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A Cornucopia of Fresh Flavor – Spicy, Peppery, Earthy, and Ocean-like

By | Edible Flowers, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens, PetiteGreens, Recipes | No Comments

Here at Fresh Origins, we pride ourselves on having the most extensive variety of MicrogreensPetite® GreensEdible Flowers and Specialty Items available! Not only are our products exceptional in color, bursting with flavor with a great shelf-life, they are also of a higher quality, and that is due to the care and attention we give to our growing, harvesting and packing methods. Our flavors are as potent as can be because we grow in the right climate and each item is harvested daily, to order, at the peak of freshness!   

Looking for something different than those Sweet & Sour, Salty & Savory and Floral microgreens and edible flowers?  Well, our varieties do not end there. Earthy, spicy, peppery and ocean-like flavors are just as prominent on the farm because we want you to have it all! 

FLAVORS OF THE OCEAN

One of the advantages of growing microgreens in San Diego, is the sunny and warm beach-worthy weather.  Because the ocean is never far from our mind, we have compiled a list of refreshing, juicy and salty Microgreens inspired by the Sea!  Micro Iceplant, Micro Sea Beans™ Petite Sea Grass, Ice Bud™ and Oyster Flower are just a few items that remind us of the ocean. 

Glistening with brilliant sparkling beads of water, our Ice Bud™ instantly enhances seafood dishes with its crisp ocean flavors! These unique flower buds are succulent, juicy and salty like seawater – sure to surprise and excite taste buds!

An edible flower, fresh and salty like our Oyster Floweris perfect atop your seafood plates with its unique blue and pink, bell-shaped buds. With its fresh oyster taste, it is sure to add an unexpected experience to your meal!

 

EARTHY 

Earthy flavors like those found in our Micro Kale Tuscan™ and Cheese Leaf™ are paired well with soups, pastas and meat dishes. The Cheese Leaf™ is pungent, sturdy and versatile with a bold cheese flavor!  Because of its sturdiness, it can be manipulated and used in many ways to mimic a cheese-like flavor and texture. Check out how Chef Mikel Anthony blends our Cheese Leaf™ into his agnolotti filling and then finishes the dish by laying another leaf on top for a beautiful presentation. 

 
SPICY & PEPPERY 
Some of our most potent items on the farm are those with strong peppery and spicy notes. Our Herb Crystals® Habanero, Micro Wasabi™, Micro Radish Daikon, Kinome Leaf and Micro Cress Pepper are some popular examples. Chef Mikel Anthony incorporates our Micro Wasabi™ into a puree for his dish by combining it with fish fumet, soy sauce and lime juice. Watch how he blends and aerates the Micro Wasabi puree, elegantly emulsified with the Vitamix Aer™ Disc.  Such a great way to make use of this ultra-flavorful microgreen! 

Fresh Origins Microgreens don’t just look the part, they bring a numerous amount of bold, sweet, salty and savory flavors to your plate, giving way for new ideas and techniques. We are here to elevate your plate and heighten the experience of your culinary creations, one microgreen at a time!

TELL US WHY YOU LOVE US!   
Have any questions, comments, or suggestions? We’d love to hear from you!  Connect with us through Instagram or Facebook or drop a few lines here!

A Cornucopia of Fresh Flavor – Sweet & Sour, Salty & Savory, and Floral

By | Edible Flowers, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens, Mixology, PetiteGreens, Recipes | No Comments

Have you ever tasted an edible flower? How about one with the bold flavor of licorice? Or a microgreen as spicy as wasabi or Dijon mustard? Fresh Origins products deliver an intense range of surprising flavors like fresh garlic, sour green apple and fresh oysters, that are sure to drive your taste buds wild! Our MicrogreensPetite® GreensEdible Flowers and Specialty Items provide chefs and mixologists with distinctive and extraordinary flavors that heighten the dining experience every time! 

