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The AmazonFresh software team recently visited Caffé Vita's roasterie in Capitol Hill to learn the story behind their coffee. What's immediately apparent is their dedication to crafting high quality cups of coffee.

It all starts with sourcing the best beans directly from growers which is based on their Farm Direct philosophy. They find exceptional quality coffee grown in an environmentally and socially sustainable way and pay above Fair Trade prices. Caffé Vita then works directly with these farms to bring their beans to Seattle.

It's then up to the master roasters to turn these beans into delicious coffee. We tried a green bean (against the experts' advice) and quickly learned the importance of a proper roast. The roaster they use was manufactured in 1930s Germany. Over time it has been seasoned like a well-trusted cast iron skillet. To tell if the beans are fully roasted, the roasters rely on the color, the smell, and the sound of the beans popping. As someone who frequently burns microwave popcorn, I was impressed with how well tuned they were to the subtle variances of each roast. While the aroma of the freshly roasted beans was amazing, what really stood out to me was the color of the beans. The beans were all slightly different shades of deep, rich chestnut and mahogany. The whole beans that we offer for sale on AmazonFresh are roasted to order for us and delivered to our warehouse within 48 hours.

The tour continued in their cupping room. Mason, Vita's green bean buyer and roaster, prepared a fresh French press of 3 different blends. The Del Sol blend is their in-house espresso blend that works well as drip coffee. I enjoyed its smooth finish with just a hint of acidity. It's a great summer coffee when you don't want something too heavy. We were also able to sample some coffee-infused Theo chocolate, made with Caffe Vita roasted beans along with their Theo Chocolate roast. Both companies collaborated for months to find the perfect pairing and balance of flavors and the final products are delicious. Overall, it was a great morning, sampling Caffé Vita coffee under the expert tutelage of their knowledgeable employees. Be sure to check out our full selection of Caffé Vita coffee and if there are any additional varieties of Caffé Vita coffee that you'd like us to offer, be sure to send in a product suggestion

This month, our Breakfast Promotion includes a dozen of Wilcox's Omega-3 Brown Jumbo Eggs. I can't tell you how much I love these eggs--they are fresh (you can tell when you break an egg and the yolk is firm and round), extremely healthy for you and local! In the spirit of these amazing eggs, I thought I would share an omelet recipe with you.

Spring Omelet (serves 2)

Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 eggs
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 6 asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 2" pieces
- 1 cup of sliced fresh mushrooms.
- 2/3 cup of green onions, chopped
- 1 cup of grated parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the asparagus, mushrooms and onions; cook and stir until the asparagus is fairly soft, about 4 minutes.
3. Whisk together the eggs and milk in a small bowl; pour over the sauteed vegetables and reduce the heat to medium.
4. While the omelet cooks, lift the edge to allow the uncooked egg to flow underneath.
5. When most of the egg is cooked, sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the top. Allow the cheese to melt slightly, then fold in half and serve.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! Perfect for your weekends with a great cup of coffee and fresh squeezed juice.

What's my favorite part of any meal? Dessert! Chocolate chip cookies, cheesecake, cupcakes-I don't discriminate-I love them all. AmazonFresh feeds my sweet tooth by delivering fresh baked treats such as Always Room for Dessert cupcakes and cookies right to my doorstep. These are baked in a small, local bakery by a woman named Melissa Karpen, who is just like her products-amazing.

Melissa has two part time employees, but for the most part acts as a one woman show in her Totem Lake facility. She applies real ingredients combined with family bake tips and a passion for baking into each batch of fresh baked cookies and deliciously frosted cake. Melissa comments, "After tasting many mediocre and not-so-great baked goods at local coffee shops, I saw a need for locally baked goods that use real ingredients: real butter, eggs, sugar -- all the things that make your favorite desserts so yummy."

As a teenager, Melissa began baking alongside her mother and two aunts. "I watched them and listened to them at family gatherings, and still come back to some of those early recipes they taught me." Becoming a baker was a dream that turned into a reality two years ago.

Along with the classic chocolate chip cookie and vanilla cupcake, Always Room for Dessert offers a unique variety of flavors such as coconut, red velvet and espresso flavored cupcakes. Our top seller (Melissa's personal favorite) is the Coconut Cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting.

So as you browse the aisles and fill your cart with items for breakfast, lunch, and dinner-remember that there's Always Room for Dessert!

My Grandma and Pop's house smelled like apples year-around. In the breezeway, heading into their house, past the vinyl floral patio furniture and the souvenirs from their Hawaiian cruises, there were always cases of apples in storage. In the fall, the season's crop of apples was harvested from the modest backyard "orchard," all of the Mason jars were brought out for boiling and my grandma's oh-so famous applesauce--light on the sugar, generous with the cinnamon--was cooked and canned in the kitchen by many busy hands.

