favorite ice cream. There’s nothing better than walking into your air conditioned house (or hotel while on the road!) and going straight for the freezer. You hang your head in there for a minute, trying to cool off before you reach for the tub of Tillamook Chocolaty Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream. This is my flavor of choice, but any others will do just fine. The smooth cookie dough flavored ice cream with chunks of cookie dough and chocolate chips is what really does it for me, especially on these scorching days. And that’s not to say I can’t enjoy this treat any time of the year though. Come Sundays during football season, I hunker down on the couch with take out food and my favorite tub of ice cream. My only addition once the warm weather breaks is adding hot fudge to my ice cream – now that is a treat!

With this being my third year on the Loaf Love Tour, I have been to the Tillamook Cheese Factory more than a few times, and tried several flavors of Tillamook Ice Cream. But I have yet to try the Tillamook Ice Cream Adventure, a full on giant sundae with a scoop of every flavor. They offer this at the Cheese Factory, and with all the times I’ve gone, there hasn’t been an opportunity to experience it yet. And this isn’t just a bowl of ice cream. It’s every flavor Tillamook makes. It’s like Super Bowl Sunday, opening day of hunting season, and Christmas morning all happening on the same day. It will be epic. This great sundae is like the one that got away from me. Some would call it my “Great White Buffalo”… But someday, I am determined to accomplish this sundae – whether I have to go at it alone or with a group, it will happen. Until then, I can dream about it, right?

By Alberto

The Tillamook Jacked-Up Burger at Squatters

The tastiest week of the year is just around the corner for Salt Lake City! In 5 days Burger Week will be hitting the city in celebration of the Loaf Love Tour by showcasing the best burgers Salt Lake City has to offer. Burger Week runs July 21 through July 28 with two top restaurants featuring not one but two burgers with award-winning Tillamook Cheese.

Participating Restaurants:

Wild Grape Bistro
The Wild Grape is all about giving back to the community and for Burger Week they are giving back in a major way with not one but three Tillamook cheeses on their Burger Week burger. Come and get it while it lasts!

• Tillamook Triple Cheese Burger – A sustainable beef burger with Tillamook Sharp Cheddar, Monterey Jack, and Pepper Jack Cheese, along with spinach, tomato, and artisan bread, served with house-cut fries ($11).

Squatters Pub Brewery (both the Downtown and Park City locations are participating)
Salt Lake City’s original brewpub is known for its world-class handcrafted beer and food in a warm, friendly environment. Now during Burger Week they will also be known for their cheesy Tillamook burger. You won’t want to miss it!

• Tillamook Jacked-Up Burger – Niman Ranch® all-natural 100% ground chuck topped with Tillamook Pepper Jack Cheese, roasted green chilies, fresh cut avocado, and house made chipotle aioli served on Squatters’ ale-infused spent grain bun with choice of fries or salad ($10).

By Loafy

On the Loaf Love Tour, there’s always enough cheese around to keep our cheddar cravings at bay. However, until now, our taste buds have really been missing that delicious creaminess that only Tillamook Ice Cream can satisfy.  As July quickly approached (man, time flies when you’re on the road!) our mouths were watering more day by day, in anticipation of our arrival to Salt Lake City…otherwise known as The First City On Tour That Has Tillamook Ice Cream!!! Oh, the pride and joy I felt when we arrived at our very first Utah store and I saw Harmons’ fully-stocked freezer with all of my favorite flavors. They even had all three vanillas! “Yes,” I said to my partner, Noelle, “Utah will be just fine!”

In an effort to kick off Utah with a sweet and creamy celebration, I decided to surprise the crew with a carton of our ever-anticipated ice cream. All throughout the afternoon I agonized over the best way to get the ice cream safely from the store to our new hotel (nearly an hour away) in the sweltering heat. With some master ice-maneuvering, I was confident I could get the sweet spoonfuls of deliciousness safely into my fellow brand ambassadors mouths. Though we all have our own favorite flavor for our own special reason, I eventually decided to take Marrionberry Pie home. Marrionberry Pie is known to be Cheddar Coy’s all-time favorite, so I knew that he would be especially thrilled by the surprise!

