Business at our hive is definitely buzzing! We have had some great events in the past few weeks, Johnson RV Open House and Spring Sale, The Bite of the Mountain at the Resort was a huge success as well as East County Pray Prayer Breakfast on National Prayer Day. Great people eating all of our goodies with smiles on their faces…. warms a caterer’s heart! Our online store is ready to be launched and we are very excited about that too. We look forward to the new opportunites this allows our company as we start to reach out even more to meet neat people and make them great food. Check back and do some shopping. A freezer full of bread, cookies, cinnamon rolls… it’s a very good thing. XOXO

Yesterday was an eye opening shopping day in the big city. We always try to leave the mountain fueled, (both car and tummy) so to get the job of BIG shopping done fast. Well, the phone was ringing and all other things happening as we were leaving and we committed the cardinal sin…no breakfast! Bad idea…We were both starving, in a hurry and not in a position to take time to eat a proper meal. So we opted for fast food. Again…bad idea. Everyone else eats it, we were in a pinch. Todd in his younger years liked a Whopper (Calories 651, Sodium 1.063 g your salt for the day), back in the day when he could have it his way, it was filling and tasty. I think his experience yesterday has cured his further cravings for B King. This Whopper looked nothing like the picture and the only real word to describe the flavor was hideous! I chose a grilled chicken sandwich. We watched as it was heated  just enough to make that upscale ciabatta roll into a condensed mattress and warm the rubber chicken patty to meet requirements. It was an eye opening experience to say the least. We  both came away knowing that we are on the right track with our business, making our niche in catering with the quality of our foods . Our continued commitment to cooking and baking from scratch, keeping it fresh, holding the salt, making foods taste good (like they should) and not using pre made foods. After our scary experience at BK we finished our shopping trip at the dreaded “C”. Well, I am known to love a big box store just like the next guy, but BEWARE of the prepackaged foods available to feed your families. We spent our time reading labels yesterday and were horrified! We even had to search for vitamins that were not full of a bunch of extra stuff. The point is, you do get what you pay for and that can be a bad thing. So, we are going back to where we started making meals available to busy people who want to eat fresh, homemade foods. We will be launching a shopping cart on this very website full of breads, casseroles, pastries, soups etc made with no preservatives, using as many local products as possible, created in a sustainable kitchen. Pick up will be available in various Portland locations. So, give yourself  a break. Eat healthy, feel better and know your food is real food!  XOXO

Well, the primroses are purchased, pinched back and in full bloom. I have pinned more pictures of wanna be gardens then I will ever get around to planting and still the snow continues to fall. Instead of building a fire pit we are stuck inside looking at quarter sized snow flakes. Although it is beautiful I am left no choice but to spend my time in the kitchen baking the month of March away. I have had loads of fun and made some really good recipes. Some of my favorites have included the most divine rustic bread. How I love that crunchy crust and chewy inside. Hot out of the oven, it brought a tear to my eye. On the sweeter side, I created a towering Lemon Cake filled with a lemon buttercream. I was obviously needing sun as I went a little crazy on the yellow food coloring. It wasn’t scary, but I admit next time I will go for a more mellow yellow shade. I had apples and pears just crying out to be baked into a tender Crostata Crust. Sprinkled with coarse sugar, it was enough to make a gluten free person weep. Still aching for improvements, but never the less tasty were the new Rice Crispy Treats I tried. Mini Peanut Butter Cups are a welcome addition to any recipe. Well as the saying goes…Make hay when the sun shines…I’ll just bake as the snow flies….

