Greetings and Happy 2012 from the Bakers at Milton’s! Did you get a gift basket at the office or a gift from a friend with some Milton’s Crackers or Bread? Wondering to yourself, “This is so yummy! I need to get more! Where do I find it?”

We have a solution for you!

In our quest to bring our best in all that we offer to our loyal fans, we are proud to introduce our “Buy Milton’s in Your Neighborhood” Online Product Finder located in the top left corner of our home page. Just pick the product (bread or crackers) that you want, enter a zip code and select a search radius to get a list of retailers near you complete with addresses, phone numbers, and map links! Yes. It really is that easy!

Now, there are a few wonderful retailers listed on our Online Product Finder page that won’t show up in the results. Such as Trader Joe’s, Costco, Sam’s Club and Walmart. But we can help you with info on those retailers & other info too.

Here’s how:
1. Send us an inquiry through our Talk to Us web form. This is also a great place to ask other questions and send your suggestions and stories! You will receive a prompt response from one of our friendly bakers.
2. Like us on Facebook and post your question on our fan page. Our fan page is also a great place to get updates on the latest Milton’s happenings and “share the love” with other fans in Milton’s community.
3. Short on time? Or words? Send us a Tweet. Yes, the Bakers are on Twitter!

Bringing our best to our loyal Multi-Graniacs,
The Bakers @ Milton’s

Santa has the busiest job on Earth. Whenever we get stressed out about baking and delivering bread and crackers around the world, we just have to stop and think that Santa has to do it all in one night! Statistical reports vary, but Santa has to visit anywhere between 132 million to 3.2 billion homes in one night! Santa needs his energy!

So after a long day of getting his sleigh ready, sometimes wrapping gifts at the last minute in the living room on Christmas Eve hoping the kids won’t wake up and catch him, Santa might need more than a cookie to keep him going. That’s where our Soft Baked Trail Mix Bites come in handy!

NEW Trail Mix Bites

Available exclusively at Costco in select regions:
NEW! Pacific Northwest – WA, OR, ID, UT, MT
NEW! Texas – Coming to clubs week before New Years!
Hawaii – Aloha
Midwest – IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MI, MN, MO, NE, OH, WI
Southern California – Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties all the way up to San Luis Obispo

On behalf of all the bakers at Milton’s, we wish you and your families a wonderful holiday season filled with joy, laughter, and love. Cheers to a Happy 2012!

As we reflect on all that we are thankful for this year, we would like to thank our loyal fans for supporting us in our journey to deliver all natural, healthy, and delicious baked foods for your families. The bakery is closing early today so we can enjoy our long weekend with our loved ones…and the bakers here are talkin’ turkey today! It just us, or does the turkey taste even better the next day?

See below for one of our favorite Thanksgiving leftover recipe. It’ll help clear out your fridge and make your hungry houseguests happy after a long day of Black Friday Shopping. A new favorite this year is our Squaw Bread! Available at most grocery stores in Southern California and loaded with whole grains, this dark and hearty bread is mildly sweet thanks to a hint of honey and is perfect for our Turkey Cranberry Sandwich recipe. The combination of sweet and savory is delicious!

Turkey Cranberry Sandwiches

Ingredients:
Squaw Bread (or favorite bread)
Mayonnaise
Cranberry Sauce (leftover from Thanksgiving Dinner)
Leftover Turkey (white or dark meat)
Provolone
Lettuce
Red Onion, sliced thinly
Granny Smith Apple Slices (optional for added treat!)

Directions:
Spread mayonnaise on each bread slice, then top with cranberry sauce. Layer remaining ingredients on bread and close up for a delicious sandwich. Note, if your turkey is not pre-seasoned, sprinkle with salt and pepper before serving.

We wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend filled with happy faces, warm hearts, and full tummies!

One of the great things about San Diego, where Milton’s started, is the many veterans and men and women in uniform who are a vital part of the community. Today, San Diego is hosting the first ever Carrier Classic where the Michigan State Spartans are set to take on The University of North Carolina Tar Heels in the first-ever college basketball game aboard a United States Navy Aircraft Carrier – The USS Carl Vinson.

One of the little known facts about Milton’s is that our products are served and sold in military commissaries here in the US and around the world. Our bread in particular is fresh baked locally in Asia, Europe, and in the Persian Gulf, and served to our men and women in uniform. Many veterans returning home from deployment write to us to find where our products are available locally in their neighborhood.

As we reflect on our blessings, we offer special tribute to our military servicemen and women. This Veterans Day, while our men and women overseas feel apart from their loved ones, take some time to thank them for their sacrifice. We say thank you to the Air Force, Navy, Marines, Army, National Guard, and Coast Guard personnel who protect our freedoms and keep our nation secure.

We’ll keep the ovens on, and the bread baking – and look forward to your return.

Which cracker is #1 according to Every Day with Rachael Ray Magazine? The EMGCs! (Everything Multi-Grain Crackers) “Crazy Good” and Delish crackers inspired by the everything bagel and perfect for all occasions. Rachael’s new November 2011 issue is out on newsstands now and it’s her biggest issue with 40+ bonus pages, 322 ideas, 121 recipes, 9 menus, & our Everything Crackers on page 74! Thanks Rach!

