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Yuma Medjool Date Festival + Natural Delights Medjool Dates Giveaway (CLOSED)

Hi my loves!

Life is pure craziness right now! I picked up a huge graphic design job for Beckley Boutique and have been working like a madwoman recently. I’ve also been MOH (Maid of Honor) of the century organizing all sorts of fun things for the bride (my sister)! I’ve been so busy that I wasn’t able to work on my new batch of “Eat More Rabbit Food” shirts until last week. Ughhh I feel like such a slacker, but not haha. Yaknowwhatimean? I’m trying my hardest to get them completed this week so I can have them listed in the store and ready to ship before christmas!

Now for a recap of my trip to Yuma, Arizona for the Medjool Date Festival. Be sure to read all the way through for your chance to win some Natural Delights Medjool Dates!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-8Last month Natural Delights asked me if I would be a guest judge for the recipe contest at the Annual Yuma Medjool Date Festival! Me, a guest judge? WHATTT?! So cool! I love everyone at Natural Delights and I loveeee dates, so I was really excited to visit Yuma again for the festival. Brett (my lovely bunny model) also came along for the festival!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-11The trip started off with necessary bathroom mirror selfies (should I say us-ie?). We’re such girls.

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-5Then we boarded the plane and prepared for takeoff.

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-12Unfortunately our plane had different plans as our right engine started smoking! Sooooo we deplaned waited for a new aircraft.

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-18I don’t know if I have talked about my bad luck with planes before, but I am literally always delayed, cancelled, or end up with a broken plane!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-15After our new plane arrived we were off to Yuma, AZ!

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Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-10First cactus sighting at the airport!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-17The next morning, Brett and I woke up to a gorgeous Arizona sunrise and enjoyed coffee and breakfast at our hotel before heading to the festival.

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-14
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Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-3We got to meet Miss Medjool! SO FREAKING AWESOME!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-7Brett and I had some free time to roam around the festivals so for our first stop, we explored the gallery where they had gorgeous photos of the Medjool date growers from Natural Delights.

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-1They even had Medjool date art created by local kids! Seriously too cute for words!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-9Had to take a photo with the giant fork in downtown Yuma, because Im cool like that.

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-16Brett and I made our way to the Imperial booth for fresh date shakes. Imperial is part of the Bard Valley Growers Association and also grows for Natural Delights!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-19Our shakes were to die for! We downed them within minutes.

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Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-13Standing with the recipe contest sign! Eeeeeeek!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-25Then it was time for the main event; the recipe contest. Look at the excitement on my face, it just screams “DATESSSSSS!”

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-24We got to try so many incredible recipes submitted by local date enthusiasts.

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-22And the winner wasssssss: the most incredible salty sweet cheese loaf with date and nut coating. The judges and I couldn’t get enough!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-23All of the Judges and the winner of the 2013 Recipe Contest!

Yuma-Medjool-Date-Festival-21To end an already amazing day, I did an on camera interview speaking about using dates for natural healthy sweetener in lightened up recipes! Brett and I had so much fun sampling dates from all of the vendors and getting to hangout with the Natural Delights team. It’s always a tasty and fun time visiting Natural Delights!

READ BELOW FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN SOME NATURAL DELIGHTS MEDJOOL DATES.

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In collaboration with Bard Valley Natural Delights Medjool Dates, I am hosting a giveaway!
One lucky RFFMBT winner will receive: Two 1 lb packages of Fresh Medjool Dates!

For your chance to win:
1. Comment on this post telling me your favorite way to eat Medjool dates.

2. Follow Natural Delights on Twitter.
– Leave a separate comment with the url to your tweet!

3. Like Natural Delights on Facebook.
– Leave a separate comment letting me know that you liked them!

This means you can earn up to 3 entries!
Contest ends on Thursday, December 12th at 11:59pm PST.
Winner will be announced on Friday, December 13th.
Must use a valid email address when entering. Open to U.S. residents only.