Our wide variety of products continue to inspire chefs and mixologists to experiment with different cooking techniques and applications that highlight every unique flavor. Whether potent or mild, delicious flavors of sweet, sour, savory, and spicy can all be found on our farm and they’re ready to impress! 

SWEET & SOUR 

Sweet flavor profiles are present in many different types of our products. Stevia Tops, Pineapple Bud™ and Jasmine Flower, for example, are just a select few of our sweet varieties. By simply tossing a sweet Jasmine Flower into a salad you can add a delightfully sweet bite and a striking pop of white color, providing contrast with the rest of the dish. Various sweet mint products like our Micro Mint Lemon™, Micro Mint Licorice™ and Micro Mint Lime™ can be muddled to extract a sweet/minty note for an enriched craft cocktail. 

Along with some sour and tart alternatives like the Sorrel Butterfly Purple™ and Hibiscus Leaf™, these products add a unique, mouth-watering taste and presentation to desserts and are easily the perfect finishing touch to craft cocktails.

Other surprisingly tart items like our Petite® Sorrel Green Apple™, Begonia Flower and Micro White Mum™ can be used to complement salads and seafood dishes while also providing contrasting flavors to the dish itself.
 
FLORAL 

Floral flavor notes are also very apparent in many of our Micros, Petite Greens and Edible Flowers, such as our Micro Mint Lavender™, Petite® Herbes de Provence Mix™, Basil Blossom, Fennel Flower, Marigold, Elder Flower and Rose products.  Even a sweet floral crunch can be experienced with our Flower Crystals® Fennel, Hibiscus and Rose! Each of these products can be used to enhance soups, flavor teas, brighten cocktails, sweeten baked goods and confections and even provide a dish with an enticing floral aroma! 


Fresh Origins Flower Crystals Rose

 

SALTY & SAVORY 

Numerous varieties of salty and savory microgreens grow in abundance here on the Fresh Origins Farm.  Savory flavors like our Micro Mustard Dijon™, Micro Oregano, Petite® Thyme and Garlic Flower provide dishes with potent flavor, making for a bold and lasting impression.

The vibrant, purple Garlic Flower and Garlic Flower Gold Crown™ are full of exceptional fresh garlic flavor!  Very pungent, they provide an unexpected burst of garlic flavor and are a great way to add a fresh touch to and seafood, meats and poultry dishes. 

Former Top Chef Nicholas Elmi adds contrast to his dish with the striking flavor and color of Fresh Origins’ Garlic Flower.

No matter the type of dish or cuisine, you can always count on there to be a microgreen or edible flower that will complement and enhance your menu! We continue to develop and grow new and exciting varieties, ensuring that the possibilities for culinary excellence are endless! 

What are your favorite microgreens and edible flowers? Drop a few lines here, we’d love to hear from you! 

For more inspiration, check out our favorite spicy, peppery, earthy and ocean-like products and follow us on Instagram or Facebook.

Looking Back: 2018 on the Farm

By | Edible Flowers, Events, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens, Mixology, PetiteGreens | No Comments

Here we are about to ring in the new year; but before we welcome 2019, we thought we would share with you some of our favorite moments of 2018! 

While our farm is busy growing quality microgreens and cultivating new products, we also make it a priority to connect, meet and inspire Chefs. We participate in culinary events and tradeshows around the country, showcasing our large variety of products and welcoming chefs to interact with them. At these events, we can personally show you Fresh Origins’ gold standard of quality as well as entice your sense of smell and taste. This is so important because each item is more than just its beautiful appearance.  Microgreens and Edible Flowers elevate your plate and heighten the experience of your culinary creations by adding unprecedented flavors, fragrances and textures!  Featuring our products at tradeshows and chef events like Starchefs’ International Chefs Congress and Rising Stars gives us the opportunity to demonstrate and educate culinarians, mixologists and caterers on the uses, flavors and presentation power of the Microgreen. 

