Healthy or Decadently Delicious?

Healthy or decadently delicious?

Thinking of our healthy fruit and vegetable arrangements, and our decadently delicious chocolate covered fruit, I've told our customers that Flowers to Eat products can be either.

We've all heard about the benefits of the antioxidents in dark chocolate. Today's Tampa Tribune 4You section has an article that says that dark chocolate, that is 70% cocoa or more, actually has been shown to reduce blood pressure. An ounce a day has healthy benefits.

Moderation in everything, but enjoy your dark chocolate!

National Cover Anything in Chocolate Day

Do you believe there is actually a designated National Cover Anything in Chocolate Day? This year it is Thursday, December 16th.

It sure surprised me, but as a lover of good dark chocolate, now that I think about it, I think it is a great idea. Let's face it, if you attend State Fairs, the Florida Strawberry Festival and other events like these, you have seen all kinds of things covered in chocolate and up for sale.

Holiday Insights says it is a great day to "binge, indulge, pig-out and otherwise consume to excess, your favorite food....chocolate'. Check out what else Holiday Insights says about this wonderful day at http://www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/December/chocolatecovered.htm

And, if you are in our neighborhood on Thursday, December 16th, stop in at the Flowers to Eat store and ask for your free corsage box of 2 deliciously dipped chocolate covered strawberries. One freebie per person, please.

Ruth's Gourmet Peppermint Cookies

With the holidays just around the corner, we wanted to share one of our favorite cookie recipes with you. They are quick and easy to make and bake, and delicious with their holiday peppermint chips.

If you look at our website, www.flowerstoeat.com, you'll see some of our newest holiday arrangements and products. Mention this blog entry and receive $5.00 off of an arrangement.

Happy Holidays, from your friends at Flowers to Eat.

Ruth's Gourmet Peppermint Cookies

1/2 stick of salted butter
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 Tbs. vanilla
2 2/3 c. flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 bag Andes Peppermint Chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Blend softened butter, the sugars, eggs and vanilla with mixer.
Add baking powder and baking soda and continue mixing with mixer.

Add Peppermint chips and stir with spoon.
Add flour and stir till mixed.

Drop by tablespoonfuls (I use a small ice cream scoop for consistent sizing of the cookies)
onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 8 min. 30 sec. if you want a soft cookie.
Bake for 2 additional minutes if you prefer your cookies to be harder.

I leave the cookies on the hot cookie sheet for 8 - 10 minutes after removing them from the oven.
I then let the cookies cool completely on a rack.

My nieces and nephews love it when I sandwich them with Betty Crocker Rich & Creamy Vanilla Frosting or your own cream cheese frosting.

I finish the cookies by drizzling melted white chocolate across the cookies sandwiches.

Of course you need to taste test several of the cookies before sharing them with your family and friends........just to be sure they are as delicious as you thought they would be.

The Ubiquitous Pumpkin

Wherever you look this week, you will find real or real-looking pumpkins. This bright orange, nutritious member of the squash family enjoys its greatest popularity in the month of October. While they have been around for centuries and enjoyed by Native Americans, the art of pumpkin carving has been raised to new levels.

Pumpkins are ever present this week, in any direction that you turn. Grocery stores have fresh whole pumpkins for those not able to go to a pumpkin patch and choose their own right off of the vine. Farm stands have displays of pumpkins large and small, for carving, decorating or eating! Every discount store and craft store has displays of pumpkins, real or not, but all are guaranteed carvable.

Remember when it was enough to just carve 3 triangles (eyes and nose) and either a happy or scary mouth?

Those days are definitely gone. With the advanced carving tools and patterns available today pumpkins have turned into a work of art. The Food Network even had a pumpkin carving ‘Challenge’ with the winner taking home a check for $10,000. Now those carvings were unbelievably intricate. The winning “Medusa” pumpkin had 5 pumpkin carved snakes protruding from her detailed face, with several of them battery powered and moving! What a fantastic display of talented carving!

With all this focus on carving pumpkins their high nutritional value can get lost. Like other brightly colored fruits and vegetables, pumpkins are high in beta-carotene., an important antioxidant. Beta-carotene is converted by our bodies into vitamin A. There have been numerous articles relating foods high in beta-carotene to providing some protection against developing certain types of cancer, and against heart disease. They are low in salt, have zero cholesterol, and lots of fiber and vitamin C.

Pumpkins have also been associated with strange properties, none of which are proved. At one time they were thought to remove freckles, and were once, for some people, a remedy for snakebites!

