April 24, 2024 | Frieda's LLC - The Branded Produce Company

Now that we survived “the end of the world, as we know it,” (December 21 on the Mayan calendar) as well as Christmas and Hanukkah, I think it’s time to turn to the New Year.

It’s a time for resolutions. I’m guessing the top New Year resolution is “to lose weight” – but I’m not going to make that mine, mostly because like many people I’m already obsessed with my weight and appearance.

When thinking about what I want to do differently this New Year, I think about my work day. I have found myself not being the best time manager: I am still at the office most days until 6 p.m. (I arrive at 6 a.m.) So, my first resolution is to leave work each day no later than 5 p.m.

This leads me to my second resolution, and that is to exercise regularly. I exercise for a few reasons. Besides the obvious one of “burning calories,” I like that I have more energy after I exercise and it gives my brain a rest. So, my plan is to exercise at least five days a week and try a new exercise every month. I have my sights set on yoga right now – I’ve been talking about it for a while, but I need to take action.

My third resolution is to spend time each week, one-on-one, with a close family member or friend. They know who they are. Because I have been working so many hours I have not had quality time with many of them.

Three resolutions are plenty for me, because like my sister Jackie tells me, “You can’t focus on more than three items at a time.”

To kick off the New Year, I plan to ensure my good luck by eating Blackeyed Peas on New Year’s Day. It’s an old Southern tradition: Eating Blackeyed Peas and some cooked greens ensure wealth and good luck in the New Year. The greens symbolize greenbacks (or dollars) and the Blackeyed Peas are the coins.

My favorite all time Blackeyed Pea recipe is Habanero Chile Chili, which we developed more than 20 years ago in our test kitchen.

I like spicy food, so I use a whole Habanero Chile, although you can substitute Jalapenos or Serrano chiles if you want. Another traditional New Years’ recipe is Hoppin’ John.

Whether or not you make New Year’s resolutions, I wish you good luck and health!

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound lean round steak, cubed
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 cup chopped red and/or green bell peppers
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 16-ounce can kidney beans
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1 16-ounce can tomato sauce – low sodium
1 cup beef broth
1 11-ounce package Frieda’s Blackeyed Peas, cooked, drained
1-2 Frieda’s Dried Habanero Chiles, rehydrated, seeded and minced
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 Frieda’s Bay Leaf
1 cup niblet corn – low sodium
Salt to taste
Shredded sharp Cheddar Cheese
Warm tortillas

Steps:

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large Dutch oven. Brown the steak in the oil on all sides. Remove form the pan with a slotted spoon. Drain the drippings. Heat 2 tablespoons oil. Sauté the onion, bell pepper and garlic in the oil for 3 minutes. Stir in the beef, undrained kidney beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce broth, blackeyed peas, Habanero chiles, cilantro, basil, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaf.
Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat. Simmer, partially covered, for 35 to 45 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Stir in the corn and salt. Cook for 5 minutes longer. Discard the bay leaf. Ladle the chili into bowls. Top with shredded cheese. Serve with warm tortillas.

Last week, my husband Garry and I took a 5 day mini-vacation in San Juan, Puerto Rico. If you haven’t been there, I highly recommend it, as it is a short flight from Miami. JetBlue Airways recently built their own terminal at the San Juan airport, as it has obviously become a high traffic destination.

In preparation for our trip, I asked a produce industry friend who lives in the U.S. Virgin Islands for some recommendations of places to visit. She emailed me a great list of farmers markets. So when Garry and I woke up in San Juan on Saturday morning, we decided to head off to Old San Juan for a farmers market held at the San Juan Museum.

Because Puerto Rico is a U.S. Territory, they use U.S. currency. That made it so easy to travel there – no need to “calculate the money” in your head. And, in the big cities – San Juan and Ponce – it’s common for most people to speak both English and Spanish, so it’s easy to communicate.

The architecture of Old San Juan is quite colorful and beautiful. It reminded me of photos I have seen of towns in the Bahamas, France and Italy.

Turns out the theme of the market that day was “Festival of the Banana.” Everything was organic and most of the vendors were selling vegan food! I was in heaven!

My Spanish is a little rusty, but it was interesting to hear the various speakers get up and describe the different bananas and banana products.

In the corner of the market was a colorful pop-up tent with a banner, “Terra Madre” (translated: Mother Earth). There was a gentleman giving 10 minute massages and a women at a nearby table taking donations. Or so I thought…

Turns out, the women taking the money was Dr. Elizama Montalvo, a U.S.-trained physician who relocated back to Puerto Rico four years ago with her husband, Bartus. Bartus was giving the massages – he is trained in acupuncture and Shiatsu massage. They were offering massages for small donations to Slow Food.

I had a fabulous discussion with Elizama about her training at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, at the Department of Social Medicine. After living in New York for so many years, she and her husband moved back to her homeland, Puerto Rico.

Both she and Bartus are vegan, and she told me that Dr. T. Colin Campbell, the author of The China Study, was in Puerto Rico last week leading a seminar on a whole foods plant-based diet. As I have mentioned before, Campbell’s book is an easy read and the authoritative work on how diet can improve your health. All I could think at that moment is “there are no such things as coincidences!” How did this woman and I have so much in common?

On our last day in Puerto Rico, Garry surprised me. He opened his suitcase and pulled out three “California” t-shirts. He told me that he always buys t-shirts from the States and takes them on foreign trips to give as thank you gifts to people he meets on his travels.

So, as we were leaving our hotel – The La Concha Resort in San Juan – I took one of the t-shirts and presented it to Felix, the doorman who had helped us many times during our visit. When we handed him the shirt, I could see tears come to his eyes. He said one of his lifelong dreams was to visit California! You can see from the big smile on his face, this t-shirt made him very happy.

Puerto Rico is an island of many surprises: Wonderful food, mild weather, interesting cities. But most of all, friendly people!

This year, Hanukkah starts at sundown on December 8 and lasts for eight nights. Like many families, mine will gather the following weekend to celebrate this Festival of Lights. There will be more than 30 of us, and each family unit will bring their menorah (candelabra). Before dinner, we will say the traditional Hebrew prayers, tell stories and we will light all the candles. It is a beautiful sight, as we turn off all the lights and do this tradition only with the lights from almost a dozen menorahs.

Then dinner will be simple, with the main dish being fried potato pancakes — called latkes. Some like them with sour cream, others will top theirs with fresh applesauce. We’ll have beef brisket and roasted chicken, steamed green beans and a big green salad. And because it is a tradition, we will also serve fried jelly donuts for dessert. You can find out about this tradition here.

But one tradition will change this year. We are not doing our annual gift exchange. Usually we each purchase a gift worth $15 to $20 and pull names. We have a lot of laughs.

This year, our entire family decided to start a new tradition. We will each take that money that was previously used to purchase a gift, and make a family donation to support Israel. With all the recent violence in the Middle East, showing our support in this way, at this time of giving, feels good and makes sense.

I wonder how many other families will consider breaking tradition. Instead of giving gifts to family or close friends — gifts they probably don’t need — consider making a donation to a worthwhile cause that is important to you.

So far this year I have written checks to my local food bank and Share our Strength, which was started by chefs who wanted a vehicle to donate unused food. At our company, we are also having a canned food drive.

As we enter the season of giving, I hope you will think about how you can make a difference to those who are less fortunate. Maybe start a new tradition by teaching your family to truly be grateful for all that you have and make someone else’s life a little better.

Last week I spent Thanksgiving in Dallas with my husband Garry’s family. Because we all travel from various cities, we stay at a hotel near the airport.

This is the second year we have stayed at the Embassy Suites at the DFW airport.

It was a lovely three days – and the highlight is that I get to spend quality time with my 94-year-old mother-in-law. But it was actually the short ride on the hotel shuttle back to the airport that changed my life.

I was the only passenger on the shuttle and Stephen was my driver. I noticed that he had bandages on both forearms, so I had to ask.

He told me that the hotel has a “no visible tattoos” policy, and he forgot his regular armbands that day, so he had to cover his tattoos up with ace bandages. For some reason I asked him about his tattoos.

Turns out Stephen served in the Marine Corps for four years. He was deployed to Somalia for two years and was there during the pirate encounters. His second tour of duty was in Afghanistan, where he was a driver of a large transport vehicle.

He was driving in a convoy through many hills and ravines in Afghanistan. His vehicle was following in the exact path of the one in front, to reduce the chance of hitting landmines.

As he was getting ready to go down a particular ravine, he had a bad feeling. He turned to his partner who told him he had the same feeling.

Stephen said to his partner, “Hey man, we have to have no regrets.” A few seconds later, a landmine went off directly under Stephen’s seat.

He was shaken up, had a few bruises, but because the vehicle was so heavy and well designed, he and his partner got out relatively unscathed.

When we arrived at the airport I shook his hand and thanked him for the ride and for sharing his personal story. And of course for serving our country.

I have struggled with the popularity of tattoos and why so many people decorate their bodies with them. But now, thanks to Stephen, I have a new appreciation for why some choose to commemorate a person or event that happened in their life.

I won’t be getting a tattoo anytime soon, but the saying, “Live your life with no regrets,” has a whole new meaning for me.

As I travel around the country visiting supermarkets, there is one big thing that annoys me: those unnecessarily long cash register receipts!

You know what I’m talking about. You only buy one or two items, yet your receipt is so long that it has to be folded several times to fit into your wallet.

I have often thought that supermarkets waste so much money on that coated paper. How many trees or how much petroleum is used to print those receipts? Can’t they make them shorter?

I was in San Luis Obispo, California, attending a board meeting at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo. I decided to stop at a local store to purchase some vegan food.

I picked out a few things and took them to the cashier. When I looked at the receipt, I thought it was odd that there was no total.

The technology is out there to make this possible! I was elated. Why aren’t more supermarkets doing this? What a great way to show your shoppers that you really do care about the environment.

But then again, I wonder how long it will be before supermarkets start doing what Nordstrom has been doing for more than a year: They ask you for your email address and they just email you your receipt. No paper needed.

I call that a fantastic 21st Century practice. Instead of trying to improve a practice, just leapfrog to a whole new process.

Clearly it is not a day of celebration, but rather a day to bring awareness to one of the worlds’ most prevalent and debilitating diseases.

I first recall hearing about diabetes when actress Mary Tyler Moore disclosed that she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes shortly after she launched the “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in the early 1970s.

Around the same time, one of my high school friends was diagnosed with diabetes and started daily shots of insulin. I remember wondering what caused her diabetes since she was not overweight and did not consume excessive amounts of sugar (which were two misnomers at that time).

Of course we now know that there are primarily 2 types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2.

Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin, or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces. Insulin enables cells to take in glucose from the blood and use it for energy. Some people are actually born with type 1 diabetes, which is caused by an auto-immune reaction. I have a good friend whose daughter was born with type 1 diabetes. Their family had to make dramatic lifestyle changes to accommodate this, and deal with uncaring and incorrect comments from many people who do not understand the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is of biggest concern because it is preventable. It is often a result of obesity, driven by excessive consumption of sugar, fat and carbohydrates as well as a lack of regular exercise and movement. Type 2 diabetes accounts for 90% of all cases of diabetes.

Did you know that the latest numbers from the World Health Organization indicate that one in 10 people have diabetes? That is more than 347 million people worldwide, making it the 7th leading cause of death in the United States!

For some of the latest research about diabetes, check out this newsletter that I received this morning from Israel 21C (which stands for Israel 21st century). I have found that some of the most cutting edge research comes out of Israel, so I always voraciously read this weekly electronic newsletter. I encourage you to subscribe. Just enter your email address at the top of the webpage.

Back to diabetes. If Mary Tyler Moore was my first recollection of diabetes, then Paula Deen is my most recent. I hope Paula Deen uses her platform on the Food Network to change her eating and cooking habits and focus on a healthier lifestyle with more fresh fruits and vegetables and exercise.

Like many company owners and chief executive officers, I belong to an executive roundtable group. This group of fellow CEOs from non-competing companies and industries serves as my unofficial “board of advisors.” It’s quite useful to have access to other CEOs to vet out issues and challenges, especially for a privately owned company.

My group is called Vistage, and it has more than 20,000 members all over the world. The majority of the members are based in the United States, and my particular group is based in Southern California. On the second Tuesday of each month, I meet with 14 fellow CEO members.

Interestingly – I am the only female member of my group. And that’s the way it has been since I joined 5 years ago. My group chair is constantly looking for other Los Angeles-based women CEOs to join our group, but no luck… yet!

Once a year, our group convenes for a Spouse Retreat Weekend, where our significant others join us. It’s a mostly social gathering, but we always have a speaker who is appropriate for both members and their spouses.

This weekend our speaker was Carolyn Strauss, a “collaborationships” expert who specializes in creating optimal workplaces. Carolyn runs a successful coaching and business consulting practice, and she also has a second business which makes her a regular on the Home Shopping Network (HSN): The Carolyn Strauss Collection – comfortable travel-friendly clothing for busy women.

Carolyn was not at our retreat to talk about clothing or business, however. She was there to talk about how to optimize your life via relationships. Because we were there with our spouses, her talk highlighted how men and women listen differently during conversations:

Men listen with their perspective of being hunters and providers. They are focused and only concentrate on one result at a time. When they are listening to you, they are constantly thinking, “Get to the point. What’s the problem and how do I fix it?” And they don’t play, unless they can win.

Women, on the other hand, listen with their perspective of being gatherers and nurturers. They have an awareness of everything and are adept at multi-tasking. When they are listening to you, they are asking themselves, what does this have to do with me? And they will play as long as they are safe.

One of my male colleagues, Cuyler, commented to me that he found Carolyn’s comments enriching. He said that it only makes sense that more women are being asked to lead divisions and companies, as women seem more naturally wired to multi-task and nurture their team members. I think his perspective is definitely influenced by his wife and her success as a head of global marketing for a large Hollywood studio.

There was also a lesson there for me. Because all the teams at my company have both women and men, I need to consciously appeal to both of their natural tendencies and leadership capabilities. I have to balance the “get to the point” with “giving a full perspective.” For some, I can pile on the work without priorities, and for others, I need to help them understand what needs to be done first and what can wait.

I believe we all have this challenge, whether it’s at work or at home. It’s good to know that I’m not the only one who has noticed that men and women think differently!

Did you know that YouTube is the #2 search engine, after Google? I learned that at a seminar I recently attended.

It made me smile, because Frieda’s started producing our own YouTube videos a few years ago, and eventually decided to have our own channel.

Because we sell such crazy looking fruits and vegetables, it was natural to do short, fun, quirky videos about our unique produce.

Our video on Blood Oranges has a Halloween theme with vampires and our video on Coconuts highlights the best way to open a Coconut. (We prefer the “Nail, Hammer, Towel” method.)

We even produced a short video highlighting some of the hundreds of produce items we have introduced to American consumers over the last 50 years.

Just last month, we produced and published a video highlighting Rambutan fruit. Also known as a “Hairy Lychee,” the Rambutan’s inner flesh resembles a Lychee, but it has hairy “tentacles” on the outside.

As you browse our YouTube video library, you may wonder, who are those people on the screen? Well, they are actually members of the Frieda’s sales and marketing team! We love to demonstrate our fun loving company culture and recruit team members to get in front of the camera.

My coworker Terri, who is our Director of Marketing, tells me that we don’t talk often enough about our company culture. As a family-owned company for more than 50 years, and a woman-owned and managed business, I think we are a pretty unique company – and not just for the produce industry. Plus, we are like a giant family, which is probably why one of our employee-actors, Adam, allowed us to spray paint his hair RED for the very end of our Rambutan video!

So, thank you Hazel, the voice of Frieda’s YouTube videos, Mark, Alex, and Adam for helping us show our unique products and company culture. And a big thank you to our Creative Director, Marliese, who shoots, edits and produces them all!

By the way, we started producing these YouTube videos as an easy and short (less than 2 minutes) educational offering for our retail clients. Even produce managers are perplexed by Buddha’s Hand Citrus, Horned Melons and our latest introduction, the Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato.

Most people familiar with my company, Frieda’s, know that our signature color is PURPLE. We “chose” this color 50 years ago, when my mom, Frieda, was getting ready to open her business on the Los Angeles Produce Market. Frieda hired a painter to paint her business sign, and it turned out that the only color he had available was a pale lavender. So our first company sign was purple, and it stuck! (Too bad we didn’t have the foresight to trademark the color.)

Actually, there is quite a history to this unique sweet potato. It was first grown and cultivated in Stokes County, North Carolina, by Saura Pride Sweet Potatoes.

After they trademarked the name and seed as Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato, Saura Pride was contacted by a grower in California – A.V. Thomas Produce – who supplies some of the best sweet potatoes to supermarkets and restaurant distributors all over the country. Like Frieda’s, A.V. Thomas is also a family-owned company, and the two of us have joined forces to grow and market this most unusual purple vegetable.

Here is a photo of the potato raw. The dark purplish skin on the outside doesn’t even hint at the fabulous and eye catching intense purple flesh when it is cooked.

