Real California Milk helps impress guests with the California Cheese Centerpiece and Cookie Exchange Board

(Family Features) This holiday season, entertaining is back on the table and that means endless opportunities to showcase Instagram-worthy ideas. For those looking to impress friends and family, Real California Milk has two unique culinary ideas to take holiday traditions to the next level: The Cheese Centerpiece and Cookie Exchange Board. From fresh food as bountiful décor to camera-ready cookie presentations, incorporating California dairy into your entertaining is a winning holiday strategy.

California Cheese Centerpiece
The mission? Create a holiday centerpiece but make it delicious. Real California Milk partner Jessica Lawrenz, Founder of Monger, Mold and Milk, took the challenge with the California Cheese Centerpiece, the ultimate in edible entertaining with a beautiful display of Real California Cheeses, salami, fruits and vegetables arranged with fragrant herbal garnishes in a display sure to impress family and friends. As a bonus, it creates less waste than a stand-alone floral bouquet (and you’ll have less to clean up!).   

Find additional cheese displays and holiday recipes at realcaliforniamilk.com.

INGREDIENTS:

Variety of firm to medium (semi-firm) Real California Cheeses (find them here: https://www.realcaliforniamilk.com/cheese-makers)

Shown in arrangement:

• Real California Dry Jack cheese wedges
• Real California Wine-soaked Cheddar wedges
• Real California Triple Cream cheese wedges
• Salumi or salami, made into roses

Fresh fruits and vegetables:

• Mini clementines or kumquats
• Grapes or currants (both shown)
• Fresh figs
• Gooseberries
• Cucamelons or mini cucumbers
• Cherry tomatoes (tiger stripe tomatoes shown but any small tomato works)

Garnishes:

• Bay leaf stems
• Olive leaf stems
• Rosemary branches
• Lavender stems
• Sage bunches
• Chive or garlic flowers or any edible flower with a stem

Tools and Materials:

• Circular tray or plate
• Craft or flora foam (half sphere shape that is at least 1-inch smaller in diameter than your tray)
• Double-sided tape
• Plastic wrap
• Toothpicks, U-shape bamboo toothpicks (optional)
• Cookie cutter shapes (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

• Cover foam in plastic wrap to protect food from making contact with the foam.
• Use double-sided tape to secure the foam to the tray.
• Now you can start assembling the centerpiece. Start from the bottom and work your way up to the top of the sphere.
• Use the bulk of your leafy garnishment (bay leaf stems, olive leaf stems, sage bunches) on the bottom layer to create a base and coverage by poking the stems into the foam. If needed you can trim the bottom of the stem in a diagonal direction to create a more pokey end OR use a toothpick to pierce a hole in the place where you want to insert stems.
• For best visual appeal, fruits like grapes and currants should be arranged to kind of flow over the edge of the tray near the bottom as well. PRO TIP: Use “U” shaped bamboo toothpicks to secure the stems of the hanging fruits into the foam.
• From here use toothpicks to secure cheese wedges, salumi roses, fruits and vegetables into the foam. Cut shorter, triangular pieces of cheese (as opposed to longer triangular pieces used for a long/rectangular centerpiece). Use any tall wedges near the bottom where they will be easy to grab but not sticking out too far if placed near the top. You can use cookie cutter shapes as well for the cheeses, if desired.
• Finally, take any of the smaller garnish pieces you have (lavender, chive flowers, rosemary ends, loose leaves) to fill in the spaces between all the items.

Holiday Cookie Exchange Board
If a cookie exchange is on the docket for this year’s holiday or you’re simply looking to upgrade your dessert table, take some tips from this stunning cookie exchange presentation. Mix and match Real California Milk cookie recipes to create a mouthwatering arrangement and decorate with mini candy canes, holiday lollipops, various holiday décor and lights. Add napkins, cookie bags for take-away, and recipe cards for sharing, and let your guests go to town.

• Hot cocoa or coffee
• Milk shooters
• Coconut Walnut Cake Bars
• Chocolate Mint Cookies
• Stroopwafel Cookies
• Mini Gingerbread Cupcakes
• Madeleines  

Dipped in melted dark chocolate and rolled in crushed peppermint candies or Holiday sprinkles

• Treehouse Cookies
• Holiday Sprinkle Rice Krispie Bites

Leave out ice cream, exchange holiday sprinkles for rainbow sprinkles, and dip in melted white chocolate with color for extra festivity

California is the nation’s leading milk producer and is responsible for producing more butter, ice cream and nonfat dry milk than any other state. The state is the second-largest producer of cheese and yogurt. California milk and dairy foods can be identified by the Real California Milk seal, which certifies they are made exclusively with milk from the state’s dairy farm families.

About Real California Milk/California Milk Advisory Board

The California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB), an instrumentality of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, is funded by the state’s dairy farm families who lead the nation in sustainable dairy farming practices. With a vision to nourish the world with the wholesome goodness of Real California Milk, the CMAB’s programs focus on increasing demand for California’s sustainable dairy products in the state, across the U.S. and around the world through advertising, public relations, research, and retail and foodservice promotional programs. For more information and to connect with the CMAB, visit RealCaliforniaMilk.com, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

Source: Real California Milk

(Family Features) The trend of farm-to-table foods is becoming increasingly popular, leading many to ask: Where is my food really coming from? With so many available options in the grocery store, it is important to serve your family nutritious, high-quality foods to ensure healthy eating habits.

Milk is one of the original local, farm-to-table foods. It's a product from farm families who care about their cows. In fact, 97 percent of dairy farms are still family owned and operated - passed down from generation to generation.

For dairy farmers, "farm to table" is more than just a buzzword - it's a part of their livelihood. They value the trust consumers have in them to produce a high-quality product that is farm fresh and locally sourced. In fact, most milk is produced from cows within 300 miles of where it's sold.

Not only is milk farm fresh, it's naturally nutrient-rich. The ingredient list is short: milk and vitamins A and D. These simple ingredients, plus minimal processing for safety, make milk and milk products a wholesome part of a nutritious, balanced diet. Add milk at mealtime to ensure your family is getting high-quality protein and other essential nutrients, including 8 grams of protein per every 8-ounce serving.

For a trendy twist on the original farm-to-table food, and a tasty way to start your morning right, try this Lavender Honey Flavored Milk recipe. It's a delicious way to serve wholesome and natural flavors with milk. For more recipe ideas and milk facts, visit milklife.com.

Lavender Honey Flavored Milk

Recipe courtesy of Emily Caruso of Jelly Toast
Servings: 1

Lavender Honey Milk:

• 8 ounces fat free milk
• 1 ounce Lavender Honey Syrup (Recipe below)

Lavender Honey Syrup:

• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tablespoons culinary lavender blossoms, dried

1. To make syrup: In small sauce pan, combine honey, water and lavender. Set saucepan over medium-low heat and stir constantly until mixture is hot, but not boiling, and honey is melted.
2. Remove from heat and allow syrup to cool completely. Strain syrup through fine mesh sieve and discard lavender. Refrigerate syrup in lidded jar until ready to use. Note: Makes about 6 ounces of syrup.
3. Pour 8 ounces milk into glass. Stir in 1 ounce Lavender Honey Syrup until well combined.

Variation: Stir in 1 teaspoon matcha green tea powder into Lavender Honey Milk for added flavor and color.

Nutritional information per serving: 170 calories; 5 mg cholesterol; 8 g protein; 35 g carbohydrates; 105 mg sodium; 302 mg calcium (30% of daily value).

Source: MilkPEP