Hello! Now here’s the rest of my trip to San Francisco with Real California Milk… We left off with me going for a short run down past the Ferry Building towards Fisherman’s Wharf. I ran a few miles while enjoying the gorgeous morning and views of the Golden Gate Bridge. Then, I headed back to the hotel to get ready and head to the Real California Milk event.

We started by meeting Megan Silva [@CaDairyFit ] a 4th generation dairy farmer who still lives and works on the farm with her adorable family. And super notable to me in addition to living on a farm and caring for her family – she runs!

California is home to more than 1,300 Dairy Farms, 99% of which are family owned like Silva’s.

Next up was Dr. Julia Nordgren who is a physician, chef and culinary educator at Stanford [@drjuliacooks]. She did a cooking demonstration on quick and make-ahead breakfast options with yogurt.

Healthy Breakfast Tips:

1. Plan and Prep.

Make breakfast ahead of time if you have busy mornings. Or prep as much of the meal as possible so it’s ‘grab and go’.

Tip: Wash and chop your fruits and veggies when you get home from the grocery store so they’re easy to snack on and incorporate in meals.

A yogurt bowl is a good make ahead option for breakfast that’s easy to transport and doesn’t require any extra heating or preparation. I a small mason jar when I’m meal prepping yogurt bowls or overnight oats for the week.

2. Options options options.

If your family members have different taste preferences try to accommodate them by giving them options on one dish that can be tailored to each person.

Tip: If you’re making yogurt bowls – let each person choose their toppings. Healthy options include – different fruits, nuts, seeds and cereals.

3. Layer flavors and textures.

You can really take a meal to the next level by focusing on delicious flavors and textures.

Tip: Add toppings with different flavors and textures to yogurt like crunchy nuts, soft fruit, chewy dried fruit, sweet honey or jam and spices like cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. 

*Check out the Real California Dairy Product Locator here.*

We all had the chance to make our own yogurt bowls in a test kitchen. There were tons of options for toppings – fruit, nuts, seeds, sweeteners! It was a yogurt bowl buffet!! And there were even more options for dishes, utensils and other accessories for the food photos.

Here’s my station complete with a Run Eat Repeat name card. And some behind the scenes action of food photography lights…

I made a banana split with Real California Milk yogurt, chopped apple, nuts and cherries.

Oh, and I’m pretty excited about this apron – it has pockets and that makes my entire life better. Pockets are the best!

We also made cheese platters and had the most epic spread of Real California Cheeses.

Cheese boards are a great idea for a get together because:

• It’s a healthy option – 1 oz. cheese provides about 20% of your daily recommended calcium intake.
• A cheese board can be both delicious and make a gorgeous centerpiece – there are so many options! Use a variety of fresh fruits and veggies to add color.
• There’s something for everyone. You can include a lot of options so people with different diet and taste preferences can enjoy it together.
• It’s a good appetizer to prep ahead of time – which makes hosting easier.
• A fun cheese board can get people talking about their favorites and favorite cheese/fruit combinations. (Obviously I like to talk about food so I love when I can ask people what’s their favorite part of our meal.)

I like to have a crunchy cracker with a soft cheese or a strong aged cheese with something sweet.

The healthy breakfast tips can be applied to making a cheese board too:

Offer a lot of options // Make it ahead of time // Layer flavors and textures

My cheese platter had a hard cheese, soft cheese, a tangy cheese to pair with honey plus fruit and crackers for pairing.

If you want to try new types of cheese and want more information on flavor, texture and how to eat them or cook with them …  check out the Real California Milk Cheese page here.  <- There’s a chart with descriptions of a lot of cheeses and how they’re commonly used.

Say Cheese!

Don’t forget to look for the “Real California Milk” seal when you’re buying dairy. The seal means the product is made with 100% Real California Milk from Real California Dairy families.

You can get more information on their website here – Real California Milk.

Question: Do you have a favorite cheese?

Me: I really like sharp cheddar and cotija (it’s a salty Mexican cheese).

And let me know when you’re having wine and cheese night so I can come over (hey it’s for research purposes!).

This post is sponsored by Real California Milk. All opinions are my own.

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