February 2016

Photo of the Month

2015 Silos & Smokestacks Photo Contest Winners Announced

This month's photo is not from Hansen's but is the winner of the Silos & Smokestacks photo contest. They awarded Best of Show, People's Choice, and 1st through 3rd rankings for each of the five categories: American Farmscapes, Celebrations of Agriculture, Silos & Smokestacks Partner Sites, America's Agriculture Industry, and Life on the Farm.

Visit their website to see the other winning photos! Silos & Smokestacks

Easter Hams coming soon!

Hansen's Hams are once again available for this Easter. If you purchased a ham from us in the past, expect a call from us to see if you'd like another one. Reserve yours today by stopping at one of our stores, or call Moo Roo in Waterloo (319-234-3309) or Hansen's Outlet in Cedar Falls (319-266-3044) to order. Each ham will be available to pick up from the location at which it was ordered.

Hansen's Hams come fresh, not frozen, from Webster City Custom Meats in Webster City, Iowa. They are bone-in, shankless, cured only with their own natural juices, certified hickory-smoked hams made especially for Hansen's customers. There are two sizes: half hams (7-9 pounds, serve 10) and whole hams (15-18 pounds, serve 20).

Are you looking for an uncured ABF (antibiotic-free) ham for your Easter dinner? This year we will be offering a limited number of orders for Beeler's ABF Hams. Beeler's hams are uncured and fully cooked. With limited supply, we recommend contacting us as soon as you know what size you need. We will have whole hams (14-15 pounds) and half hams (7-8 pounds). Beeler's hams are out of Lemars, Iowa. For more information on Beeler's Pork, visit their website Beeler's Pure Pork. We do regularly carry other Beeler's products in our stores.

Hartman Reserve's Maple Syrup Festival

The first weekend of March is the time to come and get a taste of spring -- real maple syrup, of course! The Hartman Reserve Maple Syrup Festival will be March 5-6 from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Catch your pancakes in the air with the famous flapjack flipping talents of Chris Cakes! The all-you-can-eat breakfast also includes sausage, Starbucks coffee and Hansen's milk, cream & butter! Other activities include demonstration of the maple syrup process and a nature art activity by the Hearst Center in the Buckles building. Tickets go on sale Feb. 1. Available at the nature center or by calling (319) 277-2187.

Cedar Valley Local Food & Film Festival

The UNI Local Food Program is planning its annual event Saturday, March 5, at the Waterloo Center for the Arts.

The Cedar Valley Local Food & Film Festival (formerly Cedar Valley Local Food Fair) celebrates the local food treasures of the region: farmers markets, orchards, farms, U-picks, farm shares (CSAs), bakeries, creameries, meat lockers, community gardens, breweries and all places in the Cedar Valley where locally grown foods can be found.

This is a free, fun family event. Mark your calendar and watch for details! Join the email list to receive updates or learn how to become a vendor by contacting Jodie Huegerich (jodie.huegerich@uni.edu).

Customers of the Month

The Sandvold, Nelson, Switzer and Keller family cousins all enjoy
Hansen's Dairy products.

The February Customers of the Month are Amy Sandvold and her family of Cedar Falls.

"There is always something to do or some place to go in our active family of 6," Amy says. "In fact, our entire Sandvold-Switzer-Nelson-Keller family all live here in Cedar Falls and make Hansen's Dairy one of our weekly places to go! All of my kids and their cousins are involved in athletics, and drinking milk helps them all stay healthy. We enjoy the other treats as well, especially the ice cream!"

Amy teaches third grade at Highland Elementary in Waterloo. "We were reading "Little House on the Prairie" by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I brought Hansen's Dairy cheese curds to share (just like they had as a treat in the Ingalls family), and the students were thrilled. In fact, a week later, a mysterious note appeared from one of my students addressed to the class: 'Dear Class, keep being good and maybe Mrs. S will bring us some more of those cheese curds!'"

"We are thankful for the quality products that Hansen's Dairy offers our busy, active family. We are enjoying being the family of the month! Thank you!"

--- Jeff, Amy, Houston, Andrew, Anna and Lauren Sandvold

Cow of the Month

The February Cow of the Month is named Lettice. Her birthday is July 9, 2009, so she is about 6 years old. So far she has had 5 calves (3 males and 2 females). She has produced 120,000 pounds of milk in four lactations. Currently, she is pumping out 134 pounds/day. She is a tremendous milking machine!

Lettice is one of our highest producing cows after 4 lactations. Her milk is extremely high in butterfat percentage. It runs between 4.1-4.5%, while average butterfat for our herd is 3.6%.

Not only is Lettice a fantastic producer, but she is a nice cow to work with. When she leaves the milking parlor she has a smile on her face because she knows how good she is. She is a well-balanced cow that has the ability to stay around for a while. She should have been named something other than Lettice because of her production. That name does not fit a serious producer like her!

Cooking with Hansen's

Super Bowl 50 will be Feb. 7. Need meat? Cheese? Popcorn? Chip & salsa? We have what you need! Try out these dips (one sweet and one savory) from the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board for your gathering. The starred items can be purchased at our stores.

Caramel Apple Pie Dip

Servings: 8

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup Hansen's heavy whipping cream*
1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup prepared caramel sauce
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup apple, peeled, cored and finely diced

DIRECTIONS:

In medium bowl, beat heavy cream with electric mixer until stiff peaks begin to form, about 2-3 minutes. Add apple pie spice, vanilla extract, salt and caramel sauce; mix until combined, scraping sides of bowl to ensure even mixing. Add cream cheese and mix until just incorporated. Add diced apple and mix until evenly combined. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour. Serve with graham crackers, gingersnaps or other cookies.

Tip: Toss apples in lemon juice to prevent browning.

Blue Cheese and Bacon Dip

Servings: 2 1/2 cups

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup butter, room temperature*
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2/3 cup (4 ounces) Wisconsin blue cheese, crumbled*
2 green onions, thinly sliced
4 slices bacon, fried and crumbled*
1/2 cup chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS:

In large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese. Add in blue cheese, green onions, bacon and pecans. Stir to combine. Serve with crackers.

Congrats to our January CA$H COW contest winner! Caitlin Shea of Cedar Falls found a $5 jug.

Every month we mark several of our gallon milk jugs with either $5 or $100 under the label. There are 10 jugs EVERY WEEK marked with a $5.00 prize. There will be two lucky jugs marked with $100 in February.

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