I have complied a list of some RFFMBT recipes that include Medjool Dates:

Cashew Cookie Larabars
Date & Olive Tapenade
Campfire Kisses
Medjool Date BBQ Sauce
Valentine’s Day Cookie Sandwiches

Chocomole 

Raw Bites
Chocolate Chip Chickpea Cookies
Chickpea Cookie Dough Dip
Healthy Vegan Banana Bread
Black Bean and Spinach Brownies

Hail To the Kale Salad Dressing

For fun & fresh holiday recipes using Bard Valley Natural Delights™ Medjool Dates, be sure to download their free Holiday eZine!

*This giveaway has ended. A Winner will be announced on Friday, December 13.
** Congratulations to the winner: Victoria F!
winner

Natural Delights Medjool Date Summit

With a quick hop, skip, and a jump, I boarded a plane from LAX en route to YUM. Yes, that is the actual abbreviation for Yuma International Airport. YUM couldn’t be any more perfect for a food blogger summit! Even better, the mountains surrounding the Yuma area are called the Chocolate Mountains. Uh-mazing. As you can already tell, this was a food filled adventure! After my previous collaborations working with Natural Delights Medjool Dates I was invited to attend their first ever blogger summit in Yuma, Arizona. It was nothing but delightful. ha. ha. pun definitely intended.

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Let’s start off with why I LOVE Medjool Dates so much:

  • They are naturally sweet – Medjool dates are naturally sweet and contain no added sugar, making them an ideal alternative to artificial and processed sweeteners.
  • They help protect against cancer – Medjool dates are filled with polyphenols, powerful antioxidants that help protect the body against the oxidation and inflammation of cells that can lead to cancer. Medjool dates contain more antioxidants than blackberries, plums and apples.
  • They help stabilize blood sugar levels – Medjool dates rate low to low/medium on the Glycemic Index (GI). A low-GI carb diet keeps glucose and insulin levels stable, helping maintain sustained energy and a healthy weight.
  • They make you feel fuller for longer – Medjool dates are loaded with dietary fiber. Just one-quarter cup of Medjools provides 12 percent of the daily requirement of fiber and helps satisfy between-meal cravings.
  • They can reenergize – Rich in potassium, manganese and other important minerals, Medjools help balance blood sodium levels and release energy from protein, fat and carbohydrates.
  • They are a healthy snack – Medjool dates are a no-fat and no-cholesterol treat, making them ideal for snacking.
  • They help fight against “bad” cholesterol – Medjool dates help lower LDL cholesterol levels, which decreases the risk of diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
  • They can ease labor and deliveries in pregnant women – A study in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology indicated that pregnant women who consumed six Medjool dates for four weeks prior to their estimated delivery date had easier labors with fewer complications.
  • They help lower blood pressure – Medjool dates are also dense in copper, Vitamin B6, niacin, calcium, iron and Vitamin K, making it the perfect addition to the DASH diet, which is proven to lower blood pressure.
  • They have a long shelf life – Medjool dates have a shelf life of 30 days when stored at room temperature – making them ideal for travel and enjoying at work, home or play.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-41In attendance were these fineeeee bloggers:
Very front: Beth Atkinson from DGWB – thanks for the pic, girl!
Second Row (from left): Cynthia David – Cynthia David Blog, Caroline Edwards – Chocolate and Carrots, Me!
Third Row: Theresa Albert – My Friend in Food, Nicole Hamaker – Pinch My Salt, Kim Nguyen – Lovin’ From The Oven
Back row : Alyssa Brantley – Everyday Maven, Jackie Bruchez – The Seaside Baker

