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

By Susan N.

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!

By Loafy

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

By Pakou

A creative take on the classic grilled cheese! No stove required!

As a Tillamook Brand Ambassador it’s safe to say my life revolves around Tillamook Cheese! I can tell you first hand there is never a cheese shortage on the Loaf Love Tour. We’ve become skilled at experimenting with new ways to prepare and eat Tillamook Cheese. The hotels we stay in sometimes have kitchens, but after three months, I’ve become quite creative when it comes to making food in hotels without them. So, if you ever find yourself somewhere without a kitchen and have a cheesy craving, not to worry! We have some cheesy tour recipes!

My favorite is the classic grilled cheese – no stove or oven required. All you need is a toaster! Simply turn your toaster on its side, place two pieces of bread with a slice of your favorite Tillamook Cheese on each slice, slide it in the toaster with the cheese facing up, and start toasting! Make sure you don’t use too much cheese or it’ll melt off the bread and make a big mess! Always have your plate ready because you don’t want your hotel room floor to become a landing spot for a catapulted grilled cheese! Put the cheesy bread slices together and voila! a simple cheesy treat with no clean up necessary!

Noelle’s go-to cheesy favorite is a baked potato with broccoli and Tillamook Sharp Cheddar! First, she uses a fork to poke a few holes in the potato and pops it into the microwave to cook for about seven minutes. Then she places broccoli pieces on a plate with a moist paper towel over it and microwaves that for about a minute to steam the broccoli. Last she combines the broccoli and the potato with some cheese sprinkled on top and microwaves it a little longer to make sure the cheese is nicely ooey-gooey! Yum!

Maya is partial to quesadillas (which she ate exclusively during our entire stay in Austin, TX!). Her favorite combination is two whole wheat tortillas, Tillamook Pepper Jack and Medium Cheddar, a couple spoonfuls of salsa, and a generous layer of refried beans. After a two-minute warm-up in the microwave, it’s dinner time!

Alyssa gets creative with microwavable bags of rice! Before cooking, she opens just the corner of the steamable rice bag (found in your grocery store freezer section) and adds black beans, Tillamook Monterey Jack, Sharp Cheddar, and rotisserie chicken! Cook for the recommended time on the package and then wrap all that yumminess in a flour tortilla and tada! You have a delicious burrito!

What would you make with Tillamook Cheese and no kitchen?

Happy non-cooking!

-Tillatastic Ash, follow me on Twitter @TillatasticAsh

By Ashley

My buddy Loafy at the Houston Zoo!

The Loaf Love Tour is in Houston! What better to celebrate than treating all the Houston Zoo goers to some all natural Tillamook Cheese on Earth Day?

The zoo was buzzing with excitement from the get go. There was a little bit of everything going on. From the hundreds of people doing the “Walk With Me” 5k family fun walk, to all the kids running around trying to complete their Tillamook Cheese scavenger hunt bingo; I bet that even the animals could sense this was not your ordinary day at the zoo!

Not only was this an unusual day for the zoo, this was a special day for me too! I got the privilege of being Loafy’s handler. That means I was able to not only spend some quality time with everyone’s favorite loaf of Medium Cheddar Cheese, but I was also able to explore the amazing Houston Zoo. Loafy and I had some great moments, but I’d have to say our favorite was seeing Jonathan the lion! After seeing Jonathan’s big teeth, Loafy was hoping that lions didn’t like Tillamook Cheese as much as everyone else at the Zoo did!

After giving out more 9,000 samples of Tillamook Cheese, thousands of smile sticks, and countless coupon booklets, I’d have to say the kick off to our stay here in Houston was a total success. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to see us! I’m excited to find out what else Houston has in store for the Loaf Love Tour.

- CheddarCoy

Samples, samples and more samples!

By Coy

Oregon State's Benny the Beaver

If you are from the Northwest, you know about the intense rivalry between the University of Oregon Ducks and the Oregon State University Beavers.  If you know me, Alyssa (aka Till-Lyssa) of the Loaf Love Tour, then you’re aware that I am a University of Oregon alumni and crazy, Duck Super-fan!  I would say on average most alumni were fans of at least one college sport while they were in school and may even follow that sport or team after they graduate.  I, on the other hand, was a super-fan of all sports.  I am proud to say that I attended EVERY home football game and Men’s basketball game.  I also attended 3 to 4 away football games a year and went to all Men’s playoff basketball games.  I went to Volleyball games, wrestling meets, Women’s basketball games, and track meets.