Well, the first major crop of this Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato was just harvested less than a month ago and we have started shipping it all over the country. As a matter of fact, this past weekend, in Anaheim, we displayed and sampled it at our industry’s largest trade show.

What’s especially great about these Purple Sweet Potatoes is that they stay firm when cooked. They don’t get mushy like regular sweet potatoes, so they’re perfect for salads or homestyle fries. Through our extensive tasting and testing, we also found that they must be baked (not microwaved) longer than regular sweet potatoes.

Actually, one of my longtime chef friends, Alan Greeley of The Golden Truffle in Newport Beach, says that his favorite way to cook then is to wrap them in plastic and then foil and roast them for 1½ to 2 hours. Then he refrigerates them overnight before using in recipes. This keeps them super-moist yet firm. Don’t be put off by how long they take to bake – these potatoes are SO TASTY and MOIST, you will go crazy for them!

We are just starting to get orders from all over the country – actually the phone has been ringing off the hook. If you would like to try the Stokes Purple® Sweet Potato, talk to the produce manager at your favorite supermarket and ask them to contact us to order them for your store. (If your produce manager can’t comply, we also have them for sale on Amazon.com, but understandably, they are significantly more expensive this way.)

As I am getting ready to plan my menu for this year’s Thanksgiving dinner, I am already trying to figure out which Purple Sweet Potato recipe I am going to make. I think my family will love the flavor and texture.

Early last month, I reconnected with a high school friend of mine, Mindy. Turns out Mindy lives outside of New York City and is a highly respected Nutritionist and Registered Dietitian and does a lot of consulting in the food business (www.mindyhermann.com).

So, when we had breakfast together last month — both of us ordered oatmeal and fresh fruit, of course — the first thing I asked her was, “So what do you think of Mayor Bloomberg’s plan to reduce the allowed size of sugary drinks in the city?”

Being a business owner, I am generally not in favor of the government being overly involved in my business, so I imagine the big beverage companies like Coke, Pepsi and retailers like 7-11 are not thrilled.

However, in this instance, Mindy and I discussed Bloomberg’s plan as it relates to obesity.

It is no secret that our nation has a serious obesity epidemic. People are fat. Kids are fat. And they are getting fatter.

So what causes that? To some degree, I think marketing. You know what I mean: Food marketers have made sugary drinks appealing. They come in fun colors, dazzling flavors, and they are often decorated with images of cartoon characters or athletes to appeal to kids.

Sugar is also addictive, as I recently discovered during my Vegan Journey. Even if you don’t know that you are eating something with added sugar, like salt and pepper pistachios, for instance, you find yourself wanting more, sometimes uncontrollably. I call that an addiction. Mindy also told me that your brain does not register the calories consumed in a drink like it does when you eat whole food, like fresh fruit.

So, when Mindy forwarded me an article from The New York Times, authored by well-respected science and nutrition authority, Jane Brody, her analogy to another “addictive substance” really struck home.

You can read the entire article here, but here are the paragraphs that got my attention:

So, even though I do not like government creating regulations that so closely affect business commerce, I have to support Mayor Bloomberg’s objective here. Because sugar is a naturally addictive product, and because simply educating consumers that sugary drinks should not be a regular part of any persons’ diet is not working, then something must be done.

And for all of us tax paying consumers who are concerned about the rising cost of health care insurance — just imagine how much our insurance costs would go down, if obesity and its related diseases (diabetes, heart disease, and stroke) were not such an epidemic in America.

Mindy and I talked about the challenges and giving consumers alternative beverages. We both agree that drinking water is the perfect beverage. It is better for your body, for your health and it tastes great!

OK, so we all know about Facebook. For all you Facebook virgins, the way I describe it to my 89-year-old mother is, “It’s like a bulletin board. You post things you want to share on YOUR bulletin board, and those who you have chosen as YOUR Facebook friends can see what you’ve posted. And it’s updated 24/7.” Hard to believe, but I have many friends and business colleagues who are NOT on Facebook.

It’s not until they want to share some good news, photos from a trip or reconnect with friends from high school that many take the leap into Facebook. I’ve heard that the biggest users of Facebook are the over 50 crowd – even thought it was started by a Harvard student to connect with other students. If you haven’t seen the movie The Social Network, it’s a great and mostly factual story about the creation of Facebook, and founder Mark Zuckerberg.

Some of you may have heard of a social network called Pinterest. I’ve heard rumblings of Pinterest (pronounced “Pin-trest”) for a couple of years, but really didn’t know a lot about it or even understand it.

Pinterest wasn’t on my radar until I attended an industry luncheon last week, at which several local Southern California food bloggers spoke.

Unfortunately, many of the produce folks in the audience did not have an interest in blogging, nor did they realize the positive impact it can have on the consumption of fruits and vegetables.

But when asked what the number one way people find their blogs was, all three blogger panelists shouted out “PINTEREST!”

Although I set up a Pinterest account for myself a few months ago – and my company, Frieda’s, has been on Pinterest for a while – I haven’t been personally active.

According to its website, Pinterest is an online pinboard. It allows you to organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. You can browse boards created by other people to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests. People use boards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and share their favorite recipes.

No wonder Pinterest has become so popular. Instead of having to thumb through cookbooks looking for photos of recipes that look good, you set up your own Pinterest account, search for photos that look yummy, and like them or pin them! As you click through the photos, sometimes you get recipes, and sometimes you are taken to another website or blog that has a recipe.

Like any new site, you have to spend time exploring it. And because Pinterest has become so popular, you get new content each day. If you want to know about the viability of Pinterest, which at this point has no income, check out this article about their latest round of fundraising, generating $100 million.

Of course, during my first exploration of Pinterest, I searched “Recipes Vegan,” and I was thrilled to find hundreds of photos and recipes.

Check it out!

Karen

You have probably heard of First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign. She’s made it her personal mission to combat obesity and end it within a generation.

It’s actually scary to think about the fact that our kids generation will be the first to live shorter lives than their parents’ generation, all because they aren’t as healthy. This is not a just political cause, even thought it was started by the First Lady.

Whether you are Democrat, Republican or Independent, I think you will agree this is an important issue. After all, the latest statistics show 17% of children are obese, and obese children become obese adults, which cost our health care system millions and billions of unnecessary dollars.

“Let’s Move” involves making changes in exercise and food choices. The fresh produce industry has formed a support campaign called Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools (LMSB2S) and our mission is to raise money to help put salad bars in public and private schools.

We know that if school aged children get in the habit of eating fresh fruits and vegetables for lunch, they will continue to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables at home and in the future. Since the LMSB2S campaign started a few years ago, more than 1400 salad bars have been funded and placed in schools in 45 states as of June 1, 2012.

Even though my children are grown, I have joined industry colleagues to help raise money to fund 350 salad bars in California schools by May 2013, which is the amount of California schools that have requested a salad bar.

I am sure there are schools in your state that have applied for salad bars. If you are interested in finding out more about putting salad bars in schools in your area, check out this website.

And whether you have school aged kids, grandkids or have friends that do, I hope you’ll join me in helping change the way kids eat. Wouldn’t it be a perfect world if the ideal party snacks were grapes, slices of melon, carrots, celery and cucumber with fresh guacamole or hummus? I think so!

This past weekend, I traveled to Houston and drove about an hour to a city called Galveston to eat lunch at Mosquito Café.

Mosquito Café got its name because of the large mosquitoes that are everywhere in Galveston. My long time friends, Stephen and Patricia Rennick, moved from Southern California to Houston a few years ago and purchased Mosquito Café.

Stephen is an accomplished baker, which is how I met him 35 years ago. He owned a local Southern California bakery called Bridge Creek Bake Shop, where his quiche, cupcakes and cakes were so fantastic that I was a regular customer of his for years.

When they moved to Galveston, he went back to his entrepreneurial roots and bought a restaurant. But, just a few months later, Hurricane Ike hit the gulf coast. Bad timing.

After Ike, they lost everything. Their restaurant was completely under water and they spent 4 months without electricity. But, amazingly, they rebuilt everything and reopened last year.

As you can see, the restaurant is located in the historic part of Galveston. And last year, they opened Patty Cakes across the street, which is a bakery featuring Stephen’s delectable desserts and bread.

When I saw them last weekend, it was a thrill to see that both of their daughters, Sasha (32) and Kyla (29) have joined them in their business. It’s truly a family affair.

“I’m a vegan” was the first thing out of my mouth, not knowing what they might have to serve me. Patricia told me, “You have to have our ‘Health Nut’ for lunch – you’ll love it!”

When Stephen joined us at the table, he whispered to me that he believes Mosquito Café is the only restaurant in Galveston that serves vegetarian fare. They change their offering every week or two. You can check them out on Yelp, Urban Spoon and Zagat Guide to see why they have been rated one of the top 15 restaurants in the greater Houston area.

I guess it’s not a surprise that they have a vegetarian option. After all, the owners are from California!

I hope if you are ever in Houston, you take a drive to Galveston. It’s a beautiful area right on the ocean, and reminded me of South Carolina.

As a vegan, I often depend on whole, natural nuts as a source of protein. But, knowing they are also a source of fat and calories, I hesitate to eat too many. So, you can imagine how thrilled I was to read the September issue of California Farmer Magazine with the headline, “Almonds: 20% fewer calories than thought.”

As it turns out, the way calories have been calculated is a 100 year-old process, known as the Atwater general factor system. You are probably familiar with the concept that protein, fat and carbohydrates are assigned a caloric value.

Recently a team from the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, led by Dr. David Baer, used a new method of measuring calories in almonds to determine the number of calories actually absorbed during digestion. You can read here or here for more information.

I learned a few other interesting bits of information about almonds in recent weeks. First of all, it is better to eat them raw, as they are more easily digestible. My trainer and other vegans recommend soaking them overnight in water, to soften them, which makes them even more digestible.

A few weeks ago, my friend Liz, a reflexologist who studied under Atom Bergstrom, an expert for Longevity Guru, told me that according to Bergstrom, people should eat ONE raw almond each morning for every 10 pounds you WANT to weigh. So if you want to weigh 150 lbs., you should eat 15 raw, soaked almonds each morning. I’m not sure if this is based on scientific fact – but it’s up to you to do more research.

One thing is for sure: almonds are an easy and satisfying snack. I always carry them on my travels!

The Wall Street Journal is one of the most respected publications in the world. As a matter of fact, I have often noticed that what I hear on the local news is from The Wall Street Journal the day before.

I have been interviewed by WSJ reporters and thought they were thorough, inquisitive and innovative in their thinking. So when my highly respected business colleague, Mindy, asked if I saw the article in today’s Wall Street Journal entitled, “Would we be healthier with a Vegan diet?” — I about fell off my chair.

In the fresh produce business, I am used to my company being ahead of our time with new product introductions like the Kiwifruit, Spaghetti Squash, Purple Potatoes and Habanero Chiles. (Click here to watch a quick video that showcases some of our produce introductions over the years.)

But never did I expect that my personal vegan journey would coincide with the headlines in The Wall Street Journal!

I hope you will take a moment to read what Dr. Colin Campbell has to say. He wrote “The China Study” and the facts and figures tell quite a story. As you know, my vegan journey continues and I feel fantastic.

As you know, I decided to go vegan for the month of August to see what it was like. What I didn’t tell you was I coincidentally had my annual blood test on July 25, so, I’ve been able to measure the effect of following a whole food, plant-based diet on my body.

I would say I’ve been 99.9 percent vegan, as there is a small chance there was butter in some steamed vegetable dishes I ordered at restaurants. Last Friday, I was a little nervous to go to my doctor to get my results. I mean what if going vegan didn’t make any difference? Well, I had nothing to be afraid of — and I was actually impressed with the change in my numbers after being vegan for five weeks.

LDL 124 101 < 100

It will probably not come as a surprise to you that I have decided to stay vegan for a while. I plan to take another blood test in mid-October to see if there has been any improvement.

I’ve only lost a few pounds, but psychologically, I feel so much better. I have less worry about my risk for heart disease and I know I am setting a good example for others. My 89-year-old mother, Frieda, has become vegan and feels fantastic and has lost a few pounds. My daughter, Alex, is about 90 percent vegan and there have been almost a dozen friends who have joined in at some degree.

For a little extra inspiration, please spend five minutes watching a TedX video sent to me today by the son of a friend. The young man in the video beat Crohn’s Disease by changing his diet!

I love to exercise while on vacation and I have always enjoyed taking advantage of the time change and getting up early and walking long distances. My second day here, I decided to take a round-trip walk to the local grocery store, which is about 4 miles.

In Kauai, it will always rain during the morning, so I tried to time my walk to avoid the rain. No such luck.

Just as I reached mile 2 and was heading back, the drizzle started. So I ran over to the nearest building to take cover and then the downpour began. I waited and checked all my emails, played Words with Friends and posted on Facebook, but after 15 minutes of continuous rain, I didn’t think it would stop. I texted my daughter Alex asking if she could jump in the car and come get me, but wait … the clouds were dissipating in the distance and I thought I saw some sunlight.

And sure enough, by patiently waiting for the rain clouds to finish, the sun did come up and I was able to walk home. And what a great metaphor about life. How many times are we on a “walk” and a rain cloud appears.

We get delayed, side-tracked or frustrated. We consider altering our course because that “rain cloud” is annoying us. What if we just sit it out, take a deep breath, and not let it affect us. We think of it as a “welcome break.” And then when our personal rain cloud disappears, we can resume our course. Or we can alter our course.

But, we aren’t hasty. We are measured and thoughtful. Sometimes a rain cloud appears just to make you slow down and think. Consider alternatives. Rest your mind and body. What a great lesson to learn while walking the roads of Princeville, Kauai in the rain.

It’s no secret that when you get to vacation in Hawaii, chances are your pace will slow down and you will find yourself relaxed.

The last time I was in Kauai was 26 years ago, when my sister Jackie and her husband Doug got married.

But this time it was a “girls’ vacation” with my eldest daughter Alex. Before we left for Kauai, both my sister Jackie and my coworker Terri encouraged us to spend an afternoon at the Hanalei Community Center to hear original slack key guitar music played by Doug and Sandy McMaster.

I was especially interested in hearing them because of the effect they had on Jackie last year. In July 2011, Jackie was diagnosed with breast cancer. With her doctor’s permission, she and Doug spent two weeks vacationing in Kauai in early September celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary before she returned home to have a double mastectomy.

When Jackie came back from Kauai, she was excited to give me a CD from Doug and Sandy. She said the music was relaxing and healing, and she planned to download a few hours of their music onto her iPod and listen to it during her upcoming surgery. She was convinced it would help her recovery. And, interestingly, one of her close friends from high school who has a masters degree in music therapy validated that music can be healing. Multiple studies show listening to pleasant, mellow and familiar music during surgery and recovery can help you mend faster!

This past Sunday afternoon, Alex and I drove to the sleepy town of Hanalei on the north shore of Kauai to listen to Doug and Sandy McMaster. While Doug is the master guitarist, Sandy is the narrator and ukulele accompanist. Slack key guitar was brought to the islands by Mexican Vaqueros in the 1700s who taught Hawaiians how to tend to their cattle herds.

My career as a guitar player lasted about a year when I was a teenager, but I do recall how to tune a guitar and there was a set cadence for written music. But slack key is different. It’s always played in altered guitar tunings and there are extra notes every few bars, which means there’s not a normal pattern.

It was fascinating to watch Doug demonstrate how a slack key guitarist will play one rhythm with the thumb on the lower strings, while his fingertips played a different melody and harmony. This unique rhythm with no vocals is what makes it so healing, relaxing and majestic!

When I called Jackie to tell her we went to see Doug and Sandy, she asked me if I fell asleep while they played?! I told her no, but I did find myself closing my eyes. She told me the music was so relaxing she could not stay awake during their concert.

The McMasters handed out a small flyer listing reasons people purchase their CDs:

1. Feel better instantly
2. Stress relief and relaxation
3. Creativity and problem solving
4. Illness recovery
5. Lower blood pressure
6. Professional practices (doctors, dentists, massage therapists, yoga, psychologists, etc.)

Attending their two-hour concert and listening to their CDs back at our timeshare surely has made for a relaxing vacation. If you ever find yourself in Kauai, I highly recommend you make time to experience old Hawaiian slack key music. And remember, you will take off your shoes when you enter the community center and be prepared for “Bob” the rooster, crowing when they play his favorite song!

When I ran into my recently-turned-vegan friend, Patrick, about six weeks ago at a conference, he encouraged me to watch two movies.

It has now been five weeks since I started eating a whole foods, plant-based diet, so I thought it was time to watch his second recommendation, “Fat Sick and Nearly Dead,” which I watched this weekend.

The documentary was made by Australian entrepreneur, Joe Cross, who weighed 310 pounds and had been dealing with a debilitating auto-immune disease which caused dozens of extremely painful spots on his body. He attributed his obesity and disease to the typical American fast-food diet, so he decided to drastically change his eating habits.

The movie is about Joe’s 60-day driving trip across America where he consumes only juices made of fresh fruits and vegetables and the hundreds of people he meets along the way. He actually has a portable juicer in the back of his car and he stops at stores and farmers markets to purchase fresh produce!

