Fun and Games

A feast for your eyes. An appealing image conveys the taste of the foods we love. When creating images, color, composition and content go a long way to entice the eye and make the mouth water. A picture may be worth a thousand words. It could be worth a thousand flavors as well. 

Up your social media game with these simple tricks for #DairyAmazing food photos – photos that will help you tell a story, delight the senses and engage your audiences.

Start with these five tips for making the natural colors, textures and shapes of food come alive.

This fun craft will keep your older kids entertained for quite a while - plus, they can learn about milk's role in healthy bones!

Materials Needed:

• 8-9 clean, plastic gallon jugs 
• String
• Scissors
• Craft knife
• Low temperature glue gun
• One-hole punch

Prepare:

Kids at Yuma Children’s Academy in Yuma, Colo. found a new way to enjoy dairy when the staff there built them a milk jug igloo. The academy goes through about 15 gallons of milk each week, so when someone had the idea of building an igloo out of recycled milk jugs, they decided to save up and try it.

“We saved every milk jug we used and even had family donations to help us out!” said Danielle Davisson, Director at the academy.

This Christmas Eve, children will set out a tall glass of milk and their favorite holiday cookies in anticipation of the long-awaited visit from Santa Claus. And while the history of this tradition has few cookie crumbs to trace back to the origin, it’s clear that American children love this beloved custom just as much as they love opening gifts from the white-bearded, red-suited, jolly fellow himself.

You don’t have to be a sommelier, or own a yacht in the Bahamas to host a cheese pairing party. Cheese is a simple and failsafe food that’s easy to serve for any entertaining occasion. Simply select a handful of cheeses and offer a few accompaniments that complement the specific flavors; invite some good friends, and have fun.

Consider These 7 Things When Hosting a Cheese Pairing Party:

1. Variety –Aim for five or six different cheeses with a variety of “strength” of flavors (strong-flavored/strong smelling cheeses vs. milder cheeses).

As the holiday season approaches, many of us rack our brains wondering what to serve or bring to the assortment of parties and gatherings that come with the “the most wonderful time of the year.”

We’ve got you covered. Cheese.

Whether you want to host a cheese tasting party or simply prepare a cheese platter to serve prior to a meal, the holidays are simply better with cheese. Use it as an excuse to try new cheese varieties while revisiting those old favorites. Consider the following when planning your cheese tasting or cheese platter:

According to an ancient legend, the first cheese was unintentionally made by an Arabian merchant who carried his milk in a pouch made from an animal’s stomach. The rennet enzyme in the lining of the pouch combined with the heat of the sun, causing the milk to separate into curd and whey. That night he found that the whey satisfied his thirst, and the cheese (curd) satisfied his hunger.

The holidays are just around the corner, and last year we gave you a few kitchen gadget gift ideas for the dairy lover in your life. This year we are back with our favorite #DairyAmazing-themed gifts for your family and friends.

1. For the Instagram Foodie: The Fondoodler

Forget “spirit animals”; what’s your spirit cheesy food? Write down your answers and find your results at the bottom.

Pizza is one of America’s favorite comfort foods, and you could make #DairyAMAZING brick-oven style pizza IN THE COMFORT OF YOUR OWN HOME if you win this easy-to-enter #PizzaTag contest.