Growing up, one of my favorite fall traditions was carving pumpkins for Halloween. This usually meant covering the kitchen table with newspapers, dusting off my handy-dandy carving tools, helping my mom scoop out the insides of the pumpkin, and creating a simple yet scary face using basic shapes. We enjoyed roasting the resulting pumpkin seeds in the oven, too. I can still smell the nutty scent of those seeds getting crisp while nestling in to watch “It’s the Great Pumpkin, C

An apple a day keeps the doctor away.  We’ve all heard this adage, telling us that if we eat our apples, we could avoid a trip to the doctor’s office. This always got me thinking, what’s so special about an apple, anyway? In many aspects, apples are a unique fruit. According to the Wisconsin Apple Growers Association, apples are one of the best sources of pectin, a type of fiber. Research indicates that pectin limits the cholesterol the body absorbs and may be an important li

I can’t believe I have already completed my first three months as Wisconsin’s 78 th Alice in Dairyland! It feels like my first day was just yesterday, but since I began, I have traveled over 11,000 miles and smiled more times than I can count. I’ve also learned and experienced more than I could ever imagine. As I write this, the leaves are just beginning to shift to golden, amber, and red hues while there’s a familiar hum of harvest in the air as we wrap up September. This t

For many Wisconsin farmers, this change in the seasons means harvest is upon us. You may have seen large tractors and machinery on the...

In the blink of an eye, August came and went with so many beautiful places, people, and products that I had the chance to interact with...