His goal was to get to a healthy weight, feel good and be off all medicines. What touched me most was the story of Phil Staples, a truck driver Joe met at an Arizona truck stop. Coincidentally, it turned out Phil had the exact same disease Joe has. Except Phil weighed over 400 pounds. The last 30 minutes of the movie is how Joe inspires Phil to stop eating junk food and consume only fresh juices for a short time. And then, the most amazing thing happens: Phil inspires an entire town to start having community juicings.

I have two friends who periodically do juice fasts. My friend, Marc, who lives in Europe, does one every January. I always thought he was a little nutty, but he has told me time and time again that it provides real clarity for him. My other friend, Gillian, was doing a 10-day juice fast when I visited her last year in Chicago. She told me once in a while, she just needs to get all those toxins out of her body. After watching the movie and seeing the physical changes of the people featured, I started to think, what would I do to improve my health?

All I can say is that two months ago, I never would have dreamed of giving up steak, chicken, eggs and cheese. But I have, and I feel fantastic! Now I am seriously looking at getting a juicer, so I can juice and see how it affects me and my body.

Needless to say, I think it’s worth it for you to watch “Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead.” By the way, at the end of the movie, Joe gets off all of his medicines, and no longer has the symptoms or pain of his auto-immune disease. He is able to run on the beach regularly and has a pretty fit looking body!

About 10 years ago, I spent a lot of time in South Florida and developed a real appreciation for the culture, food and weather. They say humidity is good for the skin!

Today, I arrived in Miami and took the shuttle to my hotel, which was on the airport property. I was hungry for lunch when I arrived, and the front desk told me they served lunch until 3:30 p.m. I headed to the restaurant 20 minutes later and noticed a sign that said they were only serving lunch until 3 p.m. After all of the confusion, I finally found the hostess, who said they were closed. I pointed out it was only 2:55 p.m., but she told me again they were closed.

I proceeded to look for the manager, but with no one in the restaurant, I went into the kitchen. It took about three times of asking, “Anyone home?” before a gentleman walked out and offered to help me. I told him what happened and he said, “of course we can make you lunch.”

Ken (that’s his name) walked me to a table, found me a server who took my order: a portobello mushroom burger (vegan, of course!).

When I finished lunch, Ken came to check on me and I invited him to sit down. I told him I run a business myself and realized he had a training opportunity on his hands with his hostess. I was curious how he was going to handle it, and the most interesting conversation began.

It turns out that Ken isn’t the manager, but the company “troubleshooter” that comes in from corporate to assist hotel properties having challenges.

We had a fabulous conversation about training and he told me how Hilton Hotels work. He talked about their systems and processes for sanitation (really important in the foodservice business), how they are creating healthier food options on their menu and how they plan to make the entire check-in process for the business traveler more friendly and seamless. We talked about the kinds of water he wants to serve in the hotels (he likes Voss) and importance of uniforms on wait staff. Ken has been in the food business for at least 30 years, but his current role is being an expert for “perfecting the guest experience.”

Ken totally gets the “360 experience” from the viewpoint of a guest. When I handed him my card, it was heartening when he recognized our company name. “Frieda’s?” he said. “I’ve been using Frieda’s products for years!” Little did I know that my one day trip to Miami would inspire me to be even more passionate about the importance of training and setting expectations.

This past weekend, I went to Houston, Texas to see my husband’s family. August is a busy month for his family as many people celebrate their birthdays (his son, mom and two of his brothers).

Saturday night was the 70th birthday celebration for his older brother, Don, and the surprise party was being held at Charlie’s BBQ. Before we left for the party, I loaded my purse up with vegan snacks and crossed my fingers that there would be some food I could eat. I looked around the room for a server, and ended up finding the owner. I explained that I didn’t eat any animal products (I wasn’t sure if saying I was a vegan would be enough of an explanation) and asked if he had a plain baked potato anywhere in the kitchen.

It turns out the owner was extremely accommodating and not only produced a large baked potato for me, but offered up some cooked mushrooms and garlic, all made without butter or cheese. I spooned some salsa on my baked potato and noticed there were a few other vegetarians at the party getting the same thing!

Several of Garry’s family and friends read my blog, and one by one, they made their way to my table to tell me how much they were interested in my vegan journey. Cousin Liz from Dallas has been a vegetarian for 10 years and spent quite a bit of time telling me her helpful hints on food choices. Her husband Harry was very supportive and was almost bragging about her lifestyle!

Another friend Linda, who is from Houston, came over to discuss Forks over Knives and The China Study. She had recently read the book Wheat Belly and was amazed at how much better she felt now that she was avoiding all wheat. She also commented on how she has become fastidious about reading ingredient labels and discovered there are a lot of “hidden” ingredients in processed foods.

Throughout the weekend, I was struck by two things. First, once you tell everyone that you have a special “diet” they can be so supportive and make sure you get special attention and your food needs are met. Second, I was quite surprised to see that, even in the “land of barbecue and meat and potatoes,” so many people are concerned with their health. They are making active choices to change their eating habits and consume more fruits and vegetables. It made me very happy.

I admit I had one challenging experience when we went to lunch at a local Mexican restaurant. I asked the server for celery and carrots sticks to dip in the guacamole and salsa and he flat out told me they didn’t have any and said, “Ma’am, this is a Tex-Mex Restaurant, we don’t have any celery and carrots.” I patiently asked him if he wouldn’t mind checking with the chef to see if they had any in the kitchen, and he kind of rolled his eyes at me. So you can imagine my surprise (and his) when he returned to our table a few minutes later with a bowl of celery and carrot sticks! And of course, he then quickly suggested an all vegetable fajita selection for my lunch!

Throughout my journey, I have been referring to a documentary and book by the name, “Forks over Knives”, which inspired me to start my vegan journey.

When I first heard the title, I couldn’t figure out what it meant. So, when I started reading the book (which is only 55 pages long, and then has 150 pages of recipes), I finally arrived on page 27 and read:

“The fact that so many diseases are dependent on diet is the reason why, for health and healing, it is far better to rely on food (i.e., your fork) than surgery (i.e. the surgeon’s knife). Simply put: forks over knives.”

Their website has so many interesting articles, videos and more. Check it out here.

In the produce business, we have noticed that some endorsements or mentions by celebrities make a huge positive difference on consumer demand. Celebrity chefs and Dr. Oz both have an incredible impact when they mention a produce item on their show, so, when I saw this endorsement from Dr. Oz on the “Forks over Knives” website, I was excited! His thoughts on the documentary?: “I loved it and I need all of you to see it.”

I did not go vegan because I wanted to lose weight. But, I am pleased that I have dropped 4 pounds in the last 3 weeks. I think a large part is due to the fact that I am no longer eating any dairy (cheese, yogurt, etc.) or processed white sugar (no regular chocolate, cookies, etc.).

The unexpected benefit I have experienced, however, is how much better my skin looks! Three people have all commented that my skin looks better and even the skin on my hands looks younger. Turns out this is a common benefit of eliminating processed sugar from your diet! Did you know that sugar ages you? You can read more about this here

In case you just can’t give up that craving for sweets, your local natural foods store has many cacao based desserts, without processed white sugar or high fructose corn syrup, that taste as good as regular chocolate desserts!

I arrived in New York City on Wednesday afternoon to move my youngest daughter Sophia into college, and quickly learned there was no need to worry about vegan options in New York.

First of all, our hotel was across the street from a Whole Foods Market! After settling in our room, we walked over to get something for dinner and I was quite surprised at the large amount of vegan choices in the prepared foods section. I honestly think there were more vegan options than non-vegan.

Thursday night, my eldest daughter Alex and I had dinner with some business colleagues at Fig and Olive® in the Meatpacking District. There are six locations, two being in California, and the chef was quite accommodating when I mentioned I was vegan. I had scrumptious penne pasta (no egg!) with mushrooms and garlic. And thank goodness martinis are vegan!

Friday night, Alex went online looking for true vegan restaurants in the city. She found Candle 79 in the Upper East Side, one of the top vegan restaurants in the country. The fresh fruit sangria was a great way to toast our dinner, and the vegan cannoli and carrot cake were tasty desserts with a great mouth-feel. You couldn’t tell they were vegan! You can check out the dinner menu here.

Our final culinary experience was in Brooklyn on Saturday evening to check out Do or Dine. This restaurant increased in popularity when the chef-owner Justin Warner, 27, was voted The Next Food Network Star during the television show’s eighth season. Alex was a fan of Justin’s throughout the show, so we HAD to go to his restaurant. It was refreshing to learn that he is a self-taught chef and built Do or Dine from the ground up with two friends. Justin’s approach to food reflects his personality: edgy, rebellious, passionate and witty.

While Alex had the Foie Gras Doughnut that is unique to the restaurant, I opted for everything vegan on the menu, including Shishito Quatre Sel, (fried, but not battered, shishito peppers with four salts), and the Xacuti Chimichanga.

I am excited about my next trip to New York City as one of my blog followers, Shaleen, told me I need to check out this vegan food truck next time I am there.

I have realized that becoming vegan actually opens doors to new culinary experiences.

Chicago is well known as one of the best food towns in the world, so I was quite excited when my friend Andy asked me if I wanted to join him for dinner.

He called my cell phone about 5:30 p.m. and told me to meet him at The Purple Pig at 6:30.

I didn’t really think about what kind of food that was until we walked up to the entrance and there was a sign that said “Cheese, Wine & Swine.”

Swine? I turned to Andy and reminded him that I was now eating vegan. He said not to worry, they had some fantastic vegetable dishes.

Turns out The Purple Pig is the “place to be seen” in Chicago and is also a top destination for celebrity chefs. As a matter of fact, Susan Feniger walked in while we were eating and since I have met her before I introduced myself.

While the other folks at our table tasted some magnificent cheeses and sliced meats, I enjoyed luscious grilled green onions, sauteed cauliflower, green beans and fresh raw corn. The vegetables were flavorful and colorful and I couldn’t resist the grilled bread that was made without eggs.

Because Andy lives in Chicago, he frequents The Purple Pig, and so near the end of our dinner he went to get the chef, Jimmy Bannes, Jr. I told Jimmy how much I enjoyed his restaurant even though I am vegan. It didn’t seem to faze him that I didn’t enjoy his pork centered menu.

I found the most enjoyable part of going out to dinner is the people around the table. My friends all got to enjoy the amazing food, and I got to enjoy and still feel satisfied.

With that being said, one of the other people who joined us for dinner was Vern, who is a former chef and now an herb grower. Vern, Andy and I traveled to Berlin, Germany, a few years ago for a food show. I admit that I lamented a bit when we started to reminisce about our culinary journey during our trip.

Sometimes it is hard to be a vegan in a world filled with animal products at every turn. Nevertheless, I felt good as I left the restaurant. I had a great evening with some longtime friends and a few glasses of wine at an awesome venue.

As many of you know, I travel quite a bit (almost weekly) for my position as Frieda’s President and Chief Energizer Bunny!

This week, I am in Chicago for a small produce show. Now that I am completely vegan, I definitely have to plan my eating more.

My breakfast before the early morning flight was my usual oatmeal (lots of protein). I packed Ziploc® baggies with raw almonds (more protein) and organic raisins and dates to snack on during the flight.

After landing and getting to my hotel, I attended a speaker session as part of the produce show. By the time the session was over at 5 p.m., I was starving and my energy was kind of low.

There was a reception immediately following and I did a quick scan of the room. I didn’t see any fresh fruits and vegetables to munch on! Frankly, I was shocked since I was at fresh produce event.

I had to punt, and managed to make myself a cabbage taco on a corn tortilla, which was my vegan take on the “make your own fish taco” bar at the reception.

After the reception, my colleague Jennifer and I went to visit one of our client’s supermarkets. When we were done, we looked at each other, trying to decide what to do for dinner.

As I eyed the fresh looking salad bar, stocked with fresh cut fruits and vegetables, I asked her how she felt about eating dinner right here in the grocery store.

Her eyes lit up as she confided in me that, when she travels, grocery stores are her preferred choice for dinner. She said she feels like she can choose exactly what she wants, knowing it’s fresh and that she will enjoy a lighter meal.

What made me even happier was the store’s several vegan options for ready made salads! I got to enjoy a chopped kale salad along with my salad bar selections.

When I started my vegan journey, I was not terribly worried about ordering vegan-friendly food at a restaurant, but so many people have asked, “So what do you order?”

But I was pleasantly surprised when I was at lunch with a client and he chose to dine at Elephant Bar Restaurant. Hesitantly, I shared with him that I had recently “gone vegan” and he told me he thought I would find something I could eat.

Instead of assuming they had no vegetarian or vegan choices, I decided to read through the entire menu and found a stir-fry vegetable dish with rice noodles.

Because I try not to eat wheat, finding rice noodles (which I find are much lighter) was a treat. I happily ordered their stir fry vegetables on a bed of rice noodles and it was fantastic!

You can find rice noodles in most supermarket produce or deli departments. And because so many consumers have wheat or gluten allergies, I think you’ll start finding them in many restaurants!

I have been eating vegan for two weeks now, and I don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything!

My big learning experience yesterday was how much I appreciate the taste sensation of real, whole food.

I haven’t done any actual calculations, but from what I can reckon, I am eating about 70% raw foods. Whether it’s my mid-morning snack of celery sticks, baby carrots and sliced hot house cucumbers or fresh blueberries and hand cut watermelon chunks in the afternoon, my diet is mostly raw fruits and veggies.

Last night, I decided to try something I used to snack on pre-vegan journey. A rice cake with melted “cheese” on top.

It wasn’t real cheese. It was a vegan non-dairy, non-soy “cheese” that my niece Jennifer recommended. I popped it into the microwave for 20 seconds. My daughter Sophia watched what I was doing and started laughing as I smelled it and then took a small bite.

I actually had to spit it out and throw it away. It may have tasted fine to anyone else, but my palate has changed so much, that the processed cheese product was not of interest to my now pure palate.

So – because of my diet change, not only do I no longer crave sugar, I also do not crave processed foods.

In my post last week “What I learned from shopping” I wrote about my visit to Whole Foods and how an employee told me processed white sugar is not considered vegan:
“White refined sugar is not vegan because they add ground up animal bones to the sugar to give it its white color. That’s why ‘raw’ or ‘unrefined sugar’ has a brown color.”

After doing more research I found out that this is not 100% accurate. Not all white sugar is non-vegan. According to VegSource.com, processed beet sugar is typically vegan, because it doesn’t require decolorizing. White cane sugar, however, is usually filtered through activated carbon (charcoal), which may be of animal, vegetable, or mineral origin, depending on the refinery. The animal-origin carbon is made from bone char, just like the Whole Foods employee told me.

But, as VegSource.com states, “The bone char used in this filtering process is so far removed from its animal source that the sugar processed in this method is deemed kosher pareve, which, according to Jewish dietary laws, means that it contains no meat or milk in any form as an ingredient.”

The bottom line for me is processed sugar is not good for me. I have found that it is almost addictive, and the minute I have a food or drink with sugar or high fructose corn syrup in it, I can’t stop consuming it. But, over the last 10 days I have cut out all refined sugar and I have lost my cravings for it! That’s pretty astounding since I had a serious chocolate addiction.

Truthfully, I do like to sweeten my oatmeal in the morning, so I have started using agave syrup. Made from the agave plant which grows in the desert, agave has become the sweetener of choice for diabetics as it has a low-glycemic index and is easy to digest. I find that the flavor is gentle with the perfect amount of sweetness. In addition to my morning oatmeal, I like to add it to my fruit smoothies, which I make with almond milk and frozen berries.

I have been surprised by the number of people that follow my blog who are vegan or vegetarian. I had no idea! My friend Seth, who I know from my synagogue, is one of them.

Seth sent me an email last week with a photo of his vegan dinner at Au Lac, a vegan Vietnamese restaurant in Fountain Valley, California.

We arranged to meet on Friday night and I didn’t really know what to expect. I went to their website and was quite surprised that the restaurant has been there since 1997 and offering raw foods since 2002. Actually, when you look through their menu, items are designated by an (R) for raw and (C) for cooked. The entire restaurant serves vegan foods with an Asian twist, because both the owner and chef are from Vietnam.

We started with the vegan bread dipped in a chili garlic oil sauce, and then had a Sea Vegetable Salad. Next, we had the Asian Nori Salad, which was incredible. I tried a Cali-Roll, which had young coconut slices in it instead of fish! Lastly, we had stir-try vegetables with tofu on a bed of thick, Udon-style rice noodles. This was so yummy, as it had Jicama in it! I have never had chunks of Jicama in a stir-fry before, and it was great.

I think Au Lac must be well-known in the vegan community because two other friends have both suggested I go there.

It was so good, that my daughter Alex and I are going there this week. I will be getting that Asian Nori Salad for sure!

As we were leaving, we saw the chef in the parking lot. I wanted to tell him how much I enjoyed our meal. He smiled and nodded when I commented to him. Then Seth said, “I forgot to tell you, the chef does not speak.”

Okay, I admit it— I have become obsessed with reading ingredient labels. I began reading labels more closely since going vegan, but what I’ve discovered is a bit disturbing and kind of overwhelming.

