Bayside Smoothies and More of Davenport is now offering delivery to your office on Fridays.  Call 563-391-6360 for specific details.

Bayside Smoothies can also take care of your catering needs, any day of the week except Sunday.  Again, call Tish at 563-391-6360 or visit them online at www.baysidesmoothiesandmore.com for more information.

If you're tired of the same ol' burgers and sandwiches for lunch, why not give Bayside a try?  REAL FOOD, REAL GOOD! Our menu includes such delights as the Caribbean Chicken Panini, Ham & Mango Wrap, Turkey Antipasto Panini, Spicy Baja Beef Wrap and many more.  We're open for breakfast, too, so try our Breakfast Ciabatta sandwich or our Good Morning Smoothie made with oatmeal, bananas and cinnamon.

And, as our name says, we have the most wonderful smoothies for your enjoyment. Strawberry, Pineapple, Banana, Orange, Mango, Mixed berries and chocolate-covered Bananas.  Choose up to two fresh flavors for a great treat!

CHICK BEER: NOT YOUR BOYFRIEND'S BEER

Chick Beer, a new beer created by a woman, exclusively for women, is now available in Iowa stores and restaurants, and bars. The superior light lager with a big beer taste weighs in at only 97 calories and 3.5 carbs. And make no mistake about it - this isn't your boyfriend's (or any man's) beer. Chick Beer was created for fun-loving, smart, independent women who embrace life with a passion.

Chick Beer is no gimmick. Brewed in Wisconsin, Chick Beer is actually crafted for the feminine palate. Its flavor emphasizes soft malt over bitter hops. Many women prefer a less bitter flavor. In fact, some scientists claim that women are genetically predisposed to avoid bitter flavors, a vestige from the time when women were "gatherers." Bitter flavors warned of potential poisons, so women quickly learned to avoid them. Additionally, Chick Beer is lightly carbonated, a feature that women also embrace.

Iowa joins a select number of states in the country where Chick Beer is available. It debuted in Maryland (home of its founder) in August 2011, and has since taken off like a rocket. One liquor store manager in Indiana recently said, "Women love this beer! They buy their first six-pack because it's different and fun, but they come back to buy a case because they are, frankly, really surprised at how good it tastes. Chick Beer is going to be hot!"

Shazz Lewis, founder of Chick Beer, tells how the idea was, well, hatched. "For many years, my husband owned a wine and spirits store in Maryland. One day, I was looking at the beer cooler, which had more than 400 different beers in it, and I had an 'aha' moment: Why wasn't there a beer that shouted out to me? I'm a woman who enjoys drinking beer. I'm a wife, daughter, sister and mother of five daughters. Why wasn't there a beer that celebrates, or even acknowledges my, well, 'chickness'?"

I couldn't let go of that idea, and so began doing some research. I found that women consume 25 percent of all the beer in the United States - that's 700 million cases a year - but no one has ever addressed this segment of the market. Until now."

Although the name of the beer came to Lewis in a dream, in retrospect its moniker is obvious. "For years," Lewis chuckles, "men have dismissed lighter beers as chick beers that are so not what 'real men' drink. But since when is chick a bad thing? I decided to turn the pejorative 'chick' upside down and use the word as a celebration of the strength and power of women. I also decided that Chick Beer packaging would be anything but subtle. There's no mistaking the bright pink logo against the silhouette of a little black dress and an over-the-top feminine font. No one will mistake Chick Beer for a dude's beer."

Chick Beer is being distributed in Iowa by Johnson Brothers, who sold out of their initial shipment within days of receiving it. The distributor is reloading and working hard to get Chick Beer to all the Iowans who are asking for it. If you don't see Chick Beer on your stores' shelves or at your favorite watering holes, get uppity! Tell the proprietor you want Chick Beer now. Retailers can call Johnson Brothers at 515.262.1199.

Consumers looking for places that are selling Chick Beer can visit www.chickbeer.com and click on the Chick Finder map. Chicks are hatching in Iowa at a fast and furious pace. The map is regularly updated, so please keep checking back.