StarChefs International Chefs Congress 

This past October, the Fresh Origins team journeyed to Brooklyn for Starchefs’ International Chefs Congress for the 10th straight year! This show was a widely inspiring and engaging experience for chefs, mixologists and foodservice professionals from all over the world. Each chef integrated Fresh Origins Microgreens into their dishes, cocktails and desserts, filling the Brooklyn Expo Center with so much color, inspiration and flavor! Some of the influential chefs we had the pleasure of working with include: Bryan Voltaggio of VOLT, Nicole Gajadhar of Saxon and Parole, Ray Garcia of Broken Spanish, Chris Scott of Butterfunk Kitchen, and Nicholas Elmi of Laurel. Take a look at some of their masterpieces in our highlights below:  

 

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NEW TO THE FARM 

Thanks to our gorgeous California weather, we enjoy the best climate in the world for growing Microgreens. We are constantly innovating and growing new Microgreens, Petite Greens and Edible Flowers and 2018 was no exception!  The San Diego sun provides the ideal environment to produce strong, healthy, highly flavorful and unique microgreens that are Honestly Grown™ in the right climate.  

In case you missed them, here are some of the newest additions to the Fresh Origins Farm:

Micro Huacatay™ 
Huacatay is an herb that comes from the ancient Inca empire, used vastly among indigenous people from Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Bolivia and Paraguay. Now in Microgreen form, the soft lacy leaves are highly aromatic with flavors of citrus, mint and tropical fruit.  It is used like Cilantro for ceviche, chicken, fish, potatoes, soups and stews. 

 
Micro Huauzontle 
Huauzontle is a native Mexican plant that has established itself as a prized herb during the ancient Aztec rule. Now, a brand new Microgreen, Micro Huauzontle™ is tender with lavender-pink and green leaves. As a close relative of Quinoa, Amaranth and Epazote, it possesses pleasant earthy flavors with subtle peppery and nutty notes, adding great texture to many traditional Mexican cuisines.  Add a captivating twist to the classic Tortas de Huauzontle or include this savory Microgreen on top of Enchiladas or Menudo soup!  

Micro Quinoa™ 
Introducing the first ever Micro Quinoa™!  A revered staple of the Inca civilization, this ancient grain is indigenous to the Andes Mountains of South America. Now in a new form, this Microgreen has a nutty, salty and savory flavor and is related to spinach and chard. The small succulent leaves add the perfect texture to seafood, fresh salads, and meat entrees.  

 
Petite® Lucky Shamrock Red™ 
Our magnificent Shamrocks are now available in a new bold color! Petite® Lucky Shamrock Red™ boasts a warm and luscious shade of maroon flushed throughout its soft leaves while rocking a lively green center. These three-leafed clovers have a mild and refreshing clover flavor, making it a pleasant addition to any dish, dessert or drink!  

 
Garlic Flower Gold Crown™ 
A traditional edible flower favorite with a unique new color. Garlic Flower Gold Crown™ is a delightful lavender/purple flower with a bright golden-yellow crown at its center. This little flower is beautiful, but also very potent in flavor and can be used to add excitement to pasta, meat, salad or soups. 

 

Diving Deeper in Mixology 

Don’t forget about the ever-enticing craft cocktails! One of our top goals is to inspire mixologists and bartenders by showing the range of our products and how to best use them. These videos showcase the remarkable appeal, flair and versatility of our unique items. We show you how easy it is to use our Mini Herb, Flower, Fruit Crystals® for glass rimming and provide you with a few distinct ways to use our Edible Flowers, Herb Tops and Specialty items to upscale your cocktail. Click an image below to get inspired!




TELL US WHY YOU LOVE US! 

Have any questions, comments, or suggestions? We’d love to hear from you!  Connect with us through Instagram or Facebook.  
From all of us at Fresh Origins, we wish you a Happy New Year. May each day bring you inspiration, happiness and more microgreens!