If you are a Food Network junkie, every major chef has had Autumn or Halloween focused episodes with some acknowledgment of the popularity and importance of the pumpkin. There are pumpkin smoothies, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin soup, pumpkin bread, pumpkin pies, and let’s not forget pumpkin seeds! Yum!

While we are talking about pumpkin pies, according to pumpkinnook.com, the folks in New Bremen, Ohio baked the world’s biggest pumpkin pie. It weighed 3,699 pounds! Where did they find a pan big enough for it? Pumpkinnook also publicized the new world record holder for the biggest pumpkin. Chris Stevens of New Richmond, Wi. won this honor in 2010 by growing a pumpkin that had a recorded weight of 1,810.5 pounds. Now that pumpkin would make a lot of pies!

Whether your preference is to eat them, carve them or grow them, this is the season for the rotund orange pumpkin.

Newest Creations

Anticipating the smaller strawberries that will be in season for the next 6 - 10 weeks, Ruth, our creative diva, has developed several new arrangements whose focus relies less on strawberries and more on the other fruits that are still abundant. They are all delicious and beautiful to look at.

Soon, we will have our holiday arrangements and products available also. From custom platters of fruit and vegetables, to hand decorated berries, apple wedges, Banana Bites and Raspberries, the designs will be ones that you would be proud to give and delighted to receive!

In the meantime, we did create our Sports Berries, for the athlete in your life or the athlete in you!
Strawberries decorated as baseballs, basketballs, and footballs will set the mood for any tailgate party.

Shattering Barriers - McDonald's Training Center Benefit

Last night was the Shattering Barriers benefit was held at the Pepin Hospitality Center.
Over 450 people attended to support this excellent cause. Local restaurants provided attendees with entree selections, and Flowers to Eat was there handing out chocolate covered strawberries, raspberries, grapes, apple wedges and Banana Bites.

School of Fruit Design

Let your inner budding entrepreneur bloom when you learn to design edible fruit arrangements offered at the school of fruit design. Flowers to Eat is an independently owned and woman operated business specializing in gourmet fruit gifts. From fresh fruit bouquets to edible vegetable arrangements, you can learn to artfully craft beautiful arrangements of your own. Tap into this emerging retail market and open your own business. As the country makes a more health-conscious shift and the art of gift giving becomes ever more painstakingly difficult, give customers a unique and healthy alternative with your independently owned, edible fruit arrangement store.

Flowers to Eat will share their secrets for success when you sign up for the school of fruit design. Learn professional techniques for creating one of a kind designs. This is not a franchise. You will not have to pay any franchise fees or monthly royalty payments. This school is geared towards self-motivated, energetic individuals looking to open their own business. The business opportunities are endless when you learn to design your own fruit bouquets. With the option to open up your own corner store, or work right out of your own kitchen, shipping or locally delivering your artful designs, be prepared to be your own boss. From market area, to personally designed bouquets, and food suppliers to equipment providers, you can build your own business from the ground up.

As a student at the school of fruit design, you can express your creative side by learning how to make a fruit bouquet, how to make fruit arrangements, how to make vegetable arrangements, and how to design chocolate covered fruit using professional techniques. Not only will you learn how to craft beautiful arrangements, but you will also learn the secrets to success that Flowers to Eat discovered on its road to profitability.

For more information, or to sign up for the next school of fruit design session of classes offered, see http://www.flowerstoeat.com/. Click the Let Us Teach You How! link on the home page to find out more! Fill out the form at the bottom of the information page so a qualified representative can contact you regarding the next class offerings. Remember, this is NOT a franchise. You will never be asked to pay franchise fees or monthly royalty payments. Own and operate your own business! Sign up today and be on your way to a successful future owning your own edible fruit arrangement business.

Berry Interesting

This is the time of year that you can grab your pail or bucket and pick your own berries. Blueberries, Raspberries, Blackberries and Strawberries are all available at ‘u-pick-um’ farms throughout the U.S.

Flowers to Eat has a new arrangement called Oh! Raspberry which includes raspberries and blueberries, as well as strawberries, into its design. It is unique in this way with these fruits that are known for their healthy characteristics.

Raspberries are an excellent source of fiber, manganese and vitamin C. They are a good source of vitamin B2, folate, niacin, magnesium, potassium and copper. In addition, they contain significant amounts of the anti-cancer phytochemical ellagic acid.
Raspberries possess almost 50% higher antioxidant activity than strawberries, three times that of kiwis, and ten times the antioxidant activity of tomatoes, shows research conducted in the Netherlands and published in the journal BioFactors.