XOXO

I have had every intention to continue my goal of regular blogging, but instead of writing I have been reading other food blogs and I must say enjoying myself. Typically this time of the year the catering world is not moving at the hectic pace of Spring, Summer and Fall. Of course  in this down time I have had every intention to clean and organize supplies, get caught up on paper work etc. Well this year Pinterest has entered into all of our lives and all of the bets for cleaning are off. I am addicted. That being said, I have had loads of fun trying new recipes (mostly goodies) and seeing styles of the past recirculating to the present. Beside the recipes I think my favorite pins are the crafts and ideas that people are dreaming up to reuse stuff. As caterers we strongly believe in recycling as can be measured by the mountain of cardboard and assorted items that decorate the driveway every garbage day. We even recycle our food waste to some very happy pigs living on a farm outside of Sandy. So keep turning in your cans and separating your food scraps from your paper garbage. It’s the least we can do for our beautiful surroundings.  Here is a recycled idea for an favorite old treat.We all know how to make rice crispy treats so for your special Valentine fill a funnel with the marshmallow goodie and viola you have an instant Hershey’s kiss! Wrap in foil, add a love not on paper for the pull tab on top of the kiss and you’re set. Go make something sweet and have a wonderful Valentine’s Day…

XOXO

The Busy Bee

Well not really… It kind of looks like Alaska right here in Welches with 4+ inches  of snow on the ground. This was a fun and busy week and we even got to feed some hungry miners!   We had the pleasure of  making lunches (Mexican one day and a hardy Shepherds Pie the next) for a crew from the Discovery Channel and the Gold Rush cast of Jack, Todd, Dave, Thurber, Chris, Harness and Parker. Not to mention the fabulous women in their lives, Georgia, Shelly and Parker’s wonderful Mother, Nancy. Blue the dog was on hand as was a grandkid and a very cute new puppy. It definitely feels like a family affair and everyone appeared happy. Let’s hope they hit the mother lode, so continue to watch as the story unfolds….

Nothing like a Kardashian wedding to remind you what this special day should really be all about!  Join us Saturday, January 14th at “the not so boring” Boring/Damascus Grange for a slightly different kind of bridal show. A Country Bridal Affair  (acountrybridalaffair.com for details) will be a relaxing day full of ideas, vendors, samples and off course good things to eat! Admission is free, but what you will learn is priceless! We will be offering a show discount so now is the  time to get on our calendar and mark that off of your list. Your wedding is the first time as husband and wife that you can show your style of entertaining. You like a good burger and Coney Island Sauce on a hot dog…then so be it! Whatever is your style, Busy Bee Catering will help start your story off right.

We love to cater and it shows!

Discovery Channel’s hit show Gold Rush is taking the nation by storm! Luckily the storm is blowing them back to Oregon for another shoot and we get to feed them. This time we will photograph how much equipment they set up to make it all possible. With their permission we will share those with you so you can appreciate the amount of work that goes into this job… it’s unreal!  So, stay tuned for some interesting info and other new treat ideas that are in the oven right now!

Bee Warm and Bee Well…

Love,

The Busy Bee’s

What could be better than hot, gooey cinnamon rolls served straight out of the oven? Nothing! Busy Bee has done the mixing, kneading and rolling and now you just slice, bake and frost. It couldn’t be easier…
Cinnamon Roll Logs: $5 per lb
Homemade Frosting:
Cream Cheese or Buttercream $5 per lb

Nestled in the shadow of Mt Hood, the kitchen at Busy Bee Catering is bustling with excitement as we bring out the butter and sugar and let the baking begin! Love the homemade goodies, but not in the mood to bake? Give us a call…your recipes or ours. Let us help to recreate the memories that Grandma made. Candy, pastries, cookies, cakes, pies. You name it, we like it and we like to make it too!
Happiest of Holidays from our hive to yours!
Todd & Jan

Bitsy pie and nanna bread

Busy Bee Catering had the opportunity to cater for the Discovery Channel when they recently filmed an episode for their hit series Gold Rush. Our local celebrities Jack & Todd Hoffman and the beloved Blue (the sweetest dog ever) have not been affected by their movie star status and are just great people. Whatever our jobs are we love that we can provide a delicious meal to many hard working people from all over the globe!