A Great MicroGreen Recipe for Easter

By | Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens, Recipes | No Comments
Seared Scallops over MicroGreens with Orange Tarragon Vinaigrette with Butter Poached Lobster
Looking for something unique and delicious for Easter? Look no further, try this recipe with some of our premium MicroGreens.
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Vinagrette
  1. 1 cup fresh orange juice
  2. 1 big sprig fresh tarragon
  3. 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
  4. 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  5. 1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
  6. 1/2 cup grapeseed oil
  7. Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Gastrique
  1. 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  2. 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
  3. Salt
  4. 1/2 fresh mango
Lobster
  1. 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  2. 2 lobster tails
  3. 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
  4. 1 clove garlic, minced
  5. 1 shallot, minced
  6. Salt
Crostini
  1. 1 clove garlic
  2. 8 slices baguette, sliced diagonally about 1/4-inch thick
  3. 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  4. 1 tablespoon herbes de Provence
  5. Salt
Assembly
  1. 4 large scallops
  2. Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  3. Grapeseed oil
  4. 1 1/2 cups microgreens of your choosing
  5. 8 MicroGreens Micro Chives
For the vinaigrette
  1. In a small pot, add the orange juice and tarragon sprig. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and reduce the juice by half. When reduced, remove the tarragon sprig and chill the juice in the refrigerator. When cooled, add the white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Whisk together. Slowly drizzle the grapeseed oil while whisking until you get an equal balance of oil to juice. Taste, then adjust the seasoning if necessary. Put aside
For the gastrique
  1. In a small pot, add the sugar, apple cider vinegar, and some salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the mango, and simmer for 15 minutes. Use an immersion blender, blender or even a hand mixer to blend well. Then strain through a fine mesh sieve. (If you don't have a fine sieve, you can use a regular strainer lined with cheese cloth or a clean dish towel.) You want to remove any little bits of mango that the blender missed. Put in the refrigerator to cool. For the lobster: Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the white vinegar. Drop in the lobster tails and simmer them until they just begin to turn bright orange/red. Let cool and remove the lobster meat from the shell. Chop the meat into pieces, just smaller than bite size. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the garlic and shallots. Saute until translucent. Add the remaining butter and melt. Add a good pinch of salt. Add the lobster and stir to coat with the butter. Simmer for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and keep warm.
For the crostini
  1. Preheat the oven broiler. Cut a clove of garlic in half, and rub both sides of the bread with the cut sides of the garlic. Brush one side of the bread with olive oil, and sprinkle very lightly with herbes de Provence and salt. (If you don't have HDP, you can use a mixture of dried thyme, basil, rosemary, marjoram, sage, savory and fennel seeds, or any one of those herbs you happen to have.)
  2. Lay the bread on a cookie sheet and reserve.
To assemble
  1. Start with the scallops. Pat your scallops dry with paper towels. They MUST be dry in order to get a nice sear and crust on the outside. (If you don't, you'll have a scallop just steeping in its own liquid, getting mushy, with no color, sear or flavor.) With a paring knife, score the top of the scallops with a crisscross. You want to just score the outer layer, 1/16-inch deep. Sprinkle the scallops with salt and pepper. In a scorching hot pan with grapeseed oil, put your scallops in scored-side down. Grapeseed oil has a very high smoke point, which allows you to cook at higher temperatures for longer before it starts to smoke and burn. The scallops will tell you when it's ok to lift them and take a peek at your sear. When you're able to pick the scallops up with no resistance at all, you can then take a peek to see if you're ready to flip it. You want a nice rich golden brown color on your scallop. Once you've achieved the proper color, flip your scallops and remove the pan from the heat.
  2. Put your crostini in the oven to toast. Add the vinaigrette to your greens a little at a time. You want to just cover the greens with the vinaigrette, we don't want to drown it. Think light.
  3. Now on each serving plate, place a silver-dollar-size portion of the dressed MicroGreens in the center of the plate. MicroGreens to try: Micro Arugula, Micro Broccoli, Micro Cucumber or create your own creation with MicroGreens. Take a teaspoon of the mango gastrique, and put it on the plate in front of the greens. Then with the back side of the spoon, run it through the middle of the sauce. Take 3 or 4 pieces of the lobster, blot them on a paper towel, then place them in the center of your gastrique schmear. Place your scallop on top of your MicroGreens. Place 2 crostinis off to the side of the scallop. Then cross 2 micro chives over each plate and you're done.
Fresh Origins MicroGreens https://freshorigins.com