Alyssa with University of Oregon's Puddles!

When I started the Loaf Love Tour I was so excited to hear that one of my fellow Brand Ambassadors, Noelle, was also a University of Oregon alumni and Duck fanatic.  I was less thrilled to hear that the Production Assistant on tour, Jason, went to Oregon State University and is a huge Beaver fan.  In fact, the first time Jason and I met; I introduced myself and told him where I went to school.  Jason replied with, “My name is Jason and I went to OSU.  GO BEAVS!”  I thought, “Oh no!  The rivalry begins!  How will he and I ever work together in harmony?”  On top of that, what is the Tillamook and Loaf Love Tour signature color!?!  That’s right folks, ORANGE!  Don’t get me wrong, I love Tillamook orange.  I just knew that Jason was going to love to see a Duck wear OSU colors.

My very first week on the job and I was partnered with Jason.  Our second store day, the dairy manager came over and introduced himself.  Not even 2 minutes into our conversation it was revealed that a Duck and a Beaver were working together, and he couldn’t believe his eyes.  Even Texans, no stranger to college rivalries themsleves, knew about Ducks vs. Beavs. However, it turns out that Jason and I DO have something in common.  Our love for cheese!  Our favorite flavor is the Sharp Cheddar, we both love that Tillamook Cheese is natural, and we totally LOAF bringing cheese to the people!

Jason is still a diehard OSU fan, and I am still a mega U of O fan but it turns out both Ducks and Beavers love Tillamook cheese!

-Till-Lyssa

By Alyssa

Enjoy the Loaf Love Tour at the Houston Zoo with the whole family!

The Loaf Love Tour continues to roll through the great state of Texas! Our next stop is Houston, and we’re celebrating at the Houston Zoo on Saturday, April 21! Stop by to see us between 9am and 7pm to enjoy yummy cheese samples, play games and get Tillamook goodies!

Starting at 9am the first 100 people dressed in Tillamook orange will receive free entry to the zoo! Anyone after the first 100 will save $1 off zoo admission. Keep your eyes peeled for yours truly, Loafy! I will be roaming the zoo throughout the day to join in the cheesiness! The Zoo will also be celebrating Earth Day, so expect even more fun!

Our Loaf Love team will be sampling our yummy natural cheeses and handing out Tillamook Cheese coupons and yummy recipes for your family! You can also play zoo bingo and win an extra special prize – just bring your completed bingo card to the Tillamook sampling station!

See you at the Houston Zoo on Saturday, April 21!

By Loafy

Tornado in Texas!

As touring brand ambassadors, we experience lots of things for the very first time. On our last day in Plano, TX we witnessed our first tornado.  It was exciting and frightening all at the same time when the news reporters started broadcasting warnings around noon. Naturally, we frantically gathered all of our leftover bags of Tillamook Cheese and prepared for an afternoon huddled around the TV.

As we watched the tornadoes brewing in the dark sky, saw the rain coming down in gallon-sized rain drops, and listened to the sound of emergency sirens outside, the center of our tornado party was none other than…. Tillamook Cheese!!!  We pooled together a mix of spare crackers, but Noelle quickly realized that what we really needed was comfort food. What we needed was macaroni and cheese. But after the news showed a parking lot full of huge semi-trucks and trailers (much like our Daddy Loafs) getting thrown through the air like toys, we decided that a “quick trip” to the grocery store was not an option.

So, we quickly strategized how to get the needed ingredients. Our biggest obstacle was two tablespoons of flour, and we had to get creative. One of the best parts of this particular hotel was the Texas-shaped waffles served every morning.  What’s the main ingredient in waffle mix?  Flour!  The concierge at the front desk helped us get what we needed, and she was quite impressed with our crafty recipe tweak. It was really a team effort – April supplied the noodles, Alyssa donated her Tillamook Sharp Cheddar cubes, I contributed some broccoli, and Noelle went to work in the kitchen!