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-3I arrived in Yuma to sunny skies at a warm 103 degrees and tons of Natural Delights goodies in my air conditioned  hotel room!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-6Night one started with a happy hour full of Medjool date appetizers like mascarpone stuffed dates, and sweet Medjool date salsa.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-37After happy hour we made our way to Glen Vandervoort’s house for a beautiful dinner with other Bard Valley Medjool Date growers and their families. The Medjool date appetizers continued with prosciutto wrapped dates, and an olive date tapenade that was to die for. Just think, salty sweet deliciousness. I will be sharing the original recipe with you this week!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-4I came home from dinner to turndown and a box of Bard Date Company chocolate covered dates from Dave & Debbie Mansheim’s shop Basket Creations and More. They are like chocolate covered raisins, but better. Much better! Want to make some chocolate covered dates similar to these? Try this recipe for Medjool Date Pecan Chocolate Truffles!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-7The next morning, we all met in the conference room for breakfast, history of Natural Delights Medjool Dates, and a rundown of their current and upcoming products.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-38Natural Delights is now offering Snack Packs of Medjool dates and their super popular date rolls. I love the convenience of these mini bags. They make for a great healthy on the go snack! I actually wish these would be in the check out lines at Whole Foods and other grocery stores. I would definitely grab mini bags of fresh Medjool dates versus a bag of candy any day!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-24Glen Vandervoort brought us freshly harvested medjool dates straight off of his tree for us to try during breakfast. Words cannot even describe how divine fresh dates are. They literally taste like caramel. For the rest of the day, all we (the bloggers) could talk about was how insanely amazing the fresh dates were!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-33After breakfast we visited the medjool date gardens!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-26We had the opportunity to go up in the cherry picker and harvest dates from a 30ft tree.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-25Safety First! Andrew Costanza: Bard Valley Medjool Date Growers Association’s Director of Compliance and Standards got us in our sweet harnesses before going up in the trees. How fab do Alyssa (Everyday Maven) and Kim (Lovin’ From The Oven) look?!

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Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-28When dates are growing, they are covered in cloth bags to prevent birds from eating them, and any from falling to the ground. In order to harvest dates we shook the bags, untied the string holding the bag together at the bottom, and then let the ripened dates fall out of the bag and onto a tray.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-31Once the dates fall onto the trays, they are checked and sorted depending on their ripeness. As you can see the yellow date closest to the front is not yet ripe, the date in the center is only partly ripe, and the  last one is just perfect.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-30Theresa (My Friend in Food) sorting through her pile of harvested Medjool dates.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-29Beth from DGWB harvesting dates with the bloggers!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-32“The Big Six”
Did you know that Medjool dates are one of the oldest cultivated fruits in the world? I bet you wouldn’t have guessed they have been around for 8,000 years! In 1927, eleven Medjool date trees were brought over from Morocco to escape disease. Of these 11 trees, nine were brought to Bard Valley and six still remain today. All 250,000+ Medjool date trees in Bard Valley can be traced back to “The Big Six.” Kind of amazing if you ask me!
Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-34Me standing with one of “The Big Six” Medjool date trees. As you can tell, they are soooo tallll!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-23After frolicking in the date gardens, we arrived at Datepac, LLC., where all of Natural Delights Medjool Dates are packaged for you! I loved the vase of pens in their front office with non other than date pits! Who needs rice or beans, right? Hilarious!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-1Health and safety required us to wear these super chic hairnets and visitor passes while inside. #lunchladychic

IMG_7859 While at Datepac, we watched the dates make their way from being washed to sealed up in their packages.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-21After being washed, the dates go one by one down a conveyer belt which takes individual photos of each date with a fancy shmancy state of the art camera. Once the computer system receives each image, it determines the date’s size. A brief puff of air then blows each date onto next next conveyer belt according to it’s size. So high tech!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-19The packing grade scale doesn’t just go by size. It actually goes from highest quality and largest date, down to lowest quality and smallest date. The quality is determined by how tight or puffy the skin of the date is.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-36It was amazing to see how much of the process was actually done by hand. In order to sort the dates, it must be done by (extremely clean) bare hands to feel the skin’s texture.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-16We even got a chance to sort the dates and see if we could tell the difference between jumbo, large, extra fancy, fancy, mini, and confection.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-18After dates are sorted, they go to the packaging area.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-20Dates on dates on dates.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-17 Another fun part of Datepac that we got to explore was the Date Roll area! We watched them make some fresh pistachio date rolls. The lower quality (not so pretty, but still tasty) dates are ground up (kind of like sausage), rolled in their topping, and then sliced up and packaged.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-15After our tour of Datepac, we had a beautful lunch at River City Grill. The restaurant made us a special lunch filled with, you guessed it: Natural Delights Medjool Dates! Lunch started with Bacon Wrapped Dates and Vietnamese Spring Rolls. Next up was a fresh Salad with Juicy Pears and Chopped Medjool Dates. For the main course, I chose a Medjool Date & Pesto Pasta. Our decadent lunch concluded with Date Caramelized Crème Brulée. Ohh my tummy was so happy!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-14Once we got back to the hotel from lunch, we had a social media break for a couple of hours before our next event. Andrew (Director of Compliance and Standards) asked if any of us wanted to go on a spontaneous trip to the sand dunes in California. Funny because we were staying in Arizona! Five of us we’re up for the adventure, and away we went!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-10
Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-9The sand dunes were absolutely gorgeous.