Chick Beer is more than just another beer on the shelf. Lewis has pledged to donate 5 percent of its net profits to charities that empower women, primarily in the communities where the beer is sold. "I don't believe that there is another beer company in the U.S. that has made this kind of commitment to women," she says.

"I've been fortunate all my life in that I've had a loving, supportive family, educational opportunities, and jobs that have been professionally and personally rewarding. I'm now at a time in my life when I can fulfill a long-held dream of mine - to give back some of my good fortune to other women who haven't been as lucky."

The Chick Cares initiative, which contributes both to national charities that empower women and to local organizations in the states where Chick Beer is sold, has recently announced its charitable giving plans for 2012. Details are available at www.chickbeer.com

If you want to be among the first in the country to taste Chick Beer, you'd better hurry. Its Facebook page has nearly 6,000 "likes" from all over the globe. Women are asking for it in all fifty states, and around the world.

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Columbus, Wisconsin, April 5, 2012?Three dozen or so ice cream flavors simply aren't enough for Sassy Cow Creamery. And while the folks at Sassy Cow Creamery always enjoy coming up with new seasonal flavors for their premium ice cream, this time the farmstead creamery is offering its ice-cream-loving fans a chance to get in on the tasty fun, too. That's why the award-winning Sassy Cow Creamery is sponsoring a contest for a new farmstead-fresh ice cream flavor.

Consumers are invited to create their own ice cream flavors for the contest. The winning flavor will be announced and served on August 25, 2012, at the Sassy Cow Creamery's on-farm Ice Cream Social. The winner will be honored at the unraveling of this new flavor tasting event, and will receive a one-year supply of Sassy Cow Creamery Premium Farmstead Ice Cream.

The winning ice cream flavor will have to live up to the creamery's high standards. Sassy Cow Creamery farmstead ice cream is freshly made using milk produced by cows on the Baerwolf family dairy farms and other high-quality ingredients. The creamery earned first place honors for its Dark Cherry Chocolate Premium Ice Cream at the 2011 World Dairy Expo Dairy Product Contest, and continues to develop one-of-a-kind flavors. The current fresh farmstead ice cream flavors?more than 36 of them?feature seasonal specialties such as summery Raspberry Lemonade, as well as dozens of creative varieties like Purple Cow (black raspberry with chocolate chips), Chocolate Almond Toffee, Maple Walnut and Salted Caramel.

Sassy Cow Creamery is owned and operated by third-generation dairy producers?brothers James and Robert Baerwolf and their families. Visitors at the farmstead facility can follow the milk from cow to creamery as they watch traditional and organic milk bottling and premium ice cream making through a viewing window.

For information about the Sassy Cow Creamery contest and the Ice Cream Social on August 25, visit the website at www.sassycowcreamery.com, contact Kara Kasten at 608.445.2010, or e-mail kara@sassycowcreamery.com. Friend us on Facebook to get Sassy Cow Creamery news, recipe ideas and information about happenings on the farm.

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Sassy Cow Creamery, a state-of-the-art farmstead creamery, was started in 2008 by its owners/operators, brothers James and Robert Baerwolf and their families?the third generation to farm the land since 1946. In addition to premium ice cream, the creamery produces organic and traditional bottled milk, heavy cream, half-and-half, milkshakes and ice cream cakes made from farm-fresh milk produced by the family's two dairy herds. Sassy Cow Creamery offers consumers local choices, including whole milk, 2 percent milk, fat-free traditional milk and organic milk. Visit the Sassy Cow Creamery on-farm retail store at W4192 Bristol Road in Columbus, WI, just fifteen minutes north of Madison. The first Friday of each month, tours are offered so that dairy-lovers can see how milk is produced by the cows and then bottled or made into award-winning premium ice cream.