Fresh Origins March Tours: Connecting with the Crowd

By | Edible Flowers, Events, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens | 782 Comments

Our 4-week trade show tour through New York, Anaheim, and Las Vegas was a complete success. At each show, we exhibited our new Microgreens and Edible Flowers in our booth, and demonstrated our newest varieties of Herb Crystals™ and Flower Crystals™ with new Fresh Origins recipes. We connected with our new and current customers, and got to be part of the biggest, most entertaining food conventions we’ve ever seen.

“What’s the latest new Fresh Origin product?” our booth visitors asked. This year our Basil, Fennel, Rose, and Mint Herb Crystals™ & Flower Crystals™ took center stage as our featured items. And we had a brand new flavor to show off: Lime crystals. These were a big hit at the Nightclub and Bar Show especially.

Any drink is better with fresh Microgreens & Edible flowers!

The Nightclub and Bar Show, held in Las Vegas, was designed to feel like a popular nightclub: loud music, club lighting, exotic dancers, and ice sculptures with liquor pouring through. Talk about entertaining!

We received great reactions from­ mixologists and bar owners. Many of them had never seen cocktail glasses rimmed with anything like our fresh Herb and Flower Crystals. We caught everyone’s attention with the bright colors of our rimming crystals and drinks garnished with fresh Flowers and Microgreens. 

Kelly Sasuga with our Booth Display

Mixologists are always looking for new cocktail ideas, and ways to reinvent their old ones. Our booth visitors were immediately drawn to the Herb & Flower Crystal’s crunchy texture, their pure, intense flavors and naturally vibrant colors. We enjoyed demonstrating our lime crystals for the first time. These tangy bright green crystals were a hit with bartenders & mixologists — they’re perfect for margaritas!

We brought extra Herb & Flower Crystals to share with other people demonstrating their own products. It was great to see people adding the crystals to their own drink samples – and it gave more people a taste of our bright flavors.

Microgreens and Edible Flowers are a hit with Natural Food Retailers

We brought our fresh Microgreens and Edible Flowers to the Natural Products Show for the first time. The show was the total opposite of the Nightclub and Bar Show, with its emphasis on health and wellness. It was also amazing to see the huge Anaheim Convention Center jam-packed, inside and out – at least 60,000 people attended the expo.

This year, we’re committed to getting our Microgreens, Edible Flowers and Herb and Flower Crystals to the retail customer, so it was great to meet retail distributors and buyers for specialty food stores. People who already knew us were surprised to see us attending this show, and excited to view and sample our new products. We also introduced our new retail organic line of Microgreens and Edible Flowers!

We’re used to mingling with restaurant owners and chefs, so we were excited to speak to a different crowd. Most of the people walking around were very health-conscious. They’re interested in discovering what the latest new healthy foods are, and luckily they found us in the “New Hot Products” area.

Pulmuone USA Booth using our products

We talked with some sponsored athletes – bodybuilders and triathletes – who asked us questions like, “What are the health benefits and the nutritional advantage microgreens have that regular veggies don’t?” Many people, of course, claim that microgreens contain more vitamins and antioxidants than their mature counterparts – but we personally don’t know for sure. What we do know is that microgreens taste terrific and are very healthy.

Each conversation gave us priceless feedback, and we would like to thank everyone who visited our booth. There’s nothing like making new contacts and friendly connections!

 

Kelly Sasuga Talks up Our Herb & Flower Crystals on TV!