Blueberries are super nutritious too. There are only 80 delicious calories per cup and virtually no fat. A serving contains almost 25% of the recommended daily amount of Vitamin C. They are also a good source of Manganese, dietary fiber and antioxidents.

And they make a great parfait! See the June 11 recipe in our blog.

According to wisegeek.com, there are over 20 different types of unusual berries in North America alone. This does not include many fruits that have the name "berry" but actually do not belong to the same family, such as is the case of strawberries, blackberries raspberries, and boysenberries. These four fruits, which are sometimes considered part of the group of unusual berries, are actually aggregate fruits.

Let’s see how well you know these unusual berries. See if you can match the berry name with the interesting fact about it in the right column:

1. Seaberries
2. Mulberries
3. Tayberries
4. Bumbleberry
5. Wolfberry
6. Boysenberry

A. Mixture of berries combined in recipes
B. Used in traditional Chinese Medicine to improve eyesight and liver function
C. Soft, semi-sweet and fragile in nature; seldom found in grocery stores
D. Created as a cross between loganberries, blackberries, & raspberries that are characterized by a soft center with not seeds
E. Grow in cold weather and popular in tea in Russia
F. Hybrid berry created by cross-breeding a blackberry and a raspberry originating in Scotland

(Answers to the quiz are posted at the bottom of the Blueberry Parfait recipe in our previous blog entry)

Blueberry Parfait

Now that berry season is here, try this yummy parfait from the August, 2009 issue of "Self Magazine"!

BERRY PARFAIT
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
• 2 cups skim milk
• Juice and zest of 3 lemons, divided
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
• 1 pint blueberries
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
PREPARATION
1. Whisk milk, juice and zest of 2 lemons, sugar and cornstarch in a pot over medium heat until mixture thickens, 3 to 4 minutes. Let cool 2 minutes. Whisk in yogurt. Cook blueberries, juice and zest of remaining lemon, and sugar in another pot over medium heat, mashing until a chunky sauce forms, 2 to 3 minutes. Divide graham cracker crumbs and sauce among 4 glasses; top each with 1/2 cup yogurt pudding. Chill 1 hour.
The skinny
243 calories per serving, 1.7 g fat (0.4 g saturated), 51.8 g carbs, 2.6 g fiber, 7.5 g protein

Answers to the Berry Interesting quiz: 1E,2C,3F,4A,5B,6D to be coming in our next blog

Thank you Small Business Commerce Association!

We just had to share the good news! Thank you friends and customers for your continued enjoyment of our products. We appreciate each and everyone of you.

The Small Business Commerce Association (SBCA) is pleased to announce that Flowers To Eat has been selected for the 2009 Best of Business Award in the Flowers, fresh category.

The SBCA Best of Business Award Program recognizes the best of small businesses throughout the country. Using consumer feedback and other research, the SBCA identifies companies that we believe have demonstrated what makes small businesses a vital part of the American economy. The selection committee chooses the award winners from nominees based off information taken from monthly surveys administered by the SBCA, a review of consumer rankings, and other consumer reports . Award winners are a valuable asset to their community and exemplify what makes small businesses great.

Easy Strawberry Tarts

It's strawberry season here in Florida, and inspite of the near record cold winter that we have had, there are numerous strawberries available. If you are tired of Strawberry Smoothies and Strawberry Shortcake (is that possible???), you might like to try this recipe for strawberry tarts. It is quick and easy to make, and really tastes yummy.

Easy Strawberry Tarts

Use your favorite pastry recipe for the tart shells or buy frozen tart shells at the grocery store.

Ingredients:

1 small package of French Vanilla Instant Pudding

1 ½ c. whole milk

1 c. whipping or heavy cream

¼ c. confectioners sugar

1 pt. of strawberries

Wash, hull, and slice strawberries in half.

Follow directions on pudding package to make the French Vanilla Instant pudding using 1 ½ c. of whole milk instead of 2 cups.

In separate bowl, beat the whipping cream until light and fluffy. Add ¼.c of confectioners sugar slowly, and continue beating until it holds soft peaks.

Fold ½ of the whipped cream into the pudding mixture, and divide between 4 – 6 tart shells (depending on the size of each tart). Top each tart with several sliced strawberries arranged decoratively. Add a dollop of whipped cream to each.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve

OOOPS

Sorry, I left off the the place in the Caribbean that banana rootstock were first received.
The full answer for number 4 is : Tomas de Berlanga, a Portugues Monk, in 1516 delivered banana rootstock to the island of Santo Domingo.