Le Claire, Iowa, April 2, 2012 - Mississippi River Distilling Company invites the public to come to LeClaire on Friday evening, April 6, from 5:30-8:00 PM for our First Friday Feature!  We'll do an abbreviated tour at 6 pm and 7 pm.  There will also be specials on bottles of River Baron Artisan Spirit, River Rose Gin and River Pilot Vodka.  The entire evening is free and is the perfect opportunity to join us in LeClaire to kick off the holiday weekend!

Each First Friday is an open house social evening with special cocktails prepared just for the evening and food prepared with MRDC products for tasting.  Spirited Chef Stephanie Godke will prepare Seafood Soup made with River Rose Gin and a Mud and Rocks Cake featuring River Baron Artisan Spirit in a caramel, creamy cake with chocolate chips and toffee bits.  The signature cocktails for the evening are the Sparkling Rose and LeClaire Spring Punch.  The Sparkling Rose is a mixture of River Rose Gin, frozen lemonade concentrate and champagne.  The LeClaire Spring Punch combines River Pilot Vodka with Chambord, sweet and sour mix and a splash of champagne.  Both are refreshing sippers on any bright spring day!  All recipes can be found on our website, www.mrdistilling.com.

Mississippi River Distilling Company was also recently handed a big honor when named as one of the best in the nation when it comes to fine gin.  MRDC's River Rose Gin received a Gold Medal from TheFiftyBest.com after its Premium Gin Tasting.  River Rose tied for sixth place in the completion behind other big names such as Tanqueray and Hendrick's.  In total, 24 gins competed for the title of best gin.

Mississippi River Distilling Company is open from 10 AM to 5 PM Monday through Saturday and from 12 to 5 PM Sundays.  Free tours are offered to the public daily on the hour from 12 to 4 PM or by appointment.  The tour takes visitors through the entire distilling process.  Tours end in the Grand Tasting Room with free samples of products for those patrons over 21 years of age.

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Q&A on Beef

with U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley

Q:        How do you see the recent attention given to lean finely textured beef?

A:        I enjoy and appreciate beef in a meal as often as possible, and I have confidence in this meat product, which comes from a process that separates fatty pieces from beef trimmings to reduce the overall fat content.  There's nothing wrong with using all of the edible trimmings of an animal.  Lean finely textured beef is beef, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture inspects and regulates all beef products.  It has approved this product for ground beef since 1993.

 

Q:        What about the processing of this beef?

A:        The technology used for lean finely textured beef makes it possible to use beef that could not have been captured by hand trimming.  The edible trimmings left after other cuts of meat, including steaks and roasts, are removed from an animal and processed to separate the lean meat from the fat.  Then, an antimicrobial treatment is used to make sure the resulting lean beef product is safe to eat.

 

Q:        Is the antimicrobial treatment safe?

A:        Ammonium hydroxide - or ammonium combined with water - is used in food processing, including baked goods, cheeses, caramel, puddings and meat products.  The Food and Drug Administration determined that ammonium hydroxide was "Generally Recognized As Safe," or GRAS, in 1974.  The World Health Organization has listed hundreds of food products that can be processed using ammonium hydroxide in accordance with good manufacturing practices.  In the case of lean finely textured beef, an ammonium hydroxide gas controls dangerous forms of pathogens like E. coli.

 

Q:        What else is relevant to food safety?

A:        I'm committed to sound science practices that separate fact from fiction in food safety.  Consumers deserve it, and the consequences of misinformation and hype in March over lean finely textured beef were the layoffs of hundreds of people working for the company that produces most of this beef, including workers in Waterloo and Sioux City.  Without lean finely textured beef, as many as 1.5 million additional head of cattle could be needed to replace it in the meat supply, and the cost of ground beef for consumers would be higher.

 

April 2, 2012

In addition to introducing a new small shake to our lineup this spring, Whitey's Ice Cream is announcing four new flavors for the season. Along with our usual spring flavors of Fresh Banana and Lemon Custard, the new flavors available by Wednesday are as follows:

Fiesta Chocolate- A new chocolate flavored ice cream with cinnamon swirled throughout.