No matter what anybody says, nobody's is as good as grandma's (or mom's for that matter); but the High J Orchards Applesauce brings it pretty close to home. These apples are grown in the family orchard in Lake Chelan Valley and yes, this applesauce is made from their grandma's recipe. Like my childhood applesauce, High J Applesauce is generous with the cinnamon. Unlike my grandma's, High J's adds no sweeteners or sugars, relying on the natural sweetness of Washington's famous apples. I don't begrudge Grandma's added sugar (after all, she was using Ohio, not famous Washington apples, and I was a kid who loved it sweet). But as an adult I appreciate the all-natural, sugar-free local applesauce from High J's.

It's fresh, chunky, naturally sweet, and the only Honeycrisp Applesauce on the market. Sorry Grandma! I don't mean to rave about someone else's apples. But this girl is grown up and far-away from home. High J's is as good as it gets (next to the real McCoy.)

Just a reminder to all flower lovers that the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival is going on right now and ends April 30th. If you get a chance I highly recommend going to see the tulip fields. It is an amazing experience of color and we are so lucky to have such beautiful tulips in our backyard. Buying locally is very important and all of our tulips are purchased from local farmers.

Easter, Mother's Day, and graduations seem to all happen in the spring. Spring flowers are beautiful and fragrant. Changing seasons have a profound effect on the flowers and truly bring out the best in them. Whether you'll be entertaining for a special event this season such as Easter, having guests over for an intimate meal, or enjoying the warmer weather, you'll love the fresh and cheery look that wonderful spring flowers can bring to your home.

The featured bouquet for Easter is the Pastel Parade Bouquet. It is a combination of lite pink roses, tulips, and asters, magenta stock, and purple statice. It is a great value and combines seasonal spring flowers with spring colors. The other bouquet hopping into your cart is the Bunny Hop Bouquet. It is a bright bouquet with a combination of jewel tones. Flowers include gerber daisies, tiger lilies, and green sizzle pom poms that create a fun and fresh floral look.

Use our springy bouquet ideas to inspire a fresh look for the new season. The bouquets are quick to cut and drop in a vase. You and your guest will enjoy the fresh look of spring grown locally.

Cheers!
Sharon

I don't know how the Easter Bunny came to be known as the deliverer of eggs. The truth is that eggs are delivered by hens. I have proof.

Last week, a few of us from the AmazonFresh Team went down to local Wilcox Farms in Roy, Washington to learn more about the egg biz. It was a rainy day, so we couldn't see the spectacular view of Mt. Rainier that Dale and Brent Wilcox claimed usually dominates the landscape. But we took their word for it. Dale Wilcox and his son Brent are 4th generation farmers with a salt-of-the earth sincerity. So even before I saw for myself, I began to believe their claim that eggs do in fact, come from chickens.

Most of us identify Wilcox as a dairy farm known for its milk, yogurt and butter. But times changed and the economics of the milk business no longer made sense for their small family farm. So the Wilcox family put all their eggs in one proverbial (and maybe not so punny) basket, and devoted their 1,600 acres to their chickens.

We took a driving tour around the farm, checking out the salvaged one-room school house, the original roosting houses, and the in-ground swimming pool that's set up for employees for the warmer months. Dale Wilcox lives right on the farm, as well as his brother Andy. And the original family farm house, purchased in 1909 by Judson and Elizabeth Wilcox, is now set up as a museum with original furniture, family heirlooms and personal artifacts all on display for the curious visitor.

We got a first-class tour of their state-of-the-art, cage-free chicken house. Inside, we were greeted by a warm glow and the symphonic clucking of hens. Turns out the brown hens (the ones that lay the brown eggs) are curious and very friendly. Though you'd never think of a full-grown chicken as cuddly, they're actually down-right sweet. Melissa held one. I took their portraits. And we marveled at the numbers of still-warm, just-laid eggs.

I asked Brent about various details of the farm and what portion of the business is devoted to conventional versus organic. He said it's about 80% conventional and 20% organic, with the trend turning toward organic. "We want to invest in specialty eggs--cage-free, organic, and omega-3," Brent said. The retro-fitting of their conventional buildings into cage-free runs about $750 K, so the family is making this transition in stages.

I asked Dale Wilcox if he ever gets tired of eggs. He said, "I love eggs. We eat them nearly every day for breakfast." I asked if he would share some family recipes, so hopefully I'll be posting some omelet and quiche recipes soon.

All in all, the day at the farm was a fun and pleasant respite from the city grind. The Wilcox family is friendly, committed and just plain good folk. So, want to feel good about supporting local farmers? Feel good about buying from Wilcox. They are part of the Nisqually Land Trust and work closely with the local Nisqually Tribes. They are third-party certified Salmon-Safe in their farming practices. And most of all, they keep it fresh, local and in the family.

As for me, I'm heading back down this summer to visit my chicken friends, get a view of Mt. Rainier, and yes, have a dip in the pool.

Dave's Killer Bread is a local product baked with organic ingredients and whole grains. While consumers crave the healthy, fresh baked taste--they're also drawn to the man behind the bread.