I am disturbed because I thought I was a smart shopper and consumer. But, the fact is, there are ingredients in some of my favorite, and often used, foods that I am not happy about. And I’m overwhelmed by it.

I took from my pantry this weekend, with the intention to use them in my meal preparations. All three containers are now in my trash can, and here’s why:

First – rice vinegar would have been great on my green salad. I wondered if there was anything in there that was not vegan-friendly, so I checked the label. Here are the ingredients: rice vinegar, water, high fructose corn syrup, salt, brown sugar, diluted with water. High fructose corn syrup? That is on my “do not eat” list.

Second – my favorite salad dressing is a blush wine vinaigrette dressing. I even talked to the manufacturer’s representative at a trade show and asked him to make sure it was available at my local grocery store. Ingredients: sugar, water, red wine vinegar, canola oil, salt, spices, garlic, etc. Why didn’t I notice that SUGAR was the first ingredient in the salad dressing? A little scary, but no wonder I liked it.

Third – garlic mustard sauce. I was introduced to this by my mom, and loved its garlicky flavor with steamed vegetables. Ingredients: mustard seed, distilled vinegar, garlic, water, soybean oil (I’m allergic to soy), mustard flour, eggs, spices, salt and lemon juice. I had no idea there were eggs and soy in it. In the trash it goes!

So, even if you aren’t vegan, I encourage you to start reading your food labels. I bet you will be surprised.

Last night, I got my husband Garry to go with me to Whole Foods Market. I realized I would not survive my vegan journey if all I ate was salad, steamed veggies and fresh fruit. I needed some food with substance.

Before we left to go to the store, I flipped through the recipes in “Forks over Knives” and found a lentil soup recipe that looked good. I have found that having a hearty soup at lunchtime fills me up and gives me energy. So off I went to buy the ingredients and a few other things.

As my friends and family know, Garry is from Texas and is Mr. Meat and Potatoes. He wasn’t even sure where Whole Foods was and was a bit skeptical about what foods we would find.

But I give him credit. As I went up and down each aisle, he helped me read labels and asked a lot of questions. While I was in the produce department looking for fresh mint, a man named Bryan offered to help me. It turns out he is the new team leader for the store, which is equivalent to a store manager.

When he heard I was vegan, he suggested I check out the prepared food offerings on the other side of the store. He told me their store developed a vegan lentil and black bean burger that was a big hit with shoppers. So much so, they sell 60 of them in one day!

I had fun taste testing some of the prepared foods. Carlos was the guy behind the counter and he blew me away when I started asking him about vegan foods. He informed me that the reason white refined sugar is NOT vegan is because they add ground up animal bones to the sugar to give it a white color. That’s why “raw” or “unrefined sugar” has a brown coloring. I asked him how he knew that, and he told me that all Whole Foods employees go through extensive training before they work in the store.

My supermarket trip was truly complete when I found what I was really looking for: vegan chocolate! I admit I have a bit of a chocolate addiction, so I wondered if I would have to completely give it up.

Almond Cacao L.O.V.E. Cup has only 3 ingredients: Organic Cacao, Organic Sprouted Almonds and Organic Agave Nectar. They are made in Sedona, Arizona and satisfied my chocolate craving, even at 130 calories. I was a good mother and daughter, and bought extra to share with my mom Frieda and daughter Alex, who are both attempting to join me in my vegan journey.

I was surprised to find out that oatmeal has a lot of protein (8 grams), so that is what I have been having for breakfast. I have a wheat allergy, so I purchased Glutenfreeda Gluten-free Natural Oatmeal. I added some cinnamon, a little agave nectar and a bit of salt for flavor. And enjoyed my French roast coffee, of course.

Yesterday, much to my surprise, my taste buds opened up! After almost a year of finding most foods bland and not very exciting, my morning snack of celery and baby carrots had amazing flavor. The celery tasted super salty! And the baby carrots were sweet, like candy. It was just like my friend Patrick told me it would be.

For lunch, I had a business outing planned with my colleague Aldo. I let him know that I was now vegan, so he decided to take me to his favorite vegan restaurant. It was actually more of a “hole in the wall” in a strip mall. Called “The Secret Spot” overlooking Huntington Beach, it had the most heavenly tasting food. I had a vegan burrito they dubbed a “Currito” as the sauce is curry-based. I could only eat half of the huge Currito, but it was filled with pineapple, rice, beans, avocado and cashews in a yummy curry sauce.

My sense is that a lot of vegan restaurants are popping up, but I’ve never noticed or paid attention to them before. I bet there are some in your area, too.

I balanced out my day with some watermelon, trail mix (not too much as the almonds and pistachios are high in fat), and kale chips (my favorite is Alive and Radiant Kale Krunch, Organic Tarragon Dijon) and a small amount of vegetarian chili for dinner.

Many people have suggested I watch my energy level, since I am not eating as much protein. So, at the end of my day, I thought a walk outdoors would be the best exercise instead of getting on my treadmill or going to the gym. I took a 2 ½ mile walk and found that, even after a very long day at work, my mind seemed clearer and my energy level was fine. Actually, I felt a lot less stressed than I usually do.

I was pleasantly surprised to receive emails from half a dozen of my blog subscribers last night, sharing their excitement about my new vegan journey. Turns out, many of them have been “closet” vegetarians or vegans for some time. It’s nice to know others have made the same choice and experienced the challenge of adjusting one’s lifestyle.

One email I received was from my friend Patrick, who pointed out the change in senses he has experienced since becoming a vegan:

After I made the decision to go vegan for a month, I went straight to the bookstore. I knew my biggest challenge would be keeping my meals and snacks interesting, as I’ve noticed in the last year that my food just doesn’t seem to taste as good as it used to.

Forks Over Knives This book was the most interesting to me as there are vignettes, personal stories and some recipes. (A paperback guide to the movie I mentioned in my last post)

The China Study (This study is featured heavily in the movie “Forks over Knives.”)

Because I have limited free time during the week, I have only skimmed through the books. But skimming has still provided me with good information and has kept me interested.

Big take-away: Many elite athletes are vegans. Clearly, there is no lack of protein in a plant-based diet.

After the bookstore, I spent about 2 hours visiting my local supermarkets, as I wanted to read ingredient labels to get a feel for foods I could and could not eat. (In addition to my Ralphs I shop at regularly, I checked out Sprouts, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.)

Observation: There are a lot of dairy products in foods that I never realized before. This is the biggest difference between vegans and vegetarians: when you are a vegan, you do not eat any dairy products.

The last challenge I had to confront before starting my vegan lifestyle was, “What do I order when I go out to eat?” Fortunately, I had plans to go out to dinner the last two nights and was able to experiment.

The first outing was for business, and all my colleagues ordered chicken or salmon. There were two “vegetarian” choices on the menu, but I asked the server if they had any vegan options. He checked with the chef and told me “not on the menu.” So I simply asked him for a vegetable plate with no cheese or butter. I did find the platter of steamed spinach, arugula salad, grilled tomatoes, peppers and grains delicious and, honestly, did not miss the heavy foods my friends were eating. The bonus: I felt fantastic after I ate – no “over full” feeling.

Last night, my husband Garry and I went out to dinner. We went to a Mediterranean restaurant and, in the past, I have always ordered salad with chicken or salmon on top. So, I was relieved when I opened the menu and found a lentil soup with the words “True vegetarian” written next to it. No dairy either. Yeah! I made it through another dinner and felt satisfied afterwards.

I have something very bold to announce (at least I think it’s bold!) I am going to start following a vegan diet.

The definition of vegan is eating only a plant-based diet. No foods or products that come from an animal. No eggs, cheese (that one will be hard), meat, fish or dairy. You may be wondering why I have made this decision since I have never been a vegetarian or anything so extreme. Here is my thought process.

It all started about 3 weeks ago, when my 48-year-old niece Jennifer came over for a family barbecue. She looked fantastic. I mean – she always looks beautiful, but she looked different. She was calmer and thinner and her skin and hair looked healthier. I asked her what was going on? She told me that she and her husband Rollie had been following a vegan diet for about three months. Sure, she had lost a few pounds, but more importantly, she felt so much better!

Then, I was at a produce conference 10 days ago, and I ran into my friend Patrick, who is from Florida and in his early 60s. He looked different – rested and calm. I asked him what changed and he told me that he had been following a vegan diet for about three months and I could not believe how much energy he had!

I have to admit it was a big shock to me that he, of all people, would follow a vegan lifestyle – as my first meal with him was a big fat steak at one of his restaurants. Patrick is in charge of purchasing for more than 2,000 restaurants across the United States.

Patrick pulled me aside and talked to me with more passion and commitment than I had ever seen from him before. He told me to try juicing first (processing fresh vegetable and fruits into juices at home to cleanse my system) and then to watch the movie “Forks Over Knives.”

I do recommend that you go on iTunes and buy the movie “Forks over Knives.” Watching it convinced me why I should change my diet.

When I got home last week, I started doing some research. As I shopped at my local Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods – I found out there is a lot of information about veganism. Even the guy at my local Trader Joe’s volunteered to help me. He told me he has been a vegan for 15 years and said, “Don’t worry, you will have plenty of food choices. And BTW – there is plenty of protein in fruits and vegetables!”

That seems to be everyone’s big worry – getting enough protein. I admit that was one of my big worries. But the more research I do, the less I am concerned about that.

When I thought about being a vegan, I was a bit scared. OMG I can’t have a steak. Or my favorite cheese! Or milk chocolate! But then I realized – I can do anything for a month!

So, my commitment is to be a vegan for the entire month of August and chronicle my journey for everyone here! Since everyone who reads my blog is interested in fruits and vegetables, eating healthy, and having a long, happy life, I think my observations and experiences will provide some insight.

I was off to another produce show this past weekend in beautiful Monterey, California. The region around this seaside town – the Salinas Valley – is also known as the “salad bowl” because of the number of vegetables grown here.

The produce show was part of the Produce Marketing Association’s annual foodservice conference where thousands of distributors, restaurants and schools meet up for inspiration.

The conference allowed attendees to chat with growers, food suppliers, see and taste new products and visit with friends in the industry. But perhaps most importantly, the conference inspired new menu ideas.

It’s hard being a chef or a restaurant operator. Whether you have a single restaurant or a chain as large as Olive Garden, you are always on the lookout for new ingredients, recipes and trends.

What I found most inspiring about this year’s conference was the focus on kids and providing healthy and flavorful ideas for them. On Saturday, instead of serving lunch to all attendees, six produce companies partnered with six chefs and created kid-friendly recipes. Attendees in the audience heard an overview of the chefs’ methodology and then the audience sampled each of the recipes and voted for their favorite.

There are already pioneer programs around the country in various cities with some pretty innovative programs to get kids to eat healthy. I recently read about The Tot Chef Culinary program in Lodi, Ohio – a cooking class for parents and children.

In New York City – check out the Wellness in the Schools nonprofit that was developed by parents to improve fitness, nutrition, and environment in New York City public schools.

I was actually encouraged to learn that these grassroots programs are making a significant difference in changing the way American kids eat. All of this activity around healthy choices is inspiring for me.

Inside our produce industry we long ago recognized that if we can change the eating patterns of consumers early in life – we will have healthier citizens.

And who knows, maybe this is a long term solution for the health care system woes being discussed in Washington, D.C.? There is one thing I am sure of – eating healthy is a personal choice. And thank goodness, we all have so many choices when we eat out.

There is quite a vibrant produce industry trade association based right here in Southern California. It’s called the Fresh Produce and Floral Council (FPFC) and it has been around since 1965. It was founded as a forum for buyers and sellers to get to know each other on a more personal level, and of course, before there was such a word as “networking,” that’s really what was needed.

My mom, Frieda, was one of the council’s first members, and when I was in high school I attended my first FPFC luncheon with Mom in Los Angeles.

Most of the men who worked on the produce market started their day between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m., so they chose to have the luncheons at the end of their work day. I say “men” because, truly, there were no women — except for Frieda.

After I entered the business, I was asked to join the board of directors of the FPFC, and in 1990 I became its first chair-woman. So, you can see this organization has a special place in my heart!

One of the events that we created when I was president was a produce expo. It’s like a mini trade show where produce growers, floral growers, salad dressing companies, importers, wholesalers, distributors and food brokers all set up their products. Then produce buyers from large local retail chains, independent markets, school districts, foodservice distributors and others walk through the show to find new products and to network.

This year’s expo was on July 17th at the Disneyland Hotel with more than 200 companies displaying their goods. I’ve been attending the show since its inception, so I thought it would be interesting to get the perspective from one of my new employees, Cindy. When I asked Cindy what “jumped out at her” at the show, she lit up.

As you can see, the produce industry is focused on providing healthy and convenient fresh foods for consumers. I would love to hear what YOUR favorite produce convenience food is!

Whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Instagram or QR codes we all know that “social media” is the buzz these days.

Earlier this week I spoke to a group of business owners in Southern California (http://www.lbcc.edu/ERD/10000sb-index.cfm) and one of my topics was how to use LinkedIn effectively.

I’ve always considered LinkedIn, “Facebook for business.” I feel that for the most part, Facebook is used to communicate and build your network in your personal life, but for business, LinkedIn is the place to be.

For example, I knew that one of my supermarket customers had changed jobs – but I didn’t know where he went. So I logged onto my account on LinkedIn.
Even though I had never “connected” with him on LinkedIn, I was able to type in his name and found out which company he was now at. Then I sent him a request to connect.

Another time, I had an appointment with a customer whom I had never met. I wanted to know a little about him and what he looked like, so I typed in his name and found him on LinkedIn. I was able to see his photo, find out his previous career positions and actually took the opportunity to send him an invitation to “connect.”

Did you know that a LinkedIn email message to a business connection is 70% more likely to be read than just a regular email? (I heard that at a seminar I attended last month.)

But my favorite thing is “stalking.” I learned this from my sister, Jackie. One time she told me that she was going through photos on her son’s Facebook, since we all know our kids aren’t good at sharing their photos!

It’s possible to do that on LinkedIn. Once you are connected to someone you can view their contacts. It’s a great way to find new contacts for yourself—or new potential customers or employees. And that’s probably why we are all getting so many LinkedIn requests to connect. Others have figured out that they look at who YOU are connected to. And that’s why I am kind of picky when it comes to connecting on LinkedIn.

Fortunately for me, one of the most famous is right here in Southern California. Every Wednesday at 8 a.m., dozens of California farmers set up their stands at the Santa Monica Farmers Market — just blocks away from the Pacific Ocean.

A few hours earlier, our company forager — Mary — packs up her car with coolers and handcarts and makes her way to the market. Mary started working for Frieda’s a few years ago and she tells me that she has to “pinch herself” sometimes when she thinks about how much fun she’s having. Part of that fun is going to the Farmers’ Market on Wednesday mornings, in search of trends in fresh produce.

A few weeks ago, Mary arrived at the office for a Farmers’ Market “show and tell” for our sales and marketing team.

“You can tell summer has officially begun!” Mary started out explaining to everyone.

In previous weeks the variety and selection at the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market had been a bit mundane. But, with the change in season, there were new fruits, flavors and plenty of excitment!

The office was filled with the aroma of peaches, plums, melons, berries, cherries and the crisp scent of lemon verbena. You can see that she labeled the fruits by variety and grower name, so our sales team could taste the difference. This is helpful when we are describing them to our customers across country.

Farmers’ Markets — especially those in metropolitan cities like San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles — are great places to find new foods. In fact, these markets are where Mary has found a few of our newest growers.

Every season we continue to find new tastes, shapes and varieties of fruits and veggies that American consumers will love.

I spent my sophomore year of college at Mills, a small women’s college in Oakland, California — just across the bay from San Francisco.

Because I have kept in touch with the school, I was thrilled when I got a call a few weeks ago asking if I had time to have coffee with Alecia A. DeCoudreaux, the newly selected 13^th president of the college.

We met on a Sunday afternoon at Il Fornaio, a wonderful Italian restaurant in Irvine. And the first thing she said was, “I love Frieda’s Produce. I cannot tell you how you saved my life when I made my boeuf bourguignon on Thanksgiving!”

“You must be talking about our pearl onions!” I said to her, knowing fresh pearl onions make all the difference in the world when it comes to boeuf bourguignon.

I could tell she was impressed that I instantly knew what she was talking about, and since she lived in Ohio, I knew she bought them at a Kroger supermarket. Who would have thought that a president of a prestigious college would be interested in talking about culinary skills and recipes?

Pearl onions are one of our staple products. We sell them to almost every retail customer and they are available year round. They actually come in three colors —red, gold and white — and each has their own slightly different flavor.

In the summertime, these fresh pearl onions are great on barbecued skewers. Try making veggie skewers with colorful bell peppers, eggplant, cherry tomatoes and pearl onions.

And if you’re in the mood for some French cooking, here’s a link to my favorite boeuf bourguignon recipe…thanks to the queen of cooking, Julia Child.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my weeklong vacation in Scottsdale, Arizona, and the fabulous salads I had enjoyed as my main courses.