By | Edible Flowers, Events, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens | 2,018 Comments

Kelly Sasuga, our research and development Chef, made the news at the Nightclub and Bar Show.  Kelly was interviewed by a new Spanish-language TV show and magazine, Cocktail Aficianado, owned by the well-regarded Cigar Aficianado.

The new venture was seeking the coolest products to feature in its launch. Kelly had the opportunity to talk about the company and our products for cocktails, including mini Herb & Flower Crystals™ glass rimmers, MicroFlowers, Buzz Buttons and our Tiny Veggies.

The show has not aired yet, so stay tuned and we’ll share Kelly’s interview on this blog as soon as the video clip is available.

Celebrating Colorful Crunchy Crystals – How Chefs & Mixologists are using our Herb Crystals® & Flower Crystals®

By | Edible Flowers, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens, Recipes | 935 Comments

Herb & Flower Crystals Bottles Group

Since its arrival earlier this year, our Herb Crystals® & Flower Crystals® line has been very well-received by the culinary community, and their responses are quite humbling. We hear from chefs and home cooks alike that they absolutely love the exotic look these crystals convey and that it has been such a unique and flavorful ingredient to include in their dishes. Pastry Chef Johnny Iuzzini says, “I love the basil crystals, not only for their vibrant flavor but also for the unique texture they impart to my desserts.”

Branching out to the bar scene as well, our Mini Herb Crystals® & Mini Flower Crystals® also got a loud response from cocktail connoisseurs and mixologists.

Feeling like proud parents, we wanted to show off some cool examples of how our customers have enhanced their creations by using our Herb Crystals® & Flower Crystals®, and to debut a few new flavors coming out in a few weeks!

Cocktails and Mini Herb Crystals® & Mini Flower Crystals® – A Perfect Pair

Our March trade show tour was where we really got to show off our stuff to mixologists and cocktail enthusiasts. There we realized that our Mini Herb Crystals® & Mini Flower Crystals® were an immediate hit. Everyone’s eyes were pulled in when we brought out our large display of cocktail glasses rimmed with the different flavors.

The vibrant colors drew their attention but it was after sharing a few tasting samples, when we watched everyone’s faces light up. They were captivated by the crystal’s fresh flavors. Many exclaimed, “Wow, they actually taste like fresh Basil or fresh Mint!” They were also intrigued to see a different substitute for plain white sugar for adding a unique sweetness to any drink, including tea.

The Mini Crystals® are a smaller, more granular than the regular Crystals, making them more adhesive and ideal for rimming cocktail glasses. Instinctively, we invited mixologists to take their creations to the next level and combine our Microgreens, Edible flowers, and Mini Herb Crystals® & Mini Flower Crystals® into their next cocktail concoction!

Check out Mixologists like Junior Merino with his The Big Apple cocktail. Rimming his cocktail with Herb Crystals® Fennel, and garnishing with our Apple Mint Tops. Check out his recipe:

Big Apple Cocktail with Mint Apple Tops & Herb Crystals Fennel Rim by Junior Merino

2 oz Hudson Whiskey

1/2 oz grilled apple juice

1/2 oz cinnamon syrup

3/4 oz fresh lime juice

1/4 oz Xtabentun Mayan Liqueur

1 dash of Junior Merino Roasted Apple & Toasted Spices Bitters

Pour all ingredients into a mixing glass. Add ice and strain into a rocks glass rimmed with Fresh Origins Flower Crystals® Fennel and garnish with a Fresh Origins Apple Mint top.

The high praise and overall review by our mixologist, bartender, and cocktail-lover friends, was more than we could ever ask for. Thank you!

Herb Crystals®, Flower Crystals® & Chocolate! Oh my!

