Tags: Summer

DIY Watermelon Bouquet

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Summer is in full bloom and there are so many great flowers available this time of year. If you’ve ever wanted to try your hand at designing your own floral centerpiece, this watermelon bouquet is a great place to start! 

You’ll need:

  • 1/2 Watermelon, scooped out
  • Floral Foam, presoaked in water
  • Floral Tape or Skinny Duct Tape
  • Floral Knife or Shears 
  • Floral Greenery – I used Leather Leaf and Salal (Lemon Leaf) in my arrangement! 
  • 1 Dozen Red Roses
  • 5 Pink Carnations
  • 5 Stems Kermit Button Mums
  • 3-5 Stems Baby’s Breath

You can use any colors of the flowers that you prefer, make it your own and have fun with it! Here’s a few tips to keep in mind as you’re creating your masterpiece. 

  1. Determine where the front of your centerpiece will be. Although you’ll push the stems into the center of the foam, you’ll want to angle the leaves or flowers slightly towards the front of the design to get the best view. 
  2. When you’re putting the stems in the foam, remember it’s not very forgiving! So once you stick it in, leave it there. Be mindful of where you’re putting it beforehand. 
  3. Strip away the extra leaves on the stems of the flowers. Those tend to die off first and grow bacteria making them mushy. By removing them you’ll allow for more air flow and your design will last much longer! 
  4. If you have extra baby’s breath left over, you can put that in a vase with water and they’ll stay good for a long time so you could use them in a future arrangement as well. 
  5. You can also use any left over items by creating a second, smaller version of your bouquet!  Repeat the same process using a green pepper, just use much smaller pieces of greenery and the smallest mum buds so it’s proportional to the pepper. 

I hope these tips will help you succeed with your DIY floral projects! They’re the perfect addition to summertime parties and will get you LOTS of compliments from your friends and family! 

Ashley 
Floral Manager, Sauk Rapids

Practice Sun Safety

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Summer is here in full force! We have already had several days over 90 degrees with multiple heat advisories being issued as well. We wait a long time for this weather, and put up with some pretty ridiculous winter weather as well, but it is important to protect yourself from the powerful effects of the sun.

As great as the sunshine feels, there are two types of light from the sun that can harm your skin, UVA and UVB. The UVA rays can prematurely “age” your skin, they cause wrinkling and age spots. The UVB rays are what cause the “sunburn” effect. The main reason we want to protect our skin from the sun is that excessive exposure to either UVA or UVB rays can cause skin cancer.

There are three main strategies to focus on sun safety;

  • Avoid the sun during its’ strongest hours – 10am to 2pm
  • Wear protective clothing – Pants, shirts with long sleeves, sunglasses, hats.
  • Use sunscreen – Apply generously and reapply often.

Most questions around sun safety come from sunscreen. Make sure you are using a sunscreen that protects from both UVA and UVB rays, it will usually say that it covers both types or it will be labeled as a broad spectrum or full spectrum sunscreen. Also, use a sunscreen with an appropriate SPF rating. SPF stands for sun protection factor, which is a measure of how well it protects against the UVB rays. The SPF rating is calculated on how long it takes to sunburn skin that has been treated with sunscreen compared to skin with no sunscreen protection. Of note since we live in the land of 10,000 lakes, water resistant sunscreen will maintain the SPF for up to 40 minutes while swimming, very water resistant means the SPF is maintained for up to 80 minutes. You can apply sunscreen to children as young as age 6 months. Keep younger children in the shade as much as possible.

When you use sunscreen:

  • Apply generous amounts of sunscreen to dry skin before you go outdoors.
  • Use sunscreen on all skin that will be exposed to the sun; face, ears, hands, arms and lips. If you’re like me and you don’t have much hair on your head, apply sunscreen to the top of your head or wear a hat.
  • Reapply sunscreen every two hours — and immediately after swimming or heavy sweating even if you’re using a product that’s water resistant or very water resistant.
  • You can still get sunburned on cloudy days, use sunscreen even when it’s overcast.

Have fun out there, practice good sun safety, and have a great summer!

Jason Miller, Pharm. D.
Pharmacy Clinical Program Manager

The Blend

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Amy

I love summers up here in the Midwest because of the weather and of course the food! Today we are featuring a couple recipes for The Blend, which is perfect timing for grilling over the 4th of July!

What is The Blend you ask!? Well, it’s a blend of ground meat (or poultry) + mushrooms! Yes, mushrooms! It’s such a great way to sneak in some great nutrition without sacrificing great flavor. I look forward to grilling up some good ol’ burgers using The Blend all summer long! 

You can’t go wrong with the Classic California Burger, but I’d love it if you tried out the Fiesta Burger, too! You won’t be disappointed! This is a perfect fit for upcoming meals with family and friends over the 4th of July. 

Try The Blend in other recipes as well including meatballs, lasagna, tacos, spaghetti, and so many more! Let us know how you like it! Check out the video above for tips and tricks for making a delicious (as well as nutritious!) Blend!