Red Velvet Cake- White chocolate flavored ice cream with cream cheese frosted homemade Red Velvet cake.

Super Blueberry Cheesecake- A "Super" Blueberry Cheesecake flavored ice cream with additional blueberry swirled throughout.

And finally, our most exciting flavor:

Kid Crunch- This is for kids from 2 to 92. In keeping with the tradition of Sgt. Camo, ALL profits from the sale of this flavor will be donated to children's charities!  Kid Crunch is made with locally supplied honey from the Illinois Beekeepers Association and includes five different ingredients to give it that "crunchy" taste. Included with the light honey ice cream are: Pecans, Almonds, Toffee, Chocolate Flakes, and Cookie pieces.

Any questions feel free to contact the Whitey's corporate offices at: (309) 762-2175

Thank you-

Chances are pretty good you've enjoyed at least one meal today before reading the words here in front of you.  Due in large measure to generations of hard-working farm families, Americans continue to benefit from a safe and abundant food supply.

Much has been said lately about the one percent vs. the 99 percent in America, usually in a political context.  But there's another one percent-99 percent divide in America that isn't making headlines or firing up social media users.

Did you know that one percent of Americans grow the food that feeds the other 99 percent?

U.S. food security is second-to-none.  And yet, food security is too often taken for granted.  With a shrinking pool of Americans linked to the land for their livelihood and way of life, it is important now more than ever to foster appreciation and educate younger generations how the food on their plates got there in the first place.

Too often, there's scant appreciation for those who devote their lives to helping erase hunger from our communities and the world.  The U.S. dairy farmer puts in 12-plus hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year to tend to his herd.  And the American soybean farmer grows the commodity used to make soymilk for those who choose a dairy alternative in their morning cup of coffee.

In fact, American farmers have answered the call of their vocation by ramping up efficiency and embracing technological advancements to feed a growing world population.  Consider that today's modern combine can harvest more than 900 bushels of corn per hour.  That's 100 bushels every seven minutes. When my dad farmed in the 1930s, a farmer would harvest approximately 100 bushels of corn in a nine-hour workday.  Only 50 years ago, the U.S. farmer produced enough food to feed 26 people.  Today, each American farmer produces enough food for approximately 155 people.

Production agriculture continues to meet the demands of a growing world population for affordable food.  Advances in biotechnology help farmers increase crop yields and reduce chemical applications that improve environmental stewardship.

In the U.S. Senate, I have worked for rural America at the policymaking tables in Washington, D.C.  As Congress debates renewal of the farm and nutrition bill in Congress, I am working to strengthen America's commitment to a safe and abundant food supply in recognition of the one percent of Americans who grow our food.

The landscape has changed since passage of the last farm bill in 2008.  The 2012 bill must reflect demands to help shrink the budget deficit.  The looming national debt crisis requires savings and sacrifices from across-the board.  I'm working to make sure Congress trims the fat without cutting into the backbone of American agriculture.

The commodity program safety net was designed to help small- and medium-sized farmers weather downturns and stay in business when circumstances out of their control negatively impacted the market or destroyed their crops.  The largest operators should not be banking on Uncle Sam to help underwrite their efforts to get even bigger.  It creates an unfair burden on taxpayers and makes it even harder for beginning farmers to compete.  Already, the current system is contributing to upward pressure on land prices that squeeze beginning farmers out of the market.

My bipartisan proposal would install a hard cap of $250,000 per married couple on annual federal commodity program payments of any kind and close long-abused loopholes in the farm payment program that has allowed non-farmers to qualify for federal farm payments.  Not only is it important for the safety-net to be effective, it also needs to be defensible.  One of the best things Congress can do to make the farm program more defensible to those who may not understand the inherent risks with farming and the necessity of a farm safety net is make sure that non-farmers aren't receiving a farm payment.  That's good for farmers and taxpayers.

As Congress moves ahead on the next farm bill, Iowans can be sure I know and appreciate who grows the food.  I'm working for an effective safety net that looks out for both the family farmer and American taxpayer.