Well, I fell in love with the Grilled Shrimp Salad I enjoyed at Blanco Tacos + Tequila, so I decided to replicate the recipe at home as more of a coleslaw.

I had taken notes while at the restaurant, including all the ingredients I tasted, and I even asked the chef what was in the vinaigrette. I’ve made it twice since my vacation and, although the chopping does take a bit of time (last time it took me 30 minutes, start to finish), it has become popular with my family and co-workers. The only thing missing from my version is the grilled shrimp, which you can easily add if you’d like.

The key to this recipe is having every ingredient chopped into the same ½ inch sized pieces—making it a chopped salad!

Salad:
½ head green cabbage, diced (this yields about 4 cups)
½ hot house cucumber, diced (leave the skin on)
4 red radishes, diced
1 cup diced jicama
1 cup diced celery
½ cup diced green onions (only the green part)
½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

Lime-Vinaigrette Dressing:
Juice of 2 limes, or ¼ cup of prepared lime juice (I use my Pampered Chef Citrus Press to get all the juice out of the limes)
¼ cup olive oil
1 Tablespoon Fleur de Sel with dried herbs (I picked this up in France a few years ago. You can make your own with Fleur de Sel and Herbes de Provence)
1 teaspoon sugar

Mix all chopped vegetables in a large bowl. For salad dressing, mix all ingredients together in a shaker jar or whisk well in a bowl. Pour vinaigrette over the chopped vegetables and toss well. The slaw will be lightly coated and not oily at all.

If you are looking for a fresh salad to serve on July 4th, try this recipe. It’s what I plan to serve!

Over 20 years ago, I got a phone call from Stewart and Lynda Resnick, who you may have heard of. They own Roll Global, which owns Paramount Citrus (marketers of Cuties®), Paramount Farms (marketer of Wonderful® Pistachios), Fiji Water® and POM Wonderful®.

They were calling to invite me to their home in Beverly Hills because they wanted to pick my brain about pomegranates. I’m guessing they called me because Frieda’s was the first to market fresh pomegranates in U.S. supermarkets nationwide.

I met Lynda when we honored her at a National Association of Women Business Owners awards luncheon a few months earlier. I was the Mistress of Ceremonies and Lynda’s introductory video malfunctioned, so we had a chance to “bond” over the mishap.

I can’t recall the exact conversation we had about pomegranates, but I do remember Stewart asking me a lot of questions. And the rest is marketing history.

A few years later, after Stewart and Lynda began producing thousands of acres of fresh pomegranates, they eventually went into bottled juice and pomegranate arils (the seeds), creating a marketing machine. I think Lynda is possibly one of the most brilliant marketers I have ever met. She wrote a book a few years ago, which I highly recommend, titled “Rubies in the Orchard.”

I have always been proud of my early conversation with Stuart and Lynda about pomegranates. Clearly, I had nothing to do with their immense success, but it sure made me feel good that they called me.

Most consumers might think that POM Wonderful® was the first to market pomegranate juice. But it really came to market back in 1968 when my mother Frieda received a phone call from John Heinke who owned a company in Paradise, California, near Sacramento. He was one of her first kiwifruit growers, and had another product he was bullish on — bottled pomegranate juice!

I recall visiting his bottling plant in Paradise while I was in college and was quite impressed. Of course, the pomegranate juice that John sold us under the “Heinke’s Juices” brand was not as sophisticated as what you see today, but it was quite popular with all the health food nuts in the ‘60s and ‘70s.

As usual, I struck up a conversation with the owner of Benedict’s Café, whose name is Dawn. When I told her my mom’s name is Frieda, she said, “That’s my mom’s name!” Then she added that she grew up in Paradise, California!

Talk about a small world! When I told her about my visit to a bottling plant in Paradise, she told me John Heinke was actually her mother’s cousin! Dawn and I were grinning from ear to ear.

June is graduation season. If you don’t have a child graduating, then you probably have a relative or good friend who does. My youngest daughter, Sophia, is graduating from high school next week, so it is top of mind for me.

Last month, I spoke to an Agricultural Marketing Class full of graduating seniors at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. What was top of mind for them? Finding a job, of course.

I told those students what I always tell the young people I mentor: It does matter WHO you know, so network, network, network! Many college graduates used to be hesitant to use a family or personal connection to get an interview at a company. But today, you have a slim chance of getting a job, if all you do is email your resume.

Annie is 25 years old and lives in New York City. She is the Manager of Product Development and UX lead (UX stands for User Experience Design) for an organization called Thrillist Media Group.

Thrillist bills itself as, “The free, daily email that sifts through the crap to find the best new spots to eat, drink, and shop in your ‘hood.”

So, when Sophia and I were visiting colleges in New York City this April, we asked Annie to join us for lunch. I have known Annie since she was born, as her parents are family friends and her dad is my dentist. I asked how she ended up with this job in New York City after being a lifelong Southern California girl.

1. Assigning a project as part of the interview is a great way to really learn about a potential employee’s work capabilities. We have done this at Frieda’s for certain positions in the past, but now we do it during a majority of our interviews.

2. You don’t always have to interview in person. It’s so expensive to fly someone cross-country to interview them. Why not use Skype™?

3. The fact that a person completes their degree is the most important thing, because you won’t always find a job in a field directly related to your studies. (Annie received her degree in Neuroscience.)

For those of you who know someone who is graduating from college, tell them they will never know where their career opportunities will come from. They need to keep their eyes open at all times!

It felt so good to squeeze in a week of vacation. I asked my husband, Garry, to find a relaxing destination within driving distance since I am constantly traveling by plane.

I was pleasantly surprised to find some great restaurants here that allowed me to indulge my inner foodie. With food being my passion, I always challenge myself to have a new food experience wherever I go. But I was determined to maintain a healthy diet during 7 days of eating out.

Our first find, Blanco Tacos + Tequila, caught our eye while driving down Scottsdale Road. We both love Mexican food and the parking lot was filled with cars at 2 p.m. so we had a hunch it was going to be good.

Blanco was amazing! We tried their homemade guacamole and I ordered celery and carrot sticks for dipping (the server didn’t even flinch) instead of tortilla chips.

Going through the menu, the Grilled Shrimp salad caught my eye. This photo doesn’t do it justice, but you can see all the healthy and fresh ingredients: cabbage, lettuce, jicama, celery, cucumber, cilantro and radish with a light lime vinaigrette! Seriously, I couldn’t even finish all of the shrimp, there were so many vegetables!

When the check came, there was a clever postcard asking if we were “Jonesing for our Fox fix?” Turns out Blanco is one of several restaurant concepts owned and operated by Sam Fox, a serial restaurant entrepreneur from Arizona. Not only did I sign up, I was now on the hunt to experience some of his other concepts while in town.

The next night we tried North, which bills itself as an Italian Trattoria. With pasta and pizza off limits for me, I was curious to see if they had lighter options that would satisfy my appetite (in 108 degree heat, I tend to eat light).

OMG! When I read the ingredients in their Farmer’s Market Salad, I was in heaven: Tuscan kale, dried cranberries, chopped dates, faro, thick shreds of carrots, paper thin slices of watermelon radish and candy cane beets, Marcona almonds and a light white balsamic dressing.

The night manager, Jamie, was so helpful when I inquired about where they purchased their produce. He also gave me the photo their chef took of my salad!

Turns out he studied hospitality and restaurant management at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, and had a short stint with Hyatt Hotels & Resorts. But Jamie prides himself on working for Sam Fox (who he said is amazing!). I told Jamie how nice it was to be able to order salad as a main course at both Blanco and North.

When you are dining out, don’t feel obligated to order a heavy main course. Check out the salad offerings on the menu. I think there may be a trend happening: Not only are some restaurant chefs using a variety of fresh and interesting veggies in their salads, they are making the salads appealing as a lighter main course while providing flavor and taste.

And remember, when you order a salad as your main course, you can truly enjoy their fresh baked breads and wine selections, guilt-free. I sure did!

I was in my local Ralphs produce department, picking up my fresh fruits and veggies for the week, when I overheard someone ask, “Which one is a sweet potato?”

As you can see, there are two kinds of sweet potatoes: one with dark pink skin (on the left) and one with blond skin (on the right).

It turns out that there are more than 6,500 different varieties of sweet potatoes around the world! The skin can range from dark red to light pink to blond to brown. The flesh can be dark orange to a pale yellow to almost white. There are even varieties that are purple inside and out! Sweet potatoes are produced in dozens of states, including North Carolina, Mississippi and California. But, all are from the same plant that belongs to the family Convolvulaceae. Click here to find out more about the different varieties.

Doug, my brother-in-law, is quite the sweet potato aficionado but has recently complained that his favorite variety, the Garnet Yam, is no longer grown commercially. He loves the sweet and creamy flavor and is frustrated that many farmers are growing varieties that are not as flavorful.

If you purchase sweet potatoes and are disappointed in the flavor, you’re probably on to something. Make a note of the variety, or ask your produce manager, so you know which sweet potatoes you prefer. You can also ask your produce manager the name of the grower and where they are grown!

If you think sweet potatoes are only for Thanksgiving, here is a recipe sent to me by my good friend Vicky. It’s from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, and it’s great year-round, especially for a summer potluck!

P.S. Did you know that sweet potatoes are technically not “yams”? Read my previous post about this.

Watermelon is very popular at my house. Living with two picky eaters (husband Garry and daughter Sophia) keeps me on the lookout for ripe watermelon as they both love it.

Sophia always reminds me that watermelons only taste good when it is “peak of season,” which is late spring, early summer. Every time I buy them outside that window, we are all disappointed with the flavor.

A few weeks ago, I was eyeing the “personal-sized watermelons” from Dulcinea. Since I know the folks at Dulcinea, I am aware of the hard work they put into finding the best seed, growing areas and farmers to grow the melons. And their watermelons are ALWAYS ripe.

I know the produce personnel at my store are great resources, so I asked one of the guys, “How do the watermelons taste?” I was so excited when he nodded and said, “Good.” But he did tell me that the cantaloupes were not sweet yet (I appreciate his honesty).

When I got home, I immediately put them in the refrigerator since watermelon seems to taste best cold. If they sit for too long on my counter, they become mushy rather than crisp.

Since these mini watermelons are easy to cut and yield the perfect amount for my three-person household, I always cut up the entire melon into 1-inch chunks and store them in a Tupperware® container. Since the watermelon is so good, it barely lasts us two days!

At Frieda’s, we are now receiving yellow watermelons! They have been around for over 40 years, and when my mom started selling them, produce buyers were in disbelief that they existed! But with all the colorful produce you can find these days, yellow watermelon isn’t so strange anymore.

Yellow watermelons will be available closer to July in your upscale supermarkets. Orange watermelons won’t be available this season due to problems with the seed variety, but wouldn’t it be fun to serve all three colors of watermelon for dessert?

Remember, your produce manager is a great resource. Don’t be afraid to ask if it is “peak of season” for watermelons or any other melon.

No wonder people believe that the watermelon should be the official fruit of the USA. I would vote for that!

I did not always feel that my mother, famed entrepreneur Frieda Rapoport Caplan, was the perfect mother. I found I was willing to share why I felt this way when the opportunity arose in the beginning of 2011.

Maureen Ford had called and said she was putting together a collection of more than 100 stories from successful women about things that changed their lives. She was co-authoring the book with my longtime friend, Patty De Dominic, and all proceeds would benefit the Women’s Foundation of California.

Patty is one of the first women who taught me the importance of philanthropy. In 1979, she helped set up the Women’s Foundation of California, a foundation that invests in women to strategically create an economically secure California. I donated all my honorariums from speaking events to the foundation when I first became President of Frieda’s.

After expressing their interest in including my story in their collection, I agreed and we arranged a phone interview. I had written down a few moments that I thought would be appropriate to share with their readers, but Maureen was fascinated by my struggle to accept my mother for who she was, and how I finally found a way to realize that she is the perfect mother for me.

Just last month, “Life Moments for Women” was published and I was pleasantly surprised to find my photo on the cover of the book!

And last week, Maureen emailed me to tell me that my story was featured on their blog!

Earlier this week, I brought the book to my CEO group where I am the only woman out of 15 entrepreneurs. I passed the book around and one of my colleagues read my two-page story. He commented that the last paragraph really rang true to him: “Accept your parents, family and friends for who they are. No one is perfect.”

As we get ready for Mother’s Day this weekend, I encourage you to accept your mother for who she is. She truly is the PERFECT mother for you!

P.S. Consider ordering a copy of the book to inspire yourself! It’s an easy read and very inspiring.

I spent the last four days in Dallas at the United Fresh Produce Association’s annual convention. I was a junior in college the first time I attended a United Convention (in 1976) and I have seen a huge increase in the number of women attending and, more importantly, employed in significant roles in our industry. In 2003, I was honored to be the first woman chairman of United Fresh in 100 years.

On the last day of the convention, there was a brand new workshop called “Women in Produce: Inspiring the Next Generation.”

Heather masterfully asked how each woman navigated through their careers, used mentors to grow professionally and faced challenges. The discussion ended with a question about work-life balance.

That seems to be the common question I am asked by young women getting into business: How do you balance the demands of professional growth while wanting a happy and satisfying personal life? I never seem to have the perfect answer and, frankly, it is something I struggle with on a regular basis.

“Balancing my entire life is just too much. I try to take it a week at a time. This week I will be balanced in this way. Next week I will have a different strategy.” I thought this was the most brilliant approach ever: Break it down into manageable parts.

“Marry the right guy. Meaning – you need to marry someone who understands the pressures and responsibilities of a career and is supportive, understanding and is willing to help.” I agree and feel that I am so lucky to have such a supportive husband.

“Be present, wherever you are. When you are at work – be fully at work, and not feeling like you are missing things at home. And when you are at home, have no regrets about being fully present and involved with your family.” I call this compartmentalizing – and I have found it to be my secret to maintaining my sanity!

When I was heading to the airport to go back home to Orange County, this panel was still top of mind. As I settled into my seat, I struck up a conversation with the man sitting next to me.

Will, only a few years younger than me, is the managing editor of over 40 editorial offices across the country, holds 3-hour daily conference calls with all his writers AND actually edits columns for The Huffington Post! He and his wife, a graphic artist, have two teenage kids.

Of course, I brought up the workshop and he almost jumped out of his seat when he said, “Work-life balance is a challenge for men, too!” He feels both men and women struggle with the pressures that double income households face, as compared to older times when the man worked and the woman was home to take care of the children and household duties.

Will told me that it’s difficult for him and his wife to come home after a full work day and figure out who will make dinner, interact with the kids, pack lunches and do laundry. Who wants to even talk about the day they just had?

That’s when it dawned on me. Work-life balance is now a universal issue, not just a women’s issue.

If you are struggling with this, realize you cannot do it all 100% of the time, and that it’s okay to ask for help. Take a break, admit you’re human and take a few things off your plate, or you will be relegated to a stressful life that will frustrate you and those around you.

One thing not mentioned in the panel was the importance of communication with all of your partners. Whether it’s at work or at home, we all have partners and sometimes need to talk with them about our needs in the area of work-life balance.

Fortunately, there are more and more companies who do value the importance of work-life balance. As an employee, sometimes it’s a little scary to speak up and let your boss know what your needs are. But, as demonstrated above, today’s leaders recognize that there are many ways to have work-life balance.

Last weekend, Garry and I visited Charleston, South Carolina. It is a beautiful place and we were fortunate to stay at our dear friends’ townhouse on Kiawah Island.

As can be expected, I was on the hunt for some fabulous places to eat. One of my new favorite newsletters, John Mariani’s Virtual Gourmet, had just featured some great looking restaurants in Charleston. During our trip, we chose to eat at The Grocery, one of the featured restaurants.

I knew to expect some fantastic tasting meats – and the beef and pork dishes we ordered were to “die for.” But there was something missing. Who stole the veggies? The appetizers and first courses were sparse on fresh vegetables, so I thought maybe this was an aberration. After all, John had written that it was primarily a charcuterie.

So, the next night, we dined at the Ocean Room at the Sanctuary Hotel, a large, Southern-inspired estate that reminds me of the Grand Floridian at Disney World in Orlando. It is magnificent to walk through. But, again, when looking at the menu, I was surprised that most of the vegetable choices were potatoes. Don’t get me wrong — I do like potatoes, and have many friends who are potato growers, but I was looking for broccoli, beets, green beans, asparagus, carrots…or something crunchy and not starchy.

As it turns out, I had a couple of revelations during this trip to the South. We have a long way to go to change the eating habits of Southerners. Almost everything I ordered was greasy or oily. Too much butter or oil in the pan. When I asked them to hold the sauce, cook things lightly, or not use butter – I would get a strange look, as if I was un-American!

Although the top chefs from this region are famous for their high-flavor foods, I hope they will consider the health of their clientele and provide some leadership by featuring more fresh fruits and vegetables on their menus. It’s no wonder that we continue to have a serious obesity problem with many of our fellow Americans… And we aren’t getting any help when we go out to eat.

After Southern food celebrity Paula Deen announced that she had diabetes and planned to make some serious lifestyle changes, I thought we would start to see some changes in the South.

