The Fruit Company

by Stephanie, Graphic Designer – Brand Manager

With all the hustle and bustle of the holiday season over the past few weeks, you’d think we had disappeared. Not so! We’re alive and kickin’, and things over here are going swimmingly. Right now you can find our new Snowman Tower in a number of esteemed publications, including Better Homes & Gardens, and we were once again listed as one of the best gifting options for foodies in the top consumer reporting magazine.

One of the greatest things about this time of year is that our famous Webster Comice Pears are in season. When perfectly ripe (it will yield to gentle pressure around the stem) the flesh is the most buttery and rich pear you’ll ever have, and there is hardly any of the grittiness that you find with other varieties. Grandpa Roy Webster used to call them “the Cadillac of pears” and that statement rings true today. You should see the juicy mess the Comice make at our desks when any of us indulge in a midday treat.

Speaking of our Comice, over Thanksgiving I served an insanely simple fruit dip with slices of Comice, Starkrimson, and miniature Seckel pears, as well as Fuji, Granny Smith, and Honeycrisp apples. It was a huge hit both before dinner and the next morning with breakfast. Here’s the recipe that you can use for a quick treat when entertaining. Try it also with grapes, pineapple chunks, or even mixed with pomegranate seeds. Enjoy!

Stephanie’s Super Simple Fruit Dip

1 8oz. container of cream cheese
2 cups thawed frozen whipped topping
1/2 cup marshmallow cream
1/4 cup pineapple juice

Blend all the ingredients together (a hand mixer is great for tackling those cream cheese chunks), cover and chill for at least an hour before serving with fruit of your choice.

by Becky, Operations Manager

Mt. Hood framed by autumn trees and rocky bluffs.

My husband and I had a great day mountain biking this past weekend. We trucked our bikes and dogs to Horsetheif Lake State Park, east of The Dalles on the Washington side of the Columbia River. The weather was exceptional and we were able to see quite a few deer and a 4-point buck in the rocky meadows and hawks circling overhead. The trail was a single track through tall grass and scrub oak trees and had a couple of hill climbs that overlooked the Columbia River with Mt. Hood in the background. We came across a chestnut tree that had Concord Grapes wrapped all through it, and they were absolutely perfect. It was a good natural sugar burst, not to mention delicious… my immune system surely got a boost from the grape seeds.

The dogs loved the deep piles of oak leaves.

Being autumn the leaves of the large scrub oaks are falling, and I couldn’t resist taking a photo of my dogs in the deep leaves. Trader, our 6 year old Samoyed, is in the process of attaining his “Working Title”. He is after all a sled dog and loves to do his job. He carried quite a bit of weight in his pack, not to mention doggie biscuits.

My husband and Trader with Oregon across the river.

This year we have taken our dogs on most of our rides….from the 23 mile round trip Deschutes River Trail (twice), to the short 3.8 mile ride we did this past weekend. While mountain biking I have taken over 600 photos just this year of this beautiful part of the country we live in. It’s a new hobby that we’ve all grown to really enjoy, and we live in the perfect place for it.

Me with the dogs and Horsetheif Butte, Lake, and a bit of Mt. Hood in the background.