Gooey White Cheddar Bacon Crostini + Tillamook Blog2Farm Summit Part 2

The adventures continue for the Tillamook Blog2Farm Summit with our travels to the Oregon coast.  After the Tillamook factory tour was complete, we loaded onto our party bus and headed west to the foggy Oregon coast.  We took a short detour to visit a lighthouse and vista point on the coast.  The sky was amazing and the views spectacular – what stunning sights.  The land is so lush and green compared to the drought stricken Bay Area – a welcome sight indeed.

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We filed back onto the bus and were excited to stop at our resting location for the night – The Inn at Cape Kiwanda.  A quaint hotel that sat almost on the oceans edge was our home for the night.  I believe each of our rooms sported a balcony with a view of the ocean and a large, I mean large rock that would play peek-a-boo with the fog that would drift in and out.  The rock is actually called – Haystack Rock. 

As sunset was approaching, we headed towards the PelicanBrewery for our Sunset Beach Dinner.  What an amazing treat for the evening – need to bring my hubby back here, so he can enjoy the weather, food and views.  A tent with a long table was all set up for us along with darling Tillamook beach blankets to keep us warm should the weather turn chilly.  Amazingly, the weather never got too chilly.  The appetizer course was filled with Oregon inspired and appropriate delights.  We were treated to Chilled Oysters on the Half Shell, Clam Chowder Shooters, Three Capes Crab Fritters and Tillamook Cheese, Crackers and Crudités.  I have to say the Crab Fritters and Aged White Cheddar were my favorites – could have made a meal out of those.

We had our choice of entrees – Blackened Salmon Salad, Chicken Pesto Pasta, Brewers Blend Cheeseburger or Rockfish Tacos.  The salad was calling my name and was quite tasty.  After dinner, we adjourned to the fire pit on the beach with our blankets, glasses of wine provided by the Union Wine Company and got ready to have some delightful smores.  In addition, Tillamook provided Tillabars – boy I need to buy these when I get back home.  The entire evening was very relaxing and enjoyable. 

Soda Pop PR Team + Katie from Tillamook: (Left to right: Becky, Katie, Dyan and Kelly

The next morning, we packed up our things, enjoyed a great breakfast with handmade granola and Tillamook Greek Yogurt – my kind of breakfast.  With our yellow boots in hand, we loaded onto the bus to head to the farm to learn about where the milk comes from for all this delicious cheese, ice cream, butter and yogurt.  We visited the dairy farm that Wendy and Ryan own.  I have to say that I was simply amazed to see the love, dedication and true soul that was put into each and everyday by Wendy and Ryan. Owning a dairy farm is a labor of love and these two certainly depict this attribute. It all starts on the farm.

Everyone adorned their yellow boots to tour the farm. I thought this was such a fun gesture from Tillamook and Soda Pop PR to provide.  Tillamook is a co-op of farmers, Tillamook County Creamery Association, in the valley and there are close to 100 farmers included.  The quality standards displayed was amazing.  They have close to 400 cows on the farm along with some goats that their kids enjoyed playing with.  Each day the cows must be milked twice a day.  This happens around 2:00am and 1:00pm each day.  The large Tillamook trucks makes its rounds twice a day to pick up the milk to ensure the ultimate in freshness and brings it back to the factory to make all of the delicious cheese, ice cream, yogurt and butter.

These are the epitome of happy cows – they are well fed, well loved and well cared for by Wendy, Ryan and the entire team of folks on the farm.  We were fortunate enough to see baby cows and know that they will have a great life ahead on the farm. I believe it takes almost two years until they are ready to produce milk.  I noticed on our tour that a few cows were licking this barrel of dark brown substance.  I found out it is a molasses sort of food that the cows just love.

I could tell by the end of the farm tour that Wendy and Ryan take pride in all that they do and idealize the quality that the Tillamook products represent.  The quality of the milk was evident from how they feed, care for and love their cows.  When I go to the store next time and purchase a Tillamook product, I have such an appreciation for the quality these products represent.  From the farm to our shelves, this is a product you can be proud to purchase.  I am now a Tillamook fan for life!

Gooey White Cheddar Bacon Crostini

Makes 20 to 22 

12 Slices of crispy Bacon, chopped fine

4 Tablespoons White Onion, Minced

2 Cups White Cheddar, Grated

1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire

4 Tablespoon Mayonnaise

Pinch of Salt

6 Grinds of Pepper

20 to 22 slices of baquette

To a medium bowl, add the bacon, white onion, white cheddar, garlic powder, worcestershire, mayonnaise, salt and pepper.  Stir well until combined.

On a large cookie sheet, lay out the sliced baquettes and toast under the broiler on one side only until golden brown.  Remove from broiler and top each one with a heaping teaspoon of the bacon cheddar mixture and spread to cover the top of each baguette.  Return to the broiler and cook until golden brown and bubbly. Serve immediately.

Check out my fellow bloggers re-cap of the Tillamook Blog2Farm Summit:

Stephanie from 52 Kitchen Adventure

Dorothy from Crazy for Crust

Glory from Glorious Treats

Heather from Heather's French Press

Jane from This Week for Dinner

Deseree from Life's Ambrosia

Anita from Dessert First

Jessica from One Sweet Appetite

Rachel from Set the Table

Liren from Kitchen Confidante

Lizzie from Your Cup of Cake