For fear that my Southern friends think I may be singling them out – I do need to share that earlier this week I had a dinner meeting at Wolfgang Puck’s famous SPAGO Restaurant in Beverly Hills. I was a bit disappointed that there were few vegetables served at our dinner. My friends who had steak had a few baby Brussels sprouts on their plates and I counted four baby carrots under my salmon.

I hope this is not a trend with cutting edge chefs. They seem to be cutting back on fresh vegetables instead of adding them. If you want to see more fresh veggies when you go out to eat, please join me and let chefs, restaurant owners and servers know that you want them!

The great thing about traveling so much is catching up on my reading during a long flight.

When I was thumbing through a recent edition of Supermarket News, a headline caught my eye: “Consumers ‘Ask Karen’ About Food Safety.”

Turns out “Ask Karen” is the food safety website created in 2004 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service for consumers to ask any food safety question they may have.

If you can’t find the answer to your food safety question in their FAQs, you can email your questions and wait for a response, or you can “live chat” with an AskKaren.gov representative. They even launched a mobile site for Android phones and now have a mobile website: m.AskKaren.gov.

Surprisingly, some of the FAQs aren’t about produce. Most of them are about thawing meat, code dates versus use by dates and refrigeration.

But what a great resource to have when you need a food safety question answered. One question you may have is, “After last summer’s cantaloupe listeria outbreak in Colorado, are cantaloupes safe to consume and should I wash them before cutting and consuming?” The answer is YES, they are safe to eat and YES you should wash cantaloupes thoroughly before cutting and consuming.

Although, one thing is for sure—it won’t be this Karen answering your food safety questions on AskKaren.gov!

Speaking of websites, my company just relaunched our website, Friedas.com, in celebration of our 50th anniversary! Be sure to check it out, as it is filled with recipes, photos, information, and much more.

My travels this week took me to Calgary in Alberta, Canada, the home of the famous Canadian rodeo, the Calgary Stampede. I was in town for the annual Canadian Produce Marketing Association Convention, where I spent a few days with 1,500 of my closest Canadian produce friends.

As with all produce conventions, there were world class speakers and the speaker at Thursday’s lunch was no different.

His name is Anthony D. Williams, the author who wrote Wikinomics (2007) and taught us how mass collaboration was changing the way companies communicate, compete and succeed.

Macrowikinomics, his latest book, teaches us that, “in every corner of the globe, businesses, organizations, and individuals alike are using mass collaboration to revolutionize not only the way we work, but how we live, learn, create, and care for each other.”

I have not read his books yet, but I was fascinated by the examples he gave about the cultural shift in the way people are collaborating, resource sharing and solving problems at a much more rapid speed than ever thought possible.

As his first example, Anthony used the major oil spill, in which the cold waters on the ocean floor made the oil turn to sludge, halting the clean up efforts. The problem was posted on innoCentive, a global network of 300,000 scientists who help problem solve. A scientist in the cement business offered an easy solution and solved this major crisis, allowing the clean up to resume.

Have you heard about freelance service providers, like Elance and Odesk? These professional service marketplaces have more than 40 types of work listed with 1.5 million freelancers. You can negotiate with them directly and approve their work before payment.

And Flipped High School is revolutionizing education by allowing students to get lectures at home (via video) so they can do homework in the classroom. This new method, used in a Michigan high school, has significantly improved comprehension and student engagement.

But, I have to say, the idea that amazed me the most was a product developed just a few years ago called Spiroscout. Basically, it attaches a GPS device to asthma inhalers to track the frequency and location of asthma episodes! For modern medicine to have real, collaborative data about the causes and occurrences of asthma attacks is impressive and meaningful to those who have, or know anyone who has, asthma. (My daughter, Sophia, suffered from asthma when she was very young.)

As you can tell, I learned about more than produce during my latest trip. But, I did see some amazing yellow, orange, black and brown tomatoes, new flavorful apple varieties, big and little potatoes and a lot of dragon fruit. Canada is a huge melting pot of cultures with plenty of fresh produce to enjoy.

I’m not referring to sports teams here. I’m talking about airports, and the food choices available.

I have been spending a lot of time in airports lately, and my personal choice is to always eat fresh fruits and vegetables and gluten-free products, so I pay attention to what is offered.

When I was in Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport last month, I was astounded by the healthy food options that presented themselves: cut fruits and veggies, hummus and veggies, fresh fruit juices, unsalted nuts, gluten-free snacks and fruit smoothies. Multiple kiosks in each corridor of the airport offered many healthy dining options.

Then, this past week, I spent a lot of time at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport — thanks to the tornado activity. Although fresh salads were available in many terminals, I did not find a lot of variety when it came to just plain old fresh fruits and veggies and other healthy options. (In full disclosure, I will say that I found many displays of the basics: fresh whole apples, bananas, and oranges.)

So what is the difference between these two major hubs. Is it lifestyle? Texans are well known for their “steak and potato” propensity.

Is it the politics? Chicago is a well-known bastion of Democrats and liberals. Dallas is known to be more conservative and Republican.

Or is the airline that has the hub there driving the food choices? United Airlines in Chicago and American Airlines in Dallas.

I can tell you that as a consumer, a mom, and a fresh produce advocate, I want more fresh choices when I travel.

I feel better when I eat healthy during my plane flights. I find myself packing or purchasing fresh snacks before I board so I am not held hostage to what the airlines offer — mostly crackers, pretzels, candies and cookies. There is not much fresh produce offered by the airlines. What happened to the small bags of carrots that United Airlines used to give out?

I hope you will all agree that offering healthy options at airports and on airplanes is a good idea. Feel free to offer your comments or special requests to all the major airlines:

With the increasing popularity of Asian cuisine, and Indian curries in particular, you’re going to start hearing more about a spice called turmeric.

Fresh turmeric root looks like an old russeted carrot. But when you break a piece open and smell it, you experience a wonderful aromatic and spicy essence. Turmeric also has a deep orange color and was once used as a dye – it can stain your hands, too.

A cousin to fresh ginger, turmeric is native to tropical South Asia. Like ginger, turmeric is technically a rhizome, not a root, which is essentially an underground stem that looks like a root.

What’s so interesting about turmeric is that in addition to it being one of the secret ingredients in Indian curry, it also has many purported health benefits.

My sister, Jackie, shared an article with me last week about the health benefits of spices. A recent study was done on a “special blend” of spices, including: turmeric, garlic, oregano, paprika, rosemary, and ginger. Researchers found that increasing the amount of spices in your diet may lower the level of potentially harmful fat in your bloodstream.

But remember, just because you read it on the Internet does not mean it is 100% true. (Read my previous post on this.) That being said, turmeric must have some health benefits so I’ll definitely be adding it to my arsenal of spices.

If you’re looking for fresh turmeric in your produce department, you may not find it. It is pretty pricey and many retailers don’t even know the FRESH version is available!

So, if you can’t find it fresh, you will certainly be able to find it in the dried spice aisle of your grocery store. However, there really is no comparison in flavor between the two. And remember, dried spices do not last forever. If you buy DRIED turmeric, be sure to tightly seal the jar or bag and use it within a month.

Water is the one commodity that we all have in common. As I mentioned in a previous blog post, Mark Twain said, ““Whiskey is for drinking; water is for fighting over.”

Here in California, the water supply — or lack thereof — has a huge effect on the viability of the produce industry. As you probably know, California’s number one industry is agriculture, and the state is the top supplier of many foods to the world (almonds for example). Well, you can’t grow food without water.

The World Water Day email I received contained a fascinating “calculator” which allowed me to figure out how many gallons of water my family and I consume in a week. Frankly, it was a bit humbling to find out that my household of three uses almost 2,400 gallons of water a week! This doesn’t include the water that is used outside our home to produce the food we eat, the clothes we wear, wash our cars, etc.

I have learned this lesson many times over, and it doesn’t apply only to the Internet.

I learned that even if it’s written in a newspaper, it is not always the truth.

I learned that just because it’s on an Excel spreadsheet, it does not mean the numbers are correct. (Always verify the data and check the formulas.)

I recently received a forwarded email from several friends, and the information did not seem accurate.

The subject was, “The key to preventing moldy berries…is to wash them in vinegar.” My friends wanted to know if it was true.

So, I went straight to the source. I contacted our good friend Chuck at Driscoll’s, one of the largest strawberry growers, and asked him if it’s a good practice to wash berries in vinegar to prevent them from molding.

Chuck told me that the best way to prevent fresh berries from molding is to keep them cold! He said no amount of vinegar would substitute the good practice of maintaining the “cold chain.”

In produce industry lingo, the “cold chain” is the practice of cooling produce after harvest and keeping it at a consistently cold temperature through all the steps in transit, from trucks to warehouse to your supermarket shelves, and then on to your refrigerator at home.

So, what happens if you buy berries at a farmers market or fruit stand with no refrigeration? Chuck recommends that you consume any farmers market produce within the day you purchase it. “Without proper and modern, post-harvest handling and cooling, fruits and vegetables just don’t hold up,” Chuck says.

I agree with Chuck on this one. If I buy berries at a farmers market, I know to use them within a day (two at the max).

Chuck explained that the same holds true when purchasing produce in a supermarket. He says he’s very picky about the berries he buys, and he never purchases non-refrigerated berries at the supermarket. I, too, am a picky berry buyer! I always buy my berries from a refrigerated display, plus I turn the clamshell over and inspect closely for mold and shrivel.

Chuck also recommends shopping at stores that sell a lot of produce, because you’re probably getting fruit closer to harvest, which means a longer shelf life for you.

When you get your berries home from the store, keep them in the original clamshell package and place them in your refrigerator. Don’t wash them until right before you plan to eat them, and only take out the amount you need at that time. Put the remaining berries back in the refrigerator right away. And although you should always store them in the fridge, Chuck and I both agree that strawberries taste best when served at room temperature.

And what about washing berries in a vinegar solution? I don’t think it’s a good idea because you should not wash your berries until you are ready to consume them. And it would probably make them taste funky. Neither Chuck nor I have ever heard about the “vinegar” idea. I think it must be an urban legend!

If you want to know more about fresh strawberries, I recommend you check out the California Strawberry Commission. (Did you know there was such a thing?) It was started in 1993 and you can read all about its history and purpose.

Now that spring is here (today!), you will begin to see plentiful supplies of all kinds of fresh berries — strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries — in all your markets.

Like many people, I have discovered that I am allergic to wheat. When I eat anything with wheat in it (bread, pasta, etc), my stomach starts to hurt.

So for the last few months, I have been extremely diligent about making food choices that exclude wheat, and a whole new world has opened up for me. It seems as if everywhere I turn, there are gluten-free alternatives available.

Madelyn Alfano is the founder and owner of Maria’s, which has nine Southern California locations. Madelyn named the restaurant after her Italian mother, Maria, and they are well-known for their fantastic Italian cuisine.

I first met Madelyn because she has a woman-owned business (just like Frieda’s) and we are both members of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO-Los Angeles). Madelyn is actually the current President of NAWBO-LA.

I always try to support other women business owners, so it was especially nice that Madelyn surprised me and showed up for my business lunch! (She and her general manager even wore purple shirts – our company color!)

So, you can imagine my surprise when I opened up the menu and found in big, bold letters, “Gluten-free items offered, including pizza and pasta!”

Although I opted for the Chopped Italian Salad with Chicken, I plan on trying their gluten-free pizza on my next visit. And I would highly recommend Maria’s Italian Kitchen if you are in Los Angeles and want “Real Italian food by Real Italian Women.”

One more connection to Madelyn – next Friday March 23, she will be presenting the NAWBO-LA Legacy Award to my mother, Frieda Caplan, in recognition of her pioneering efforts and accomplishments during 50 years of business, mentorship, and inspiration to women. If you want to send your own congratulatory note to my mom, click here.

If you have a favorite gluten-free product, I would love to hear about it! Please comment at the bottom of my online blog post and maybe I will try something new AND gluten-free this weekend.

Last Friday night, we held a small event at our company for 60 of the most influential women leaders in Southern California. The theme for the event was food, of course, so we invited a few local thought leaders to talk on a panel about the future of food and food trends: Russ Parsons, Los Angeles Times food editor; Colleen Dunn Bates, journalist, restaurant critic and editor/publisher at EAT-LA; and Sue Klug, president of the Southern California division of the Albertson’s supermarket chain.

I served as moderator and had several questions prepared to get the conversation going. Plus, the members of the audience were anxious to ask our panelists their opinions.

My first question was about food trucks. You know those decked-out mobile kitchens that congregate in public venues and sell food. We used to call them “roach coaches” when I grew up on the produce market. (Back then they were mostly selling breakfast foods, sandwiches, burgers and fries.)

Today’s food trucks feature the latest trendy food, whether it is Korean Beef or an awesome Mexican food truck, like the one I saw at an HEB market in Houston, last month, it seems to me that the food truck trend is going strong.

So, when I asked Colleen what she thought of food trucks, I was taken aback when she said, “Food trucks are so 2009!” She said that they were definitely over their peak.

She and Russ told us that, as a replacement for food trucks, they have observed “pop-up restaurants” becoming more present and popular.

Russ commented that the biggest challenge for new restaurant owners is the $4 to $5 million they have to put up to build a conventional restaurant. With a pop-up restaurant, their investment is only about $30,000. Quite a difference!

My third panelist, Sue, shared that even Albertson’s had experimented with a pop-up grocery store in a local mall for Valentine’s Day! It was a low cost way for them to build their brand, sell some additional product, and do some test marketing.

As far as food trends in restaurants, Colleen and Russ agreed that the two top trends are “vegan” foods and “everything pork.” Naturally, I was excited to hear about the growing popularity of vegan food, as eating more fruits and vegetables makes perfect sense to me.

It was also interesting to hear what our panelists had to say about the MyPlate.gov program, sponsored by the USDA to encourage consumers to fill half their plates with fruits and vegetables. Colleen and Russ both thought that although it is a noble goal for consumers to increase their produce consumption, it is unlikely that having the government tell them to do this will make a big difference.

I have to disagree a bit with them, because I know that the policies and programs created by the USDA have a far reach in influencing other decision makers. It affects the WIC program, the fruit and vegetable snacking program and all kinds of federal funding and guidelines.

Even though the launch of this program may not have a short term immediate effect on consumption, I believe that the credibility of the USDA, along with all the supporting messages from my fellow farmers and marketers in the produce industry, will help us educate consumers and shift consumption patterns.

We also discussed food safety, farmers markets and generational differences in cooking knowledge. It was a fun evening and even I learned something new.

I’ve heard for a very long time that there is no such thing as a coincidence! Ever since we read the book The Celestine Prophecy many years ago, my sister Jackie and I repeat that saying quite often.

So yesterday, as I opened up my Internet browser, I noticed that Google’s home page had an interesting image:

Ah – March 8th was International Women’s Day! You can read about the history of the holiday here, but I found it interesting that the United Nations theme this year is “Empower Women – End Hunger and Poverty.”

As I continued through the hundreds of emails that I received yesterday, I also discovered that March 8th is National Agriculture Day – a day when farmers, companies, government agencies and others join together to recognize the vital role of agriculture in our society.

For me, the fact that both these celebrations fall on the same day is a wonderful coincidence.

Growing up, when I thought of agriculture and farming, I always pictured male farmers out in the field. I thought of fathers passing the businesses on to their sons. I don’t think I ever imagined women playing a significant role at the farm level.

Not only were many of the family farms co-managed by husband and wife teams, but many of the daughters and granddaughters were raised to take on important roles in their family businesses.

At our annual produce industry convention in October, I had the good fortune of having two produce families stop by our booth for a visit. What is so interesting about these families is that both fathers were super proud that their daughters were joining them in their family businesses. (Because Frieda’s is still one of the few women-owned businesses in the produce industry, we often get introduced to young women in our industry so we can mentor and support them.)

Here is the Joe Marchini Family, large growers of Radicchio — that bitter red lettuce — in Northern California. They also grow some amazing Marchini Almonds!

And here is the Miles Reiter Family. Ever heard of or seen Driscoll’s Strawberries in your market? Well, Miles and his family are the primary growers and owners of Driscoll’s! Miles was especially proud that his two daughters have chosen to join him in their business.

My daughter, Alex, stopped by my office yesterday to ask me if I knew that March was Women’s History Month. In honor of this month, I want to share with you the women who have inspired me. Well, it’s no surprise that I didn’t have to look far…

My mother Frieda, and my sister, Jackie are two women who continue to inspire and support me. I hope you are as lucky as I am to have women in your life that inspire you every day!

In the highly perishable business of fresh produce, time is not always our friend. Sometimes fruits and vegetables just won’t stand up to a cross-country shipment, or the size or appearance isn’t quite right for a particular customer.

All food companies have excess product and, instead of dumping it, many of us have established regular donations to our local food banks. My mother, Frieda, established this practice at our company long ago.

There is also a fantastic organization called Share Our Selves through which many well-known and community-minded chefs and restaurateurs donate THEIR leftover foods.

So, last week, we received a visit from the Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County. When the two ladies arrived, they announced that they were giving us an award for being the second largest donor of fresh produce in 2011! (The number one donor, Orange County Produce, is a close family friend of ours.)