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Its a no-brainer. Our Herb Crystals® & Flower Crystals® make a pretty sweet addition to any chocolate treat. So if you’re a sucker for a box of chocolates or you know of one, check out The Madison Chocolatier West. They are beautifully coating their strawberries with white and dark chocolate and then covering with our Crystals and Crystallized Flowers! These fancy strawberries are not like any regular chocolate covered strawberry you see at the market. They have also put our Crystals on the inside of their chocolate ganache truffles. What a burst of flavor in your mouth. And the Crystals stay crunchy!

They create small batch chocolates, all hand made using the freshest fruits, herbs, spices and ingredients that have no preservatives added. Each ingredient provides unique flavor pairings for exceptional chocolates. Check out their photos here,

Topping New York’s Cronut Craze

Or if pastries suit your fancy, we would like to introduce you to the Cronut. If you haven’t heard of it yet, the Cronut is literally half-croissant, half-doughnut – yes they do exist!

After a few tries, its’ creator French pastry chef Dominique Ansel of Dominique Ansel Bakery, found the winning formula and successfully infused the French classic into a shape of a doughnut. Consisting of layers on layers of flaky-goodness, each Cronut is deep fried in grapeseed oil (like a doughnut), filled with Tahitian vanilla cream, rolled in cinnamon sugar, topped over with a sweet glaze, finished with sprinkle of our Flower Crystals® Rose. Each Cronut runs at $5 a piece and all customers are limited to six per person.

Despite being around for only a month, this pastry delicacy has already made a name for itself. So, we highly recommend you try it out if you’re in the area and make sure to order beforehand or get there early – really early. Watch Zagat’s Bizarre Bites coverage on the Cronut below:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vswiimBEvCk?feature=player_detailpage&w=640&h=360]

Congratulations to pastry chef Dominique Ansel and his revolutionary pastry skills! The world is a better place, now that you’ve created such a pastry gem.

New Herb Crystals® & Flower Crystals® Flavors

Chili-Lime Shrimp, Mango Salsa, Cilantro Rice

Herb Crystals®Cilantro on Chili-Lime Shrimp, with Mango Salsa & Cilantro Rice

We’re very excited announce a new flavor to add to the mix this week: Herb Crystals® Cilantro. It has an amazingly fresh & sweet Cilantro flavor. In a couple weeks we will be introducing Fruit Crystals® Lime and Herb Crystals® Hibiscus. We hope you all enjoy these just like the first batch. Let us know about your experience with our Herb Crystals® & Flower Crystals®. We would greatly appreciate your feedback and would love share your success story with the world!

Fresh Origins at StarChefs International Chef’s Congress 2013

By | Edible Flowers, Events, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens | 792 Comments

Fresh Origins takes home the 2013 Innovator Award

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This year’s 8th Annual Starchefs.com International Chefs Congress in New York City proved to be again, nothing short of amazing. Each year the ICC issues four Innovative Awards, for each category: Food and Beverage, Heavy Equipment, Specialty Equipment, and Tabletop and Smallwares. These achievements are given to culinary businesses and professionals that offer the cutting-edge products on the market today that push forward the culinary frontier. Winners are determined by votes made by the symposium’s attendees.

ICC

This year we entered our Flower Crystals® Hibiscus to compete in the Food and Beverage category and we won! Luckily, many of the culinary professionals there were using our products in competitions, workshops, demonstrations and tasting segments.

Fresh Origins sponsored the Pastry Competition and a Workshop:

Workshop: Micro Greens, Macro Flavor Combinations, a Savory Wrap-up – presented by Chef Philip Foss of El IdeasImagehttp://www.starchefs.com/cook/events/icc/2013/wrap-up/savory

Philip used Fresh Origins Cucumber Blossoms, Micro Cucumber, Micro Tangerine Lace™, Petite Basil Nutmeg™, and TinyVeggies™ Radish, with leaves that can be flash fried for added texture. He proceeded to plate the ingredients two ways: using an array of Mediterranean flavors including braised octopus, Cinqo Jotas Bellota ham, and watermelon, wow!