James Dahl, Dave's father and founder of NatureBake, believed in baking healthy bread the old fashioned way. As a child, Dave looked up to his father and couldn't wait to be old enough to join him, his mother and older brother in the kitchen of their family business.

Unfortunately, while struggling with his identity as a teenager, Dave fell into a life of crime that swayed him from following in his father's footsteps. After hitting rock bottom in prison, Dave decided to be proactive in turning his life around.

He began researching new bread techniques and concepts, forwarding them to his brother, Glen, who had taken over the family bakery after their father passed away. Dave was ready to carry on his father's legacy alongside his brother and nephew, and spent his first two years out of prison putting his research and creativity into the business. According to Dave, "Once I began to prove myself and my ideas, other people started coming on board".

Today Dave's breads are nutritious, tasty, and represent a positive change in technique and life. The number one best seller is Dave's Good Seed Bread, which is certified organic and packed with fiber, Omega 3's, and whole grains. You can find this as well as other Dave's Killer Breads right here on AmazonFresh!

I'm happy to introduce a great new jam here at AmazonFresh-- Freezerves from Sunfresh. Sunfresh is a locally owned and operated company that has been making all natural jams for over 20 years.

Owners Reed Hadley and Jill Morganpage began with the dream of bringing the incredible flavor of all natural "Freezer Jam" to the public. Unlike most store-bought jams and preserves, this method of making jam requires no cooking and captures the taste of fresh fruit, retaining the vitamins and enzymes that occur naturally. Before Sunfresh, freezer jams were only available from the kitchens of Mom, Aunt Sally or Grandma.

They created their first batch of Sunfresh freezer jam in 1986, with an investment of $1,000 in fresh raspberries, sugar, pectin and plastic food containers. The original home-designed labels were made using their daughter's crayons.

The next four to five years, the Sunfresh Team spent time marketing, sampling, developing recipes, producing and packaging jam. Reed delivered the delicious products to restaurants and grocery stores around the Pacific Northwest, while Jill worked with restaurant chefs to determine how much jam they needed for the week.

During my years of experience in food service, it was clear that Sunfresh Freezerves was the jam of choice for many of the white table cloth restaurants in the Seattle area. This product is not just for spreading on English muffins or fresh baked bread, it's also a great gourmet ingredient. After trying this delicious recipe I am sure you will agree, Freezerves are not only a top tier jam, but also a very versatile product.

Sunfresh SEARED AND BAKED CHICKEN BREAST with garlic, sage, and Apricot Orange Marmalade FREEZERVES

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts with bones and skin on
4 tsp. SUNFRESH Apricot Orange Marmalade
1 lg garlic clove, chopped
1 full Tbsp. fresh sage, chopped
1 tbsp. olive oil

Instructions:

Pre-Heat oven to 350 degrees
Mix the marmalade, garlic, and sage.
With your fingers, loosen the skin from the chicken breast to form a pocket.
Put a tsp. of marmalade mix into each of those pockets.
In an oven safe skillet on med-hi, add the olive oil and sear the breasts skin side down, until golden brown. This takes 5-10 minutes.
Turn chicken skin side up and bake in 350 degrees oven for 30 minutes.
Serve with Risotto, Rice, or Garlic Mashed Potatoes.

Enjoy!

I hope you have all noticed the floral promotion going on right now for a Free Bouquet of flowers when you purchase $125.00 or more of groceries. You simply enter the promo code FLORAL2009 and a free bouquet is added to your order. On Sunday March 1st we had a little glitch in the system and it wouldn't allow customers to add the bouquet to their baskets. The problem was soon after discovered and fixed, but we're truly sorry for the error in the program. With great pleasure, I'm happy to tell all that we have decided to extend the promotion until the end of March so that everyone has a chance to enjoy a bouquet of flowers from AmazonFresh. Each Florist Choice Bouquet given during the promotion is assembled with a collection of flowers to represent some of the floral selection we carry in the floral department.

Don't forget that the weather is changing and spring is around the corner. Some of the best local flowers in Washington are grown in the spring time such as tulips, iris, and daffodils. We carry a great assortment of mix colored tulips from Mt. Vernon and Puyallup Washington. Make sure when you put the tulips, iris, and daffodils in a vase that you keep them in cold water.

Floral is always trying to grow its selection and loves customer feedback on the floral products we should carry. Please don't hesitate to email product-suggestion@amazonfresh.com.

Thanks, Sharon

Have you ever wondered why you can't order fresh artisan bread for pre-dawn delivery? Vendor delivery times clashed with our pre-dawn service hours creating a hurdle for us to offer fresh baked bread to our pre-dawn customers. Because we could not guarantee that the artisan bread received by our pre-dawn customers would be high quality and fresh, we took away their option to purchase it.

I'm excited to announce that Essential Baking Company has alleviated this issue by offering a more flexible delivery schedule that allows us to deliver fresh baked bread to our pre-dawn customers. Essential Baking Company's hand-crafted artisan breads are baked with the finest organic ingredients and can now be delivered to your doorstep morning, noon, or night!