The award from Second Harvest – very cute!

As we were talking and taking photos, Frieda started recounting stories of how her friend Mickey Weiss really started the whole produce and food bank connection many years ago. Robert Strube was another produce industry leader involved in this movement.

“Isn’t it kind of strange to be giving out exotic fruits and vegetables to homeless or hungry people? Do they have any challenges with that?”

Second Harvest goes to our website to print out recipes and information on Frieda’s exotic produce – to share with the donations as they are picked up at their Mobile Pantry events! The food bank realized that many of the pantry visitors didn’t know how to prepare some of our more exotic donations. So now they include the printed information in their displays, and people are trying new things!

Mobile Pantry trucks arrive at the designated parking lot and set up a mini-farmers market to distribute the food to the needy. People line up to “shop” for the food they need. You can see a short video here.

These Mobile Pantries are such an innovative way to share donated food, and because they are set up like farmers markets, it preserves the personal dignity of those who are in need of food.

If you know of any food company, restaurant or grocery store with non-salable edible food, I hope you will encourage them to contact their local food bank (which will pick up the food themselves). Or, here is a connection to a national network.

As our company, Frieda’s, celebrates 50 years of Changing the Way America Eats Fruits and Vegetables, it feels good to know that we are helping those who cannot afford to buy fresh produce.

Sometimes I just want to count my lucky stars. About 10 years ago, I met a wonderful couple, Bert and Veronique. Our children went to elementary school together and we have become close friends.

Every couple of years, in celebration of her birthday, Veronique likes to gather a few of her close girlfriends to travel to a far away destination to rest, relax and enjoy each others company.

This year, her chosen destination was St. Kitts, which is a small island country located in the Caribbean. So, last week, I took a red-eye flight through Miami and arrived in Basseterre, St. Kitts, on Thursday afternoon. This was my second visit to the home they built there, but this time their house was finished and about a half dozen of us spent a few days eating, sun bathing and exploring the island.

Everyone knows that because I am in the produce business, some part of every trip I take will either be spent in a supermarket checking out the local offerings, dining at a local restaurant or visiting growing areas.

On this trip, I got to visit a start-up nursery and tree farm. The young man, David, who built the home we stayed in, is quite the entrepreneur and has started a nursery and hopes to develop a tree farm to supply all the local home developers who want native plants to landscape their properties.

You can see from these photos that the nursery is small, but I got to see fruits I had only heard of before. I have never seen a “NONI” fruit – and he had a few small trees, one with a piece of fruit. NONI is a fruit that I heard about almost ten years ago, but only could find it in juice. Now – I got to see it, and was surprised that it looked like a mini Cherimoya!

David is also growing some vegetables, including tomatoes, eggplants and zucchini squash. I shared an idea with him that he should offer the local upscale chefs some “Courgettes” (squash blossoms). He had never thought of that, but began to reminisce that his Italian grandmother used to stuff and fry up the squash blossoms for special family meals. David and I harvested a dozen squash blossoms that day and he then dropped them off for a local chef who immediately placed an order!

On our return drive from the farm, we stopped at a small shoppe to get a beverage. The owner offered us some Carambola (Starfruit) she had picked off a local tree. You can see her here, with my friend Veronique.

Well, I don’t want you to think there was no time for regular fun. Bert took me on a tour of the island on his four-wheeler – a first for me!

But the best part for me was meeting Chef Kelly, a St. Kitts native, who prepared the biggest freshly caught lobster I have ever seen. And a feast of a dinner.

As for David’s tree farm, it is still a dream. As we drove home from his plot of land and future tree farm site at the base of a mountain, I shared with David the possibility that a graduate of EARTH University in Costa Rica would be a perfect candidate to do a feasibility study and be the farm manager for the enterprise.

One of the most frequently asked questions we get at Frieda’s is, “How do you find new products? Do you travel the world searching for new fruits and veggies?”

In today’s digital world, we don’t always have to travel the globe to find something new. Sometimes it finds us. Here is the story behind our latest discovery.

Willette, a friend of Frieda’s and mine, is a world-renowned theatrical producer (Twist is her latest musical) and world traveler. Last month she was in Paris dining at a restaurant called Passeig 53.

She saw a fruit she did not recognize, so she took a few photos and emailed them to Frieda and me, asking if we knew what it was.

Frieda and I started guessing at what it might be. At first, I thought it was a variety of yellow passion fruit from New Zealand that I had seen many years ago. But Willette told us that it tasted like a lemon and the insides looked like a finger lime (see my previous blog on these). And, it was quite large.

We forwarded Willette’s comments and photos to some of our favorite citrus Aficionados, and, of course, it was one of the experts at the University of California – Riverside’s Citrus Collection – Toni — who solved our mystery.

Although we don’t know the country of origin of the citrus fruit that Willette found, we do know that they are being commercially produced somewhere. Maybe one of the small citrus growers in Central California will be interested in planting a few trees so we can see how they produce and taste.

We know that citrus, in general, is exploding in terms of new varieties, and it’s all about taste and flavor! Maybe the Faustrime will be the newest taste sensation. Or not.

So, to all my friends reading this blog: When you are dining or shopping while you travel, I would love to receive photos and information about what you see. If you want to share them, please post them on Frieda’s Facebook page. Who knows what the next hot trend in food will be…

You purchase fresh fruits and vegetables with the best intentions. You plan to use up all the lettuce, broccoli, and strawberries before your next shopping trip — before they become old, stinky and inedible in your refrigerator.

And then, your week gets the best of you. All of a sudden, your fresh produce is rotting produce and you have to throw it out.

It all started about 12 years ago when I was first introduced to Peakfresh bags.

The company’s founders had developed a mineral-coated, perforated bag designed to keep produce fresher during shipping and in home refrigerators, and they came to Frieda’s, since we’ve always been open to new products and ideas.

Because I have to prove everything to myself first, I took the bags home and tested them out with two clamshells of fresh strawberries. I put one strawberry package straight in the refrigerator, and I put the other one inside the Peakfresh bag, then into the refrigerator.

I was impressed. Even after two weeks, the strawberries inside the Peakfresh bag were PERFECT compared to the shriveled up, molding regular strawberries. Then I tested the bags with fresh broccoli, and the same thing happened.

As it frequently happens in the business world, we were “ahead of our time.” Although we enthusiastically introduced these shelf-life extending bags to our supermarket customers, the concept did not catch on.
What did catch on however, were commercial-sized bags. The company went on to develop bags to wrap entire shipments of fresh produce, such as strawberries and chile peppers, to keep them fresh during cross-country transit. Several other companies have gotten into the business, and this segment of the industry is booming.

Then a few weeks ago I saw a display of my beloved Peakfresh consumer-sized bags at my local Sprouts Market. I was thrilled, and I purchased a box of 10. (If your local market doesn’t have them, you can buy them on the Peakfresh website.) The great thing about these bags is that you can reuse them – just rinse them out and let them dry. I call them my new best friend.

If you are concerned about wasting food, or have a hard time scheduling in fresh produce shopping during the week, I encourage you to try these bags. They are a life saver.

I was heading to Berlin last weekend for Fruit Logistica — the largest produce trade show in the world. More than 2500 companies from 84 countries exhibited — only 35 from the United States.

But on Sunday morning, I found out that my flight to London had been cancelled. I decided to make the most of it. I let American Express find me an alternative flight to Berlin, which bypassed the snow and ice in England. I would be leaving a full 24 hours later, but that allowed me to spend the day with my youngest daughter, Sophia. That was an unexpected gift!

Then on my flight from Los Angeles to Frankfurt, someone had a medical emergency, so we had to make an unplanned stop in Halifax, Nova Scotia. My sister Jackie texted me that maybe I was not meant to go to Berlin, after all. But, I made the most of it, and made a new friend, Alicia, who was also traveling to Berlin.

Since my company wasn’t exhibiting at Fruit Logistica, I was able to spend my time walking the 26 buildings (and the 2537 booths) looking for new products, new packaging ideas and all sorts of innovations.

Ten companies were nominated for product innovation awards. My personal favorites were Purple Sprouting Broccoli — colorful, but a little mushy when cooked; Angello Sweet Seedless Pepper — amazingly sweet and crunchy; and Achacha, an Amazonian fruit grown in Australia that looks like a loquat on the outside and a mangosteen on the inside.

Read about all 10 nominated products here. As you can see, some are not fresh produce – but packaging, processed products and juice and even an interactive website.

Trade show attendees are encouraged to evaluate and vote for the nominated products. My personal favorite was the Angello red seedless pepper. I can see it becoming successful once planted here in the states – it is much like the Veggie Sweets and Mini Sweets we have, but seedless. Being seedless is a big plus, and it would be great in restaurants for stuffing and grilling.

The final votes were tallied after I left Berlin on Friday afternoon – and I just checked online and the winner of the Innovation Award for 2012 was the Angello! I’m sure it was my vote that made it a winner!

So, was it worth spending two days flying to have two days at Fruit Logistica? Yes, and the best part was the personal connections I made. Conversations and connections turn into relationships that eventually become business.

By passing out my business cards to everyone I meet, I receive follow-up emails, connections on LinkedIn, followers to my blog, and eventually some new business relationships. I always strive to make the best of any situation, even if it means my flight is cancelled and my trip is cut short.

My only regret was that I had no time in Berlin to sight see! This was the fourth time I have visited Berlin for Fruit Logistica, but there never seems to be time for a tour of the city. (Read my post about the show two years ago.) I guess that’s a reason for me to go back in another two years.

As you may recall reading in a previous blog post, when I travel I always purchase a magazine or two at my departing airport. I take special care to choose one that I would not normally read. I learned this technique more than 20 years ago from a speaker at a leadership conference. You’d be surprised at how much new information you will learn.

So last week, as I was departing for Berlin, Germany, for the Fruit Logistica International Food Show, I picked up Esquire Magazine.

I have to admit that seeing President Bill Clinton on the cover with the title, “Bill Clinton and 78 other things we can all agree on,” caught my eye.

I started my journey through Esquire by scanning the QR code on the cover. It said “Scan this for a message from President Clinton.” I used the RedLaser App on my iPhone to scan the code and watched a short video clip of President Clinton.

If you are uncertain about QR codes – here’s a quick tutorial. You’ll start noticing them everywhere!

To say that I devoured this magazine is an understatement. I read about actor Woody Harrelson. I read about Roger Craig, who won the most money ever on “Jeopardy!” and how he trained himself to learn everything. I read a hilarious story called “The Man’s Guide to Valentine’s Day.” But it was a story near the end that really grabbed me.

It is the story of Vivek Ranadivé, the CEO of the $4 billion software company, TIBCO Software, Inc. His personal goal is to harness the ocean of data in this world. And save civilization.

I could completely relate to the opening quote in the article: “If you take all the data that was generated from the dawn of man to, say, the day Barack Obama became president, that’s X. And then if you add up all the data that’s been generated since then, in just three years, that’s 10X. We are drowning in data.”

The article shared examples of how he and his company organize and make sense of all the data, so that the right information reaches the right place at the right time with the right context. Industry by industry. And coincidentally, he is also the owner of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors. They are a real live example of how he plans to leverage the data about the people who attend NBA games to provide a truly “WOW” experience, and to maximize sales for the NBA franchise.

But perhaps the most interesting part of this article was what Mr. Ranadivé has created: TopCom. He believes it will change the world.

TopCom is a private communications platform for the two hundred most powerful people in the world. It’s meant to be a kind of combination of Facebook, Twitter, e-mail, texting and Skype. A private social network, in this case, for world leaders.

Can you imagine the implications for achieving world peace or solving world hunger? Ranadivé actually gives an example in the article about how the Tsunami in Japan could have been handled differently which would have hastened rescue efforts and potentially saved thousands of lives.

The bottom line is that all of us are drowning in data. We all feel overwhelmed by our emails and just want to get our work done and our lives back to normal. It’s good to know that there is someone who can sort this all for us!

I don’t remember how long our company has been selling Lemongrass, but I do remember our first Lemongrass grower. It was a couple from Bakersfield, California, who brought these wonderfully aromatic plants to us more than 35 years ago, and told us it was a popular ingredient in Asian cooking.

The Lemongrass looked like puny leeks with dried out yellowish tops, but they emitted a wonderful, intense lemony scent when you cut them. (Back then, I remember thinking the smell reminded me of a popular teen fragrance at the time – Love’s Fresh Lemon.)

Three decades later, we continue to sell fresh Lemongrass. Some of our supermarket customers sell it packed in small plastic bags or clamshell packages, but most ethnic supermarkets sell it loose in large displays so you can purchase large quantities. They must be on to something.

Today, I predict that Lemongrass will become the next “big thing” – and here’s why.

I have been reading some interesting email chains lately between people in the scientific community who I personally know and respect. And the subject? Lemongrass.

Among them are botanist Dr. James Duke, who developed the USDA’s Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases, Dr. Roberta Cook of the University of California-Davis, and Mark Dafforn of the National Research Council, who is involved in Vetiver Grass research. (Read my previous blog post about Vetiver Grass.)

Read one of Dr. Duke’s books here for more on this. Also more info on Lemongrass can be found here.

Back in the 1980s, I gave many talks about “Food as Medicine.” I spoke about the healthful qualities of garlic, dark green vegetables and tomatoes.

This is one of the reasons I chose to attend an industry leadership forum a few weeks ago. The featured speaker was an expert in the field of managing and leading the four working generations. And I actually got to meet the speaker in person about 2 weeks before the seminar, as he wanted to interview some of the attendees in advance to get a sense of our industry.

The speaker was Seth Mattison, and you can read about him here. He is a 30-something Gen Y (which I learned can be interchanged with the word Millennial). Seth came to visit my office in early January, and he looked just like I would expect a Gen Y person to look.

In jeans. Wearing a zipped up vest over a nice shirt. And carrying a cup of Starbucks coffee. Everywhere we went in our building, he would pull out his iPhone and take a photograph.

When Seth presented to the group of 75 produce industry professionals, he was spell-binding. Our group was made up of all 4 generations currently in the workforce, and Seth was masterful at giving examples we could all relate to.

You will clearly be able to identify your generation: Traditionalists (born prior to 1946), Baby Boomers (Born 1946-1964), Generation Xers (born 1965 – 1981) and Millennials (aka Gen Yers – born 1982 – 2000).

I am a Baby Boomer. My husband is a Traditionalist. Most of my colleagues at work are Gen Xers and my two daughters are Millennials. So I was intrigued with the information that Seth shared.

Seth shared with us how to work with each generation. Here’s another snapshot of which strategies to use to recruit, engage, manage and retain each group:

“Now I understand why it is always so tense and chaotic at my house,” Rich said. He shared with us that both at home and at work, he has all 4 generations, and it really does take some effort to communicate and relate to each of them in their preferred style.

Rich spoke with Seth about coming to speak at one of his company’s management conferences. What a great idea! Wouldn’t it be easier if we all understood each other better – not just based on our personalities, but on our generation?

For example, Traditionalists are always annoyed with Millennials who are constantly checking their emails and texting on their iPhones, while seemingly engaged in a conversation.

If you are intrigued with this concept, check out Seth’s company, BridgeWorks.

And here’s a photo of me and Seth after his presentation. On the screen, you can see that he included a couple of the photos he took during his visit to Frieda’s as part of his presentation.

One last thing. After the presentation, I let Seth know that I tweeted about him during his talk. (I didn’t want him to think I was being rude and checking my emails.) He looked at me funny and we both chuckled.

About a year ago, I received an email from a former childhood neighbor, Steve, who asked why I never talked about the influence my father had on me growing up.

My dad, Al Caplan, was a force to be reckoned with. His mom died when he was 13 and he caught a freight train from Chicago to move out to California when he was a teenager. Then he joined the Marine Corps. He was underage when he enlisted, and there was no Internet to verify his date of birth.

After working as a union organizer for several years, he started his own company as a labor relations consultant. Some of his largest clients were in the scrap iron and metal industry, and many were grape growers.

Actually, it was my father who negotiated the first contract between Cesar Chavez/United Farm Workers and many of California’s grape growers (my dad represented the growers). My first job was working for my dad in his office, but after a short time I ran out of work and ended up working for my mother, Frieda, in her wholesale produce business.

My dad taught me many things about life and about business. Most importantly, he taught me about personal accountability. After I got my drivers license on my 16th birthday, we were negotiating to purchase a car for me. The deal was: I paid for half and he paid for half. We got the car and I handed over $1,500 (my life savings at that time – age 17). But I still owed another $1,500.

Dad and I got into a bit of a disagreement a few months later and he gave me a deadline. “Pay me the remaining $1,500 by Labor Day, or you lose your car.” I think that was the original “tough love” from a parent. I knew my dad was serious – so when I was a few hundred dollars short, I borrowed some money from my sister, Jackie, and paid him on time.

And when I wanted to live at home during summers when I was in college, my dad told me I had to pay rent: $50 a week. Yes – he was tough.

But, my dad was also fair and very generous. He quietly (and many times, anonymously) gave money to family members and close friends who were in need.