Happy Blending! 
Amy, RD, LD
A proud #blenditarian

4th Of July

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It’s so close to the 4th of July and I am so excited! This has got to be my most favorite holiday! I love having my family and friends get together at the lake to play games, go boating, swimming and enjoying all day in the hot sun!! The best part is at the end of the night getting on the pontoon and heading down to the bay for a show of the most beautiful fireworks under the stars. You couldn’t ask for a better summer. This year I am way ahead of the game and have my menu planned for the 4th of July and I just have to share it with you.

This year I want to make it easy for me since I am the head cook at our event! It’s going to be Four Brothers Burgers all the way. They have so many flavors including Bacon and Cheddar Burger, Bleu Cheese Burger, Buffalo Bleu, Mushroom and Swiss and Hot Pepper Burgers and they are all so yummy. Just pick up your favorite flavor at anyone of our Meat Departments.

Every good get together, especially if it’s a hot day, needs some refreshing fruit. This recipe is easy to prep ahead of time if needed! 

Mixed Berry Salad

 

While the burgers are on the grill and the salad is in the fridge, there’s no better way to relax and enjoy the sunshine than with a nice tropical drink. Here’s a new favorite of mine! It’s called Island Living, and trust me, once you have a taste of this, you’ll feel like you’re on an island! 

Island Living

Now you can’t forget dessert on the 4th of the July and I love to serve something that ties in with the holiday. We have a new Cream Cake flavor that has just arrived in our Bakery Departments and it’s so decedent and scrumptious you just have to check it out. It will be perfect for your holiday table. It has beautiful fresh blueberries sprinkled all over the top and drizzled with icing. On the inside it has those large tart cranberries that put this dessert over the top. 

This is a fun celebration and it’s time to enjoy these summer months so make sure you are serving something easy so you can have fun in the sun! Have a safe and Happy 4th of July!!!

Jayne,
Coborn’s, Inc. Merchandising Specialist Team Manager – Bakery & Deli

Keep Food Fresh With a Vacuum Sealer

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www.cobornsblog.com - Family, Friends & Food with Jayne

Jayne

Hi everyone!!
It’s official… our summer is over and we are full steam ahead into fall and harvest time. If you are like me, we are right in the middle of trying to use up all our vegetables out of the garden so they don’t go to waste.  Continue reading →

Grilled Peach Recipes

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Jayne

Hi Everybody!!
We are getting real close to canning season and preserving those wonderful peaches, jams and sauces and I wanted to introduce you to a wonderful peach that just hit our Coborn’s stores.   They are so awesome, fresh and juicy.  Don’t pass up an opportunity to try these because they are great!!!  Their season starts from the beginning of June towards the end of September and they are awesome when using them for pies, jams, jellies, baking and grilling.  Here are a couple recipes that I tried and I want to pass on to you because they were so great! Continue reading →

Sweet Summertime

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Jayne

Happy June everybody!!

Next week is July 4th and it is my very favorite holiday.  I love the weather and all the fun that comes along with this time of year.  Getting together with family and friends is got to be the best. I was in California a few weeks ago, and I discovered a new recipe that I promised myself I would do when I got back home because I just loved it. It was so good that I had to have seconds.

Before we get to the that though, I want to start with a Tri-tip Roast. This cut of meat is just scrumptious and so easy to prepare. The Tri-tip roast is a cut of beef from the bottom sirloin and when grilled to perfection in my opinion is better than a ribeye. It is so tender and flavorful and it will soon become one of your favorites. It is extremely popular out on the West Coast and has finally made its way here to the Midwest. Here is how easy it is to do.

I seasoned the roast with Four Brothers Prime Rib Seasoning. I use this seasoning for everything. I preheated the grill to 500-550 degrees because I wanted a very hot grill and then placed the roast on it. I seared the roast on each side by heating for 3 minutes and then turning it over for another 3 minutes. By searing your meat, it holds all the flavor in.  Then I turned down the grill and made sure the roast was on indirect heat. I slowly cooked it to 140 degrees for Medium Rare. I took it off the grill and covered it loosely with aluminum foil for about 10 minutes so that the juices soaked back into the meat to give it that wonderful flavor.

While the roast was cooking, I decided to have a cocktail to enjoy and found a recipe at a local restaurant that was so good I knew I needed to have this along with my meal. It’s called Lynchburg Lemonade and it’s sure to be a summertime favorite! 

Ok, back to when I was in California! This is what I’ve been waiting to share with you! I got the opportunity to try Mexican Street Corn and I have never been so excited about corn on the cob! I have always loved corn-on-the-cob but this took it to a whole new level. If you love corn you will love this experience. This recipe is unbelievable and I couldn’t stop eating it. You’ll be making this all summer long too! 

I think I just planned my July 4th meal and in fact I know I did! Enjoy the holiday with family and friends along with all the great foods of Summer. I wish you all a very happy 4th of July!

Jayne,
Coborn’s Inc. Merchandising Specialist Team Manager – Bakery & Deli