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-8On our little adventure, we also made a quick stop in Mexico. Just kidding! Kind of…

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-13We were so close to the border. No joke! We were in Arizona, California, and Mexico all within 15 minutes! Andrew dared us to go and poke our fingers between the border fence, but none of us took the dare, haha! The sign was a bit intimidating!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-12Kim from Lovin’ From The Oven!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-11Cynthia (Cynthia David Blog), Kim (Lovin’ From The Oven), Theresa (My Friend in Food), Me, and  Caroline (Chocolate and Carrots).

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-39After our trip to Mexico (ha) it was time for a Date Shake Competition! All of the bloggers were randomly paired into groups of two and we had a huge variety of ingredients to use. Nicole (Pinch My Salt) and I made a “Bananaccino” with 10 different ingredients. Not exaggerating, there were actually 10 odd ingredients in there! It was…interesting to say the least! Unfortunately, Nicole and I didn’t win, but we had a great time anyways!

Natural-Delights-Medjool-Date-Summit-2013-5After our wild adventure to Mexico and Date Shake Competition, we had our final fiesta at  Tina’s Cocina with Private Chef Alex Trujillo. Our extravagant dinner was made table side in the back of a historic church. We got to sip on Prickly Pear Margaritas and enjoy each other’s company while watching Chef Trujillo prepare our dinner! The endless courses started off with Baked Brie and Medjool Date Jam on crostini and five courses later ended with a Sweet Medjool Date Tamale with Coconut Rum Sorbet. It was a fabulous ending to a delicious summit.

Medjool Date Summit, Yuma, AZ | chocolateandcarrots.com -3108The next morning a few of us who had later flights went on a tour of the Yuma Territorial Prison. 3:10 To Yuma, anyone?
Me, Caroline (Chocolate and Carrots), Kim (Lovin’ From The Oven), Nicole (Pinch My Salt), and Beth (DGWB) behind bars! Ahhh!

I had the absolute best time at the Natural Delights Medjool Date Summit. Every little detail of the summit was perfectly thought out and planned for us. Thank you so much to Erin Hanagan for finding all of the amazing venus in Yuma, to Dave Anderson for getting us everywhere promptly and keeping us with the schedule down to the second, to Glen Vandervoort and family for opening up your home to us, to Andrew Costanza for taking us to Mexico and back in one piece, to Dave & Debbie Mansheim for the Chocolate Covered Dates, to Ed O’Malley for the perfect tour of Datepac (and for remembering me from the PBH Conference!), to Jim Freimuth and Chris Nielsen for teaching us about organic dates, Steve for all of the great photos, and last but not least, thank you to Beth Atkinson from DGWB for organizing this incredible summit and having an answer to EVERY question! You guys are all Natural Delights! This is near the top of my list of favorite blogger summits I have ever attended. Of course it would not be the same without all of the hilarious, sweet, brilliant, creative bloggers that were a part of it. So many delightfully tasty memories!

Show Natural Delights Medjool Dates some Love!
Website: naturaldelights.com
Facebook: facebook.com/MedjoolDates
Twitter: @NDmedjooldates
Pinterest: pinterest.com/NDMedjoolDates
YouTube: youtube.com/NDmedjooldates
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