Sometime after I became president of Frieda’s, Inc. in 1986, I invited my dad to come speak to my management team about employee relations. I will never forget the title of his talk: “Firm, fair, and friendly.” That was my dad’s philosophy on how to work with people.

And I would say that those values have prevailed in the more than 25 years that I have been president of Frieda’s.

The reason I have chosen to write about my dad this week is because it is the 14th anniversary of his passing (on February 5, 1998).

When I think of my dad, however, I do not think about business. I think about health. On the day his first granddaughter, Jennifer, was born in 1964 (he was 46), he decided to quit smoking (cigarettes and cigars). He decided that he needed to take care of his health so he could enjoy all of his grandchildren.

He then became quite the health food nut. His favorite book was “Let’s Eat Right to Keep Fit” by Adelle Davis. From then on we only had whole wheat bread in our house, no sugary snacks, cookies or ice cream, and we ate lots of fruits and vegetables. My dad exercised every day, and often times watched Jack LaLanne on television while doing his daily exercise routine.

My dad lived past his 78th birthday to see all of his seven grandchildren. We all have our various memories of my dad, but I think my personal favorite was the day my first daughter, Alex, was born.

I told my parents that they could be in the delivery room as she was born. And there was my dad – camera in hand – recording the moment.

You know a lot about a person when you know about their heritage. No wonder my dad was tough, yet tender. We miss you, Dad.

Yesterday morning I made a phone call to a client in Pennsylvania. As part of the conversation, I asked about the weather. “Cool and raining” was his answer.

What I didn’t tell him was that I was going to be trekking throughout the citrus groves of the Citrus Variety Collection at the University of California Riverside (UCR) later in the day.

At 8 a.m., my colleague Dorian and I got in my car, and by 9 a.m. we were under a tent in Riverside with 200 other citrus enthusiasts being welcomed by Marylynn Yates, the new Dean of the College of Agriculture.

My first hour was spent listening to two women from the global multi-billion dollar company Givaudan, which is the leader in developing flavors and oils used in our foods, beverages and fragrances. I learned that citrus – lemons in particular – are the base of most beverages, from colas to fruit punches and more. Givaudan recently made a large endowment to the UCR Citrus Variety Collection, to ensure its future viability, because they have found that this repository of citrus germplasm has become their primary source of flavor inspiration worldwide. Over the past few years, Givaudan has brought more than 200 of their flavor developers from around the world to Riverside to sniff, smell, taste and play with the citrus. (Givaudan was recently featured on 60 Minutes. Click here to view “The Flavorists” – second story, about 16:30 minutes in.).

We then sampled more than two dozen varieties of Mandarins and grapefruit hybrids. Growers next to me were whispering to each other what they thought were the best tasting, and which ones had future potential. Some of them planned to tear out their acreage of white grapefruits and oranges and were looking for a better-selling citrus fruit.

We convened for lunch (barbecue, of course). I was able to snap this photograph of two of the most famous Citrus Aficionados: David Karp (aka the “Fruit Detective”) and Tracy Kahn (curator of the Citrus Variety Collection). These two people know more about citrus fruits than anyone on the planet!

As I turned around to leave, I noticed a man smiling at me. His name tag said “Bob Knight.” He was about my age, and I thought to myself, could it be?

I went to introduce myself: “Are you related to THE Bob Knight? Yes, it turns out he is the son of one of my mother’s first kiwifruit growers! We started to recount memories of the 1970s, when we were both teenagers helping our parents market the first California-grown Kiwifruit.

Last week I wrote about my recent trip to the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco. Held by the National Association of the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT), this show brings together many foodies, producers of artisan foods and buyers, and many others.

For many, it’s also a show for reuniting with old friends in the food business.

As I headed down the last aisle on the show floor around 3 p.m. that Sunday, a big smile came over my face. I saw my long-time friend, Paula Lambert, of the Mozzarella Company in Dallas, Texas.

Paula started The Mozzarella Company in 1982 – which means she is celebrating 30 years in business. My mom and I met Paula years ago at another food conference – I think it was the American Institute of Wine and Food. That’s where we also met Julia Child.

When I came up to Paula’s booth at the Fancy Food Show, she had laryngitis. One of her cheeses (Hoja Santa Goat Cheese) had won a national award the afternoon before at the Good Food Awards at the Ferry Building in San Francisco and she had spent the afternoon handing out samples and talking with consumers (thus the laryngitis).

Since I was travelling to Dallas for business the following week, I asked if Paula wanted to get together in her hometown when she had her voice back.

So, during my trip to Texas last week, I caught a taxi and was whisked off to a small community near uptown Dallas.

Paula’s home is adjacent to a cemetery and after navigating down a cobblestone walkway, and through a rusted gate (I felt like I was in a Harry Potter Movie), I came upon a Booziotis-designed modern home. I then felt like I was walking into an Architectural Digest photograph.

Paula recently became a widower, so she always fills her home with friends and food. It was my great luck to share a short dinner with she and her longtime friend and former neighbor, Bill. And of course, we sampled many of the cheeses she makes in her local cheese “factory.”

My absolute favorite was what she calls the “Christmas Cheese.” It has the texture of polenta, and crumbly cheese with chile pepper overtones. I could not stop sampling it!

I asked Paula how she ended up starting a cheese business, in Dallas, of all places.

When Paula was younger, she lived in Perugia, Italy to learn Italian. After returning to Dallas, she missed the delicate homemade cheeses of Italy. Thus, her idea for a business was born. That was 1982 (and you can read about it here). Paula has grown the business from producing 100 pounds of cheese her first week, to now more than 5,000 pounds a week!

Not only did Paula and I sample some of her amazing cheeses, we also made dinner together. I found out that Paula takes small groups to France and Italy twice a year to cook in farmhouses. She’s a fabulous cook, so, it was especially fun for me to learn a new way to prepare broccoli and a recipe for homemade vinaigrette from her.

If you love cheese (and who doesn’t), I encourage you to check out her clever website, MozzCo.com! You may even want to order some cheese from her.

One of the joys of being in the food business is that you not only get to taste some delicious foods and travel to interesting places – you also get to meet some amazing, sincere and passionate people who become lifelong friends.

And if they are like the beautiful, charming and genuine Paula Lambert, you also get inspired to live your passion.

This past weekend I took my youngest daughter Sophia, on her first business trip. Each January, the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT) holds the Fancy Food Show at the Moscone Center in downtown San Francisco. I like to attend this show — even though they don’t typically have any fresh produce — as many of the newest foods and food trends start here.

Since the show starts on Sunday, I decided that Sophia and I would fly up on Saturday morning and spend the day touring the city, and then attend the show on Sunday.

We actually flew into Oakland Airport (in the East Bay) – my preference whenever I travel to San Francisco. The airport in San Francisco (SFO) is often plagued with fog delays. (A tip for anyone coming out west for a vacation or business – fly into Oakland!)

Sophia is a high school senior, so we spent the first part of the morning visiting San Francisco State University, which is located south of Golden Gate Park near Daly City. She has applied to this school so it was a good opportunity to see the campus, which is beautiful, green and very friendly.

We then headed over to the Ferry Building (located in the Embarcadero area, nestled under the Bay Bridge), which is the home to a Saturday morning farmers market and a collection of some amazing artisan food producers, all housed in a historic building.

After snacking on lunch and my BEST FIND of some very yummy vegan kale chips I did something that I have resisted for years: I bought two tickets for the Hop On /Hop Off bus tour of San Francisco. (I first rode a Hop On / Hop Off bus when I was in London about 13 years ago with eldest daughter Alex. Great way to get an overview of a city).

We rode on top of the red double decker bus and learned about everything from the Disney Family Museum which is housed in the Presidio, The Japanese Tea Garden which is in Golden Gate Park, the Haight Ashbury section of SF. (I tried to explain the popularity of that area to my 17-year-old daughter… I was definitely dating myself when I used the words, “hippies” and “flower children.”)

Even with the bus tour, we ended up walking more than 7 miles on Saturday. I know this thanks to my Nike+GPS app on my iPhone. But, we were just prepping ourselves for our walk around the Fancy Food Show on Sunday.

Sunday morning we arrived at show early so we could pick up our badges. This show has three large halls filled with more than 1,000 booths that are usually 10 x 10 feet. Oftentimes you will find the owner(s) and their family members and friends staffing the booths, handing out samples of their latest products. Most exhibitors are small companies with less than 10 employees who may have started by hand producing and packaging their products.

• Gluten-free and vegan selections were definitely everywhere. Whether it’s gluten-free cookies or salad dressings, I could see a big trend of adding the words “gluten-free” to the label, as consumers are demanding this feature.

• Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate. Artisan (made in small batches) chocolate was everywhere. And the big new flavor? Caramel with Himalayan salt crystals. Yum!

• Loose leaf tea. Unique new blends, some highlighting medicinal properties, were in full force, along with all the latest tea accessories. Clear glass tea pots and teacups are definitely “in”.

• Olives. No wonder olive bars have become prevalent in upscale supermarkets – who knew there were so many types of freshly cured olives!

One of the most encouraging things about this show was this giant sign I found in the middle of the show floor.

Like all trade shows, there had to be a giant, attention-grabbing stuffed animal character. Here’s Sophia with a PANDA who was sampling something yummy.

I asked Sophia to share her observations of the food show:
• There are so many companies and many have very similar products – it was overwhelming. (I felt the same way.)
• What really made a company stand out was when the people working the booth were engaging (but not too pushy).
• There were so many samples that you have to pace yourself, and it helps to know what you are looking for. (Great perspective if you are a gourmet food retailer attending this show for the first time.)
• You only have one chance to make a good first impression.

The best part of this weekend excursion is that when we arrived back home to So Cal, Sophia received an email that she was accepted into San Francisco State University! A perfect ending to our weekend!

When I was younger, there were only three main varieties of apples in the produce department: Red Delicious, Golden Delicious and Granny Smith.

I used to enjoy the sweet Red Delicious because its skin was not too thick. But I couldn’t depend on their crunchiness. Sometimes they were mealy and totally unappetizing.

Then I found the Fuji. I wrote a previous blog about how Fuji apples revolutionized apple sales and consumption, because they were not dark red on the outside. (Years ago, everyone thought that apples had to be red for consumers to buy them!) Fujis were kind of “ugly” and the flavor profile was more sophisticated than the Red Delicious.

But after a few years, Fuji apples didn’t taste so exciting to me anymore. Back to the grocery store to find a new apple variety.

Enter the Honeycrisp. Yum! I’m sure you’ve seen or tasted this apple or at least heard about it. It was developed in Minnesota and first introduced commercially in 1974. It has grown so much in popularity and significance that in 2006, Andersen Elementary School in Bayport, Minn., petitioned for the Minnesota state legislature to make the Honeycrisp apple the state fruit; the bill was passed in May 2006.

Last fall, as I traveled across the United States, I heard the same story. The entire Honeycrisp crop had sold out early last season and consumers were asking their produce managers, “Where are the Honeycrisp apples?” When they finally arrived at my local store, even though the displays were large, they sold out quickly and it took a few weeks for my produce manager to order enough! (What a great problem to have, right?)

This year the Honeycrisp season will be ending early again. I was at my local Trader Joe’s last week and noticed some bruising and the TJ’s employee working in produce that day told me, “Yeah, it’s nearly the end of the season.”

So, now I am on the hunt for a new variety to try until my beloved Honeycrisp comes back into season. I tried the Ambrosia last week. My produce guy thought I would enjoy them as much – but their flavor profile wasn’t as satisfying. But the Ambrosia are crisp, which I like.

If you’ve always purchased the same apple varieties, maybe it’s a good time to try a new variety. When you are shopping and want to know what they taste like, feel free to ask your produce manager to cut one up for you. Did you know that many produce managers LOVE it when a shopper asks for their advice or recommendation?

What’s your favorite apple variety to eat out of hand? I would love to know – you can comment at the bottom of my blog online.

Remember the old adage? An apple a day keeps the doctor away. I think it’s true!

When I wrote about kale last year (read my post here), I initially thought it was purely used as a garnish on a plate or in a supermarket display. I never really thought about eating it. Then I discovered a raw kale salad.

Last week, after writing about how Dr. Terry Wahls reversed the effects of multiple sclerosis by changing her diet, I changed my diet to include more raw vegetables. (I’ll write more about that at a later time).

I am now eating a raw kale salad for lunch every day. Like most working people, if I can find a pre-cut version of a food that tastes decent with no additives, I will likely purchase it. Time-saving is the name of the game for me.

So, imagine my happiness when I found an organic kale salad package at my local Ralphs Grocery store! I purchased one bag and tried it. Not bad. The shredded carrots and red cabbage add some color and a little flavor. I added a light vinaigrette dressing for the perfect salad.

Maybe it’s a new variety of kale that is not quite as chewy, but I found it very palatable and satisfying. And I am eating a RAW, dark green, cruciferous vegetable for lunch. I feel like I am instantly getting healthier.

Apparently, I am not the only shopper who has discovered kale and the health benefits. The California produce industry has been publishing research on what’s selling and what’s hot in produce departments in Northern and Southern California — and guess which vegetable has seen a 40 percent increase in purchases during the last year?

The dentist is the last place I thought I would find one of Frieda’s tropical fruits, but that is exactly what happened yesterday.

I am very conscientious about my teeth, so I have them cleaned 3 or 4 times a year. Did you know that one of the ways to maintain and improve your health is to have your teeth cleaned regularly and floss daily. I once asked my dentist how often I should floss my teeth. He said, “Floss your teeth only on the days you want to keep them!” ’Nuf said.

As I walked into the dental office yesterday, my eyes were immediately drawn to a pink can of air freshener made by Febreze. Then I saw the name of the scent: “Thai Dragon Fruit.”

I was so excited that I grabbed the can and ran to my hygienist, Chow. I asked her if she knew where that piece of Dragon Fruit came from.

It was fun to share the story with her: A couple years ago we got a call from a photographer who was doing some work for Procter and Gamble’s Febreze air scent line. We were sworn to secrecy.

Febreze was launching a new line of scents, and one was Thai Dragon Fruit! The folks at P and G were told to call Frieda’s Specialty Produce as we were recommended as a great source of product and information. So, we immediately shipped them a box of fruits. And the photo session took place.

The funny thing to us is that Dragon Fruit really has NO scent! And the flavor is very mild. But it sure looks good on the package. Here is the description from the Febreze can:

If you want to know more about fresh Dragon Fruit – check it out on our website.

Dragon Fruit is quite eye-catching arranged in a tropical fruit centerpiece and it comes in a variety of colors. Frieda’s sells both the magenta and white-fleshed varieties. The flavor and texture reminds me of a very mild Kiwifruit. It has become much more popular in the past few years and it’s encouraging to us that many supermarkets now carry it as part of their tropical fruits displays. Dragon Fruit is available intermittently year-round and is grown in Thailand, Vietnam, and the U.S.A. (and other places, too).

Each day, I walk by my sister (and business partner) Jackie’s office and stick my head in. This morning, I stopped in to run a couple of ideas by her for my blog. Before I could even get through my first idea – she said, “Did you watch that video that our brother Dennis sent us?”

Well, I guess my brother doesn’t send me ALL of his emails with random information. This one time, I wish he did.

Jackie forwarded me a link to an article and video from a TEDx conference held in Iowa City.

You’ve probably heard of “TED” conferences, right? TED started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, and Design. You can find out more here. These sold-out conferences and spin-off events have changed the way we think and the way we share information.

The most amazing thing about a TED talk is that it brings together the world’s most incredible thinkers and doers and lets them tell the story of their lives – in 18 minutes or less. Can you imagine that? Bill Gates? 18 minutes. Steve Jobs? 18 minutes. President Bill Clinton? 18 minutes. The Dalai Lama? The same 18 minutes.

Well, the video link which I am including here is from Terry Wahls, a female physician who was diagnosed with incurable MS (Multiple Sclerosis). You may not have MS, but I’m sure you know someone who has been affected by this dreadful disease.

After much personal research, Dr. Wahls was able to REVERSE her Multiple Sclerosis by switching to a “Paleo-style” diet focused on eating fresh, raw fruits and vegetables, wild fish, grass-fed meat, organ meats and seaweed. And, no aspartame.

Her talk is less than 18 minutes (of course) and seeing her before and after photos of the dramatic and incredibly positive effect the diet change had on her body and spirit is mind-blowing.

I know a few people who have Multiple Sclerosis, or other serious health issues. Because of all the nutritional information I am exposed to as part of my work in the produce industry, I have always wondered how many of our health issues could be controlled or eliminated by making different food choices.

As you are starting the New Year, and already implementing your New Year’s Resolutions, I suggest you take a moment to check out this article or take 18 minutes to check out the video. You may want to modify a few of those resolutions to include a diet more heavily weighted to FRESH fruits and vegetables.

Watching the video changed my life (as I was trying to figure out a reason NOT to eat my beloved bread and butter that is my downfall). I would love to hear what you thought of it. Please comment at the end of my blog post online.


From Left: Jackie Caplan Wiggins, Tricia Espinoza of Second Harvest, Frieda Caplan, Alex Jackson, and Karen Caplan