As the tornado sirens blared from neighboring buildings, we sat together on the couch, on the floor and in doorways enjoying our deliciously cheesy snacks. In the end, the tornado missed us by just six miles. The Daddy Loaf trucks and stayed firmly on the ground, all five Baby Loaf buses sound asleep in the trailers. When the announcement came on television that it was safe to leave our hotel, we were incredibly relieved. The only thing that would have made our celebration sweeter would have been some Tillamook Ice Cream. Because when it comes to surviving your first tornado, there’s nothing you want more than a big bowl of Tillamook Mudslide.

See you safely on the ground!

-TillaMaya

Maya and the team get cheesy (and creative) with their mac n' cheese recipe

By Maya

Austin Here We Come!

This week the Loaf Love Tour is pullin’ into Austin, Texas and I couldn’t be more excited! Austin is one of the cities I’ve been most excited to visit on this year’s tour schedule. As a Portland native, I’ve heard great things about Austin, especially that it is similar to my own lovely hometown. A few of my Oregonian friends have even made the move to Austin and have passed along praise about the city. Getting to check out new places is a huge perk while working on the road.

But I have a secret… I actually cheated and got a sneak peak of Austin a couple weeks ago when two of my fellow Loaf Love coworkers and I had a Saturday off. We drove down to Austin to check out the last day of the South By Southwest music festival, and it was awesome! There were people everywhere and live music billowing out of every door we walked by. There was so much to see, hear and take in. Everything and everyone was so cool! The great day in Austin only made me that much more excited to get to spend more time there starting this week!

I’m also looking forward to visiting some of the fabulous restaurants in the area and hopefully I’ll get the chance to try the tasty Tillamook grilled cheese sandwiches offered at a few local eateries as part of our Grilled Cheese Week. If you have any recommendations for must-see’s or must-do’s in Austin, come on by and let me know! Try some of our tasty cheeses while you’re at it!

You can find the schedule of all of our Austin store stops here.

See you in Austin!
Noelle

Follow me on twitter: @Noelle_LLT or on Facebook: Noelle LoafLove Tour

By NoelleLLT

Baby Loaves and Smile Sticks

I can’t believe that nearly a month ago I was hopping on a plane from Portland, OR to Dallas, TX to start my new job as a Brand Ambassador for the famous Tillamook Loaf Love Tour.  When people say that time flies when you’re having fun, they aren’t kidding. It’s hard to believe that our time in Dallas is coming to an end; I feel like we just got here. I was already extremely excited to begin my 6 month adventure, but Dallas and the Loaf Love Tour have far exceeded my expectations.

I know it sounds cheesy (the cheese humor never gets old), but there is not one thing that I don’t love about this job.  From the cubing parties, where all the Brand Ambassadors listen to music and slice the cheese into perfect bite-sized cubes to share with the people of Dallas, to the big events like the Dallas Zoo.  Originally, the Dallas Zoo event was supposed to be on a Saturday, but some extreme weather forced us to cut that day short.  Miraculously, just two days later the clouds parted and that big, orange wheel of cheese in the sky beamed down on us, and we were able to put our award-winning cheese in the mouths of thousands of zoo-goers. After a day on the job I often think to myself, “Am I dreaming?  I get to drive around in our awesome Baby Loaf buses. I get to talk to the wonderful people of Dallas about delicious cheese, and I get to travel around and share the Loaf. Someone pinch me!

My favorite day in Dallas thus far was definitely our Day of Loaf. The entire crew hops into our Baby Loaf buses, and we drive around spreading the loaf, taking pictures with the wonderful people of Dallas. Because it was Burger Week, we visited five Dallas-area restaurants and sampled their specialty burgers made with delicious Tillamook Cheese.  By the fifth restaurant I was so delightfully full…and happy that I had worn pants with an elastic waist band.

If you were one of the people who visited with me at a local grocery store, thank you for the warm hospitality! I love the sincerity as you listen to me rave about this amazing cheese and the support you’ve shown our co-op of family farmers. Dallas has been the perfect city to kick off the Texas leg of the Loaf Love Tour. This beautiful city has made me so excited to see what else the fine state of Texas has to offer.

Look out Texas!  The Loaf Love Tour is here! We Loaf you Dallas, TX!

- Til-Lyssa of the Loaf Love team

Dallas Super Fan

By Alyssa