June Dairy Month Blues

Fresh locally grown blueberries in Northwest Arkansas are the perfect addition for this last week of June Dairy Month celebration. Even though we have access to frozen berries throughout the year, there's nothing that shouts out summer more than  sweet, fresh blueberries blended with low-fat yogurt for a cool, refreshing smoothie.




Blues Buster Smoothie

Ingredients:

1 6-ounce container low-fat blueberry flavored yogurt
1/2 cup apple juice
2/3 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
3-4 ice cubes

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in a blender; blend until smooth and creamy. Pour into glass and enjoy.






You can find other very dairy recipes for celebrating beyond June Dairy Month  at:

Summer Time Kitchen Relief

I didn't have to flip the calendar to August to know it was the dog days of summer! We've been having temperatures above 100 degrees for almost three weeks and breaking heat and humidity records for our area. Due to the heat, we have changed our chore schedule to try avoiding the very hottest times in the afternoon and make sure our animals are as comfortable as possible.

After feeding calves and working in the yard and garden, I'm not too anxious to come into the house to cook. However, the farmers of the family will be expecting something when they arrive for lunch. If you are feeling this way about summer time kitchen duties and need summer time kitchen relief like me, you can find some interesting and easy dairy recipes at http://www.dairymakessense.com/. I plan to try Summer Fruit and Pasta Toss to go with today's hot summer time menu.

Summer Fruit and Pasta Toss

Ingredients:

8 ounces whole wheat spiral pasta,uncooked

1 1/2 cups cubed cantaloupe(about 1/2 of cantaloupe)

1 1/2 cups cubed pineapple(about 1/2 of pineapple)

1 1/4 cups strawberries,sliced

1 cup halved seedless grapes

1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) low fat yogurt

Preparation:

Cook pasta according to package instructions,drain and cool in refrigerator for 10 minutes.

While pasta is cooking,prepare fruit and place in large serving bowl. Once pasta has cooled, add to bowl. Gently mix yogurt into pasta mixture. Chill for 30 minutes in refrigerator before serving.

Thanks to Minnesota Dairymom Kristine Spadgenske for sharing her recipe with us!