As I checked into the hotel room that I would call home for the next three weeks, I realized something horrible: NO FREEZER!!! I frantically sent out a mass text to the crew to come to my room ASAP for a special surprise. Whether they saw me carrying the carton into the hotel or smelled the pie chunks through my text message, there was a knock on my door within seconds of pressing “send.” After no time at all, the entire carton of our precious Tillamook Ice Cream was gone. Plastic spoons were strewn about my room, melty drips of ice cream had made it onto my bed, and every one of us had sticky hands, smiling faces, and happy tummies! My surprise was a success. I can only hope that Tillamook Ice Cream for dinner becomes a regular thing on tour. Which flavor shall we dine on next week?!

Until next time!

TillaMaya

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By Maya

When the subject of ice cream comes up, it is directed my way. I have the sweet tooth of the tour, and share my love of sweets with everyone else while on the road.

I blame my family for my addiction to Tillamook Ice Cream. When our freezer is stocked with ice cream, we don’t know how to have just one scoop. Every time we treat ourselves, we really go for it. I’m talkin’ at least three scoops at once, and that’s not even a challenge. It’s so bad in fact, that when my Dad met my sister’s boyfriend for the first time and he offered my Dad the smallest container of ice cream ever made (thimble-sized), he assumed it was a joke, because who would only want a thimble-sized container of ice cream? We had to teach him the family ways so my Dad could give his official approval of the boyfriend.

I have to give credit to my sister for introducing me to my favorite ice cream of all time (and I mean that literally because when I told her I was writing this she demanded to be acknowledged as the first person that showed me Tillamook Ice Cream). We all know that everyone has something that their mother or grandma makes better than anyone else in the world. There’s that one meal or dessert than no one does better, and therefore you are spoiled with this one item to the point that you won’t eat it unless your grandma made is especially for you. For me, it’s my grandma’s pie. And not just any pie. Fresh baked buttery crust that flakes apart as you eat it, pie filled with plump Marionberries fresh off the vine. That is the pie. So naturally, when my sister pulled Tillamook Marionberry Pie Ice Cream from her freezer, it was like the heavens opened up and the ice cream gods told me they loved me. The light from the freezer reflected off the crystals in such a beautiful way (sparkly vampires had nothing on this), I had to literally stop and take in the moment. This ice cream is the best of both worlds. It’s like my grandmas Marionberry pie had babies with the smoothest ice cream ever made. From the vanilla ice cream to the berries, and finally: real pie crust. It truly is like little angels dancing on my tongue. When’s the last time you had something that made you think that? As Dandy Andy would say, “it’s like a mouthful of awesome!”.

And of course there are other Tillamook Ice Cream flavors that will make you squeal with delight. April Focheezy swears by the Tillamook Mint Chocolate Chip because of its “huge chocolate chunks!” NoelleLLT says that Tillamook Grandma’s Cake Batter
is amazing because “it really is like cake and ice cream in the same bite!” Peppercorny Pakou likes the rich and yummy combination of two of her favorite flavors with Tillamook Chocolate Peanut Butter. Regardless of whether you prefer chocolate to caramel or Huckleberry to Marionberry, you are sure to find a Tillamook Ice Cream that will have you jumping for joy during this summer season.

Smiley Kylie :)

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By Kylie

The Loaf Love Tour travels all over the country and that means our cute little Baby Loaf Buses get to visit a lot of unique places. From the Garden of the Gods in Colorado to Disneyland in California to a Viking Rune Stone in Oklahoma, the Loaf Love Tour has seen a lot! Our latest stop: A walk down TV trivia lane! Can you name this secret destination?