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Here are some of the other events that featured our Microgreens:

Welcome Dinner: Chef Elizabeth Falkner’s restaurant: Corvo Bianco – Chefs had tables set up and cooked in front of guests – chef station style – they used our products, including Tod Gray, Gabriel Frasca, Alex Talbot, Aki Kamozawa, Adam Marca, Melissa Kelly, and of course Elizabeth Falkner!

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See more photos here:

http://www.starchefs.com/cook/photos/icc-2013-welcome-dinner-corvo-bianco-ny

Eat@ICC – lunch on the trade show floor included pop up restaurants, food stands and booths serving food

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http://www.starchefs.com/cook/events/icc/2013/wrap-up/eat-icc)

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See more photos here:

http://www.starchefs.com/cook/photos/icc-2013-product-fair-new-york-ny

The Vitamix Challenge – you guessed it, a food competition using vitamix blenders http://www.starchefs.com/cook/icc-sponsor/vitamix/vitamix-challenge/201

At the Main Stage, chef demos

http://www.starchefs.com/cook/events/icc/2013/wrap-up/main-stage

The Congress Cocktail – here mixologists served drinks on the trade show floor and used our products for tasting.

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We are so grateful to the many chefs and exhibitors who used our products and to all the attendees that were able to visit and vote for us at our booth – we thank you!Image

Ending the Year with New Festive Flavors – Fruit Crystals® Pumpkin Spice & Cranberry

By | Edible Flowers, Events, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens | 1,365 Comments

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Last November we revisited the Culinary Institute of America’s Worlds of Flavor® International Conference & Festival. It was a wonderful learning experience that brought together hundreds of the world’s finest Chefs. At the World Marketplace, we showcased our two new holiday flavors, Fruit Crystals® Pumpkin Spice and Cranberry.

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During the reception each day and several food demonstrations, lunches & seminars, many of the chefs including one of our own, Chef Kelly Sasuga, enhanced their plates with our Microgreens & Edible Flowers.

One of Kelly’s dishes was a Mini Pumpkin Cheesecake with Chantilly Cream, topped with Fruit Crystals® Pumpkin Spice & Micro Basil:

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This was a huge hit! Attendees really loved the presentation, flavors and textures.

Chef Elizabeth Falkner used our products in her ISI demo!

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Here’s some other food & drink samples from the World Marketplace with our products!

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Up next, we will be making a scene at the New York Produce Show and Conference on December 10th – 12th. So if you are looking to try a sample of our new Fruit Crystals or looking to check out our newest microgreens be sure to come to our booth 234 and say hello!

Brightening the Holiday with What is New on the Farm!

By | Edible Flowers, Herb & Flower Crystals™, MicroGreens | 1,316 Comments

Christmas week is finally here and we at Fresh Origins would like to share with you all what’s new at the farm this season – our Micro Hibiscus and Mini Fruit Crystals® Cranberry! Our featured Winter flower is our MicroFlowers™ Lavendar. Here are a few recipes and taste profiles, surely it will hopefully help you out and spark some new ideas for your upcoming holiday recipes.

Micro HibiscusSesame Crusted Seared Rare Ahi, Wasabi Rice, Hibiscus-Orange Buerre Blanc, Sauteed Veggies

Micro Hibiscus: Sesame Crusted Seared Rare Ahi, Hibiscus-Orange Buerre Blanc, Wasabi Rice, and Sauteed Veggies

Mini Flower Crystals® Cranberry1Cranberry-Rosemary Mojito rimmed with Mini Fruit Crystals® Cranberry

Mini Fruit Crystals® Cranberry: Cranberry-Rosemary Mojito

z MicroFlower™ Micro Lavender Flower™Lavender-Vanilla Honey Custard, Apple-Pecan Crust

MicroFlowers™ Lavender Flower: Lavender-Vanilla Honey Custard, Apple-Pecan Crust

If you are interested in what is new on the farm lately and would like to try some samples, feel free to contact us!

And from all of us here at Fresh Origins, have a very Merry Christmas and a spectacular New Years!