And the Winner Is!!!!!

Congratulations to AC, winner of our Banana Quiz. AC you have won a corsage box full of our delicious Banana Bites. Yum!!
Give us a call for when you want to pick them up, they will be fresh made that day.


For those of you who submitted answers but didn't win, the correct answers are as follows:

1) Which country is experiencing a blossoming of the ‘Morning Banana Diet’?
Japan

2) True or False: Bananas tend to increase blood pressure in adults?
False

3) Who is credited with bringing the banana from India to the Western World?
Alexander the Great in 327 BC

4) Which Caribbean Island was the first to receive banana rootstock in 1516?
Tomas de Berlanga, a Portuguese Monk, in 1516

5) True or False, the banana tree is related to the orchid and the lily.
True

6) True or False, Bananas contain an equal amount of potassium and sodium?
False, an average sized banana contains 467 mg of potassium and 1 mg of sodium

7) True or False, The origin of the word ‘banana’ comes from the Chinese word for finger?
False, it comes from the Arabic word for finger

Going Bananas!!!

Going Bananas!!!

Included in this blog entry:

Fun facts about bananas!

Banana quiz with fantastic prizes!

Banana salsa recipe

We have previously talked about strawberries and apples here on our blog, and the lowly banana was feeling left out. As you know, at Flowers to Eat we have several arrangements and products based on this wonderful fruit and our creative uses of it, so, let’s talk for a few minutes about the fruit eaten by more people in the U.S. than any other.

Bananas come gift wrapped in their own thick peel. Their creamy flesh is enjoyed by men, women and children of all ages.

The banana plant grows 10 to 26 feet high and produces clusters or “hands” of 10 to 25 fruits. It‘s not a tree, it is actually the world’s largest herb!

While bananas were enjoyed by people in Asia and Africa several thousand years ago, they were introduced to the U.S. in the late 19^th century.

In spite of their thick peel, bananas are really fragile in nature and quite perishable. They need to be handled gently. Bananas were originally enjoyed in the U.S. only by people who lived near the seacoast towns where the ships, delivering them from the tropics, would dock. With today’s rapid transportation methods and refrigeration, bananas are now easily transported around the world.

Bananas are one of our best sources of potassium, an essential mineral for maintaining normal blood pressure and heart function. The potassium found in bananas may also help to promote bone health. Potassium may counteract the increased urinary calcium loss caused by the high-salt diets typical of most Americans, thus helping to prevent bones from thinning out at a fast rate.

They are also a good source of vitamins B6 and C. They have been tied to new diets, touted as a means of losing weight when combined with a glass of room temperature water. Bananas have also been associated with ameliorating the potassium depleting effects of heavy soda drinking, with assisting babies and very young children suffering from intestinal disorders, with providing soothing protection from ulcers, and possibly with reducing your risk of age related macular degeneration.

Talk about a single food item providing so many benefits to us! Bananas are a gold-mine of goodness!

Do you think you know a lot about bananas? Take our quiz below by cutting and pasting it with your answers into an email. Send it to info@flowerstoeat .

If you answer all the questions correctly, we’ll give you a 4 piece box of our delicious Banana Bites! I’ll publish the correct answers to the questions next month on our blog.

Banana Quiz

1) Which country is experiencing a blossoming of the ‘Morning Banana Diet’?

2) True or False: Bananas tend to increase blood pressure in adults?

3) Who is credited with bringing the banana from India to the Western World?

4) Which Caribbean Island was the first to receive banana rootstock in 1516?

5) True or False, the banana tree is related to the orchid and the lily.

6) True or False, Bananas contain an equal amount of potassium and sodium?

7) True or False, The origin of the word ‘banana’ comes from the Chinese word for finger?

Banana Salsa

2 medium-size ripe bananas, chopped

½ c. chopped green bell pepper

½ c. chopped red bell pepper

3 green onions, chopped

1 Tbs fresh cilantro

2 Tbs light brown sugar

3 Tbs. lime juice

1 Tbs oil

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper 1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped (optional)

Combine first 10 ingredients, stirring gently.

Add jalapeno pepper, if desired.

Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours.

Excellent on Redfish and other light fish.

See our latest Press Release

Click on the following link to see our latest press release!

http://www.1888pressrelease.com/flowers-to-eat-now-offering-nationwide-shipping-to-meet-grow-pr-176368.html