Let me, Loafy, know where you think it is by commenting on this blog post!

By Loafy

If there is one thing I’ve learned while on the Loaf Love Tour, it’s to expect the unexpected. When you’re living on the road, there seems to always be a new challenge or an unexpected event to spice things up! Our stay in San Antonio, Texas, was no different.

At the beginning of each week, we rotate partners and prep our Baby Loaf Buses for the coming week of work. This week, my partner was none other than Dandy Andy! We went through the usual checklist (smile sticks, buttons, coupons, cheese, etc.) to make sure we were ready to share the loaf, and then we were on our way.  We decided that Dandy Andy was going to be the driver, and I was going to be the navigator.

The drive started off as usual with a few waves to fellow motorists, honking and smiling at entertained pedestrians, and even handing out a few coupons to people at stop lights. It wasn’t long after one of those friendly interactions at a stop light, when the unexpected happened.

Now when we drive these buses around, we are pretty used to cars coming up in our rear view mirrors at a pace much quicker than our own - due to the fact that they only go around 40 mph. Dandy Andy was the first to notice, there was a police car moving at a quicker than normal pace, pulling up behind us in our rear view mirror. He pointed it out to me and was curious if it seemed unusual how quickly the police officer was gaining on us. It definitely was, but I didn’t think much of it. After all, we’re driving a little orange bus that couldn’t speed, even if it wanted to!  What could a cop possibly want with us? As soon as I finished my thought, we heard a noise come from behind us. It’s the police car’s loud speaker. He barks at us “You Oregonians need to pull over, NOW!”.

All confidence that we had done nothing wrong went out the window. Dandy Andy and I quickly started going through every possible thing that could lead to us getting pulled over in the great state of Texas. We calmly pulled over into a nearby parking lot and started looking for our license and registration. As the officer reaches our driver side window, he says “Is this thing street legal?”  Still unsure what he was getting at, we start to show him our registration. When he saw the worried look on our faces, he cracked a big smile and said “I’m just joking with you guys, I just wanted to check out your car. This thing is AWESOME!”. Dandy Andy and I look at each other and couldn’t help but laugh at our panic from moments earlier.

We ended up joking around with the police officers, talking to them about how our buses were made, as well as the history of our cheese. It turns out, the officer had seen us on the news a couple days ago, and he had been seeing our Texas Meets Tillamook ads on TV. He asked if he could take a picture of our bus, and we thought it would be fun to capture the whole moment. We had him pull his car next to ours and turn his lights on. After we got a picture with them, they asked us where we were going. We told them it was an H.E.B. nearby. He said “Oh I know exactly where that is! Follow me, I’ll show you the way.” We gladly accepted the offer of a police escort and off we went!

As he was driving off, I couldn’t help but think how lucky I am to be a Tillamook Cheese Brand Ambassador. I have an amazing job that gives me awesome experiences like meeting the officers in Texas and each day I’m grateful to our police, fire, and military for their service. So this 4th of July I want to say “thank you!” to the men and women who serve us!

See you motoring down the road!

Cheddar Coy

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By Coy

There are so many ways Tillamook Cheese brings people together. I know from having met you on the road that our cheese and ice cream have created awesome memories for fans all around the country! What you might not realize is that a love of our dairy products can actually help people fall in loaf! I am lucky enough to have been witness to an amazing Loaf Love Tour tale. You see, it is a little tough to find your soulmate while out on the road so we take comfort in yummy goodness like grilled cheese sandwiches, gooey plates of mac ‘n cheese, and of course a finish of Grandma’s Cake Batter Ice Cream. However, last year during the Loaf Love Tour, one of our beloved Brand Ambassadors found a soulmate to pair perfectly with her love of cheese!