March 26, 2012

Le Claire, Iowa, March 13, 2012 -River Rose Gin, made locally by Mississippi River Distilling Company in Le Claire, Iowa, has been honored as one of the world's best by TheFiftyBest.com. The website honored River Rose with a gold medal and tied the spirit for sixth place overall in their gin tasting.

MRDC's River Rose Gin was one of only 15 gins awarded a medal in the competition.  River Rose finished the competition just behind some of the world's biggest names such as Tanqueray and  Hendrick's.

River Rose starts with a base spirit made from grain harvested by local farmers within 25 miles of the distillery in LeClaire.  Then a unique blend of a dozen botanicals is added.  The gin is made from a German recipe that dates back to the late 1800s.  That recipe is light on the traditional juniper berries and includes a full body of citrus and floral including orange, grapefruit, lemon, lavender, rose petals and locally grown cucumbers that provide a distinctive finish that sets River Rose apart from any other gin.

"We are excited any time our peers recognize our quality,"  said owner and distiller Ryan Burchett.  "But this honor is particularly exciting because of the competition.  It's really an honor to go toe to toe with the best in the business and come out with recognition like this."

Gin aficionados, wine/spirits writers, and bartenders were the judges at the formal tasting in New York City.  Using professional criteria, the gins were served "blindly" one at a time, and rated on a 1-5 point scoring system with five being the best. The gins were ranked according to the total scores received from the judges.  Double-Gold, Gold and Silver medals are awarded based on a set range of point scores.

TheFiftyBest.com is an award-winning online guide to fine living, featuring rated listings based on unbiased surveys and tastings conducted by food, wine/spirits journalists, professionals and connoisseurs. The complete ranking results, along with tasting notes, are published on TheFiftyBest.com website: http://www.thefiftybest.com/spirits/best_gin/ MRDC's River Baron also received a tip of the hat from TheFiftyBest.com in October when it also received a silver medal and was ranked 8th in the domestic vodka tasting.

The award comes on the heels of another round of success in the marketplace for the small distillery.  On March 2, Mississippi River Distilling Company released their second batch of Cody Road Bourbon.  The release of roughly 900 bottles sold out in just days across Iowa, Illinois and Missouri.  The next batch is scheduled to be released on June 1.

Mississippi River Distilling Company is open from 10 AM to 5 PM Monday through Saturday and from 12 to 5 PM Sundays.  Free tours are offered to the public daily on the hour from 12 to 4 PM or by appointment after hours for a small charge.  The tour takes visitors through the entire distilling process.  Tours end in the Grand Tasting Room with free samples of products for those patrons over 21 years of age.

 

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Sunday, April 8, 2011 - Time: 10-2

On Sunday, April 8th, Johnny's Italian Steakhouse will host Easter Brunch from 10-am until 2pm. Reserved seating is recommended.

Enjoy an elegant Easter brunch buffet with chef carved prime rib, ham, classic breakfast favorites including a waffle bar, desserts and much more.

Prices for the brunch are $24 per person, $12 children 12 and under, highchair age free. To make your reservation call the restaurant at 309-736-0100 or visit johnnysitlaiansteakhouse.com

Johnny's Italian Steakhouse, John Deere Commons, 1300 River Dr, Moline, IL 612654

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Sunday, April 8, 2011 -  Seatings: 10:30am and 1pm

On Sunday, April 8th, The Figge Art Museum is hosting the Easter Brunch prepared by Heart of America chef Dave Mickelwright. The brunch will take place in the elegant dining area with river views.

Reserved seating is required with two seating times to choose from: 10:30AM and 1PM.

Enjoy an elegant Easter brunch buffet with chef carved prime rib, ham, classic breakfast favorites, pastries, desserts and much, much more.

Prices for the brunch are $19.99 per person for museum members, $22.99 per person for non-members, $10.99 children age 4-10 and under 4 free.

Museum admission included with brunch and guided tours available at 12:30 and 1:30. Call Dave Mickelwright to make your reservations at 563.726.2087.

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