During our time touring through Northern California in 2011, Andrea stopped to ask a nice young man for directions and less than a year later we have heard from her that she is engaged!  Keep in mind that Andrea is an Oregonian in her heart, but an Ohioan by birth. The chances of her running into and then falling in loaf with this young man can only be a result of karmac cheesiness! With this wonderful news a tour legend has been created and a hope that our love of Tillamook brings loaf to us all.

Did your love of Tillamook help you fall in loaf? Tell us about it!

By Susan N.

The Loaf Love Tour is rolling into Salt Lake City! We’re excited to be surrounded by the beautiful mountains and canyons, but we’re really excited to announce we’ll be at Utah’s Hogle Zoo on Saturday, July 14! Stop by our eat and greet between 9am and 5pm to enjoy yummy cheese samples, play games, and get Tillamook goodies!

The first 100 people who come to the zoo wearing Tillamook Orange will get into the zoo for free! Anyone after the first 100 will save $1 off zoo admission. Inside the zoo, Loaf Love Tour Brand Ambassadors will 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!

Get ready for a cheesy high five and a hug, because you’ll see me, Loafy, there too! You can find a schedule of all of the Loaf Love Tour stops at LoafLoveTour.com!

By Loafy

With lots of coffee in our bellies, the smell of cows in the air, and excitement all around, the Loaf Love Tour pulled into Tillamook bright and early for a fun-filled day! On the agenda for the day were two store events, a booth at the farmer’s market, and most importantly the opportunity to drive one of our Yums in the June Dairy Parade!

The theme of this year’s parade was “Just Milk It.” The Tillamook float took the theme to the extreme and had a literal representation of milk coming from Tilly into the Tillamook Cheese Factory and all of the delicious products then coming out of the factory! The float was so creative that it actually won the first place award!

Clouds didn't prevent us from celebrating

Jammin’ Jason and I got the honor of leading the float in the Yum with giant smiles on our faces and lots of waving to the fans who came out! Although it started raining, that certainly didn’t scare away the parade-goers or our dedicated volunteers who followed behind us handing out buttons and Tilla-Moos to the crowd!

We had so much fun in the parade this year; it was great seeing everyone who came out to enjoy the festivities! We’re looking forward to the Hillsboro 4th of July Parade to celebrate our Independence and thank all of those who serve our country. We can’t wait to show off our Baby Loaf to all of our fans there as well!

-April FoCheezy
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By April

It’s amazing how much attention we get on the Loaf Love Tour when we drive around in the baby loaf buses. I’m definitely not going to pretend like I don’t love it. I thought that we got a lot of attention in Texas for the last 3 months, but being back in the Northwest has made me feel like somewhat of a celebrity. When we’re driving to and from our events, people will pull up next to us, want to talk to us and see what we’re doing. They try and snap pictures of us while they’re driving… which can sometimes get a little scary. People weave in and out of traffic, trying to watch the road while they snap a picture! It’s a tough life, but I am always ready for my close-up! We’ve driven through downtown Portland several times where there are a lot of people walking around and hanging out by the waterfront. It’s exciting because people honk and yell out to us and we feel like cheesy rockstars! I could definitely get used to this rockstar status. When we arrived at our store event today there was a huge reader board that said “Tillamook Loaf Love Tour 1pm – 7pm Thursday, June 21.” It was like the reader board at the Rose Garden, “The Rose Garden Welcomes…Van Halen!” Wow, did I just compare myself to Van Halen? I think I might be getting a bit of an ego.

Aspiring Asteria, April FoCheeezy, Smiley Kylie and I (Till-Lyssa) are really excited for our next stop, Idaho! The great potato state! You know what is great on potatoes…Tillamook Cheese! It’s so fun to go to a new market, educate consumers about Tillamook and feed them our delicious cheese. We won’t be in our home state, so my rockstar status might not be quite as prominent, but my teammates are getting sick of me insisting there be a red carpet when I arrive to work every morning – I may need to be brought down a peg or two.

Stay cheesy Portland, and look out Idaho, here we come!

- Till-Lyssa

By Alyssa