While Halloween is a time to have some fun and indulge in delicious candy, many parents worry that all their hard work in teaching children to make healthy choices will go down the drain. Have no fear! Healthy choices can taste indulgent! Many say the flavor of our soft baked Trail Mix Bites is like a PB&J. Now who doesn’t love that?!

These all natural melt-in-your-mouth morsels of wholesome goodness are the perfect snack to hand out to trick or treaters. Many parents try to ration their child’s candy stash throughout the weeks following Halloween – but leftover Trail Mix Bites can be breakfast, afterschool snacks, and even dessert! With 12g of Whole Grains, 5g of Protein, and 10 vitamins and minerals per serving, you’ll know your child is getting great nutrition. Available in individual grab & go packs of 16 at Costco in Orange County, Riverside, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Hawaii, and throughout the Midwest.

At Milton’s, we try our best every day to make delicious and wholesome foods so it’s easier for you to make healthy choices. Now the hardest thing about Halloween will be what to wear! May we suggest dressing up as a Baker?

Our bakers are proud to introduce Milton’s NEW Soft Baked Trail Mix Bites! These soft and chewy morsels of deliciousness are nothing like a granola bar or trail mix…they are soft baked melt-in-your mouth bites of tart cranberries, creamy peanut butter, sunflower seeds, California raisins, pumpkin seeds, and toasted barley.

Love at First “Bite”
Our NEW Soft Baked Trail Mix Bites are sold exclusively at Costco and are launching this month in the select regions. See below for details:

CALIFORNIA: All Costcos in Los Angeles, Riverside, Orange County, San Bernardino and all the way up to San Luis Obispo.
Demo dates: Sunday 10/9, Thursday 10/13, Saturday 10/15, Monday 10/17, and Friday 10/28.

MIDWEST: All Costcos in Illinois, Michigan, Minneapolis, Wisconsin, Missouri, Iowa, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Kansas and Nebraska.
Demo Dates: Friday 10/7, Thursday 10/13, Monday 10/17, Saturday 10/22, Wednesday 10/26

HAWAII: All Costcos
Demo Date: Monday 10/24

Packed with 12g of Whole Grains, 5g of Protein, and 6g of Fiber in each Single Serve pouch, these healthy bites are a delicious way to fuel your day. We’ve had a lot of long nights at the bakery working tirelessly on perfecting this recipe. Some bakers have actually had these for breakfast, lunch, and dinner to help get them through the day. Another baker took these along on his triathlon for a quick energy boosting snack.

We know that grown-ups love them, but these soft bites are also perfect for kids since they are easy for little mouths to chew and have whole grains that are gentle on tiny tummies. Some of our junior bakers have enjoyed them for quick breakfasts on the morning bus or as an afterschool snack before the big soccer game.

We hope you enjoy our new Trail Mix Bites as much as we have loved baking them. If you are in one of the regions where we are starting out, please stop by one of our upcoming demos and let us know what you think.

Why are we called Milton’s?  Who is Milton?  Person, Place, or Thing? There are many questions and surprising coincidences (cue mysterious sounding sci-fi music) revolving around the origins of the name Milton, in Milton’s Baking Company.

The Theories:

#1) One theory is that we are named after the 1600’s era English poet John Milton who was born on Bread Street in London, and is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost.

#2) Keeping with the English theme, it is rumored that we started in Milton Keynes outside of London where there are historic markets that are still active today.

#3) Another theory is that we are named after the town of Milton in Massachusetts where crackers are said to have been invented by Josiah Bent in 1801 to feed sailors, soldiers, and pioneers on their long voyages.

The Truth:

Milton’s Restaurant and Delicatessen ® was founded in Del Mar California by two friends from Chicago, David Levy and Barry Robbins  in 1995. The restaurant would bake bread for their sandwiches and customers began to ask, “Where can I buy this bread?” Thus began Milton’s Baking Company.

The friends were guided by a strong and principled man, David’s father Milton. David shares that, “Milton inspired us to be the best we could be, in business and in life. He taught us to set high standards and strive for new levels of excellence and never to be satisfied unless our customers were.” One day Milton stopped offering suggestions and advice to them, when asked why, Milton simply stated, “You’re finally doing things right.”

Our founders will never forget what Milton taught them, and today our bakers still follow the same principles of excellence. This Father’s Day, we honor all of our fathers and father figures in our lives who give us love, advice, and the reassurance we need to grow and, hopefully, pass on to our children someday.  So keep up the good work Dads!  Your love and guidance means the world to us!

To learn more about Milton’s Restaurant or to go enjoy a delicious meal there yourself please visit http://www.miltonsdeli.com/.

Did you know that Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day?  It began during the civil war when women decorated the graves of fallen soldiers. Since World War I it was officially recognized as a day of remembrance for all who have given their lives in our nation’s service. While many Americans have Memorial Day celebrations, it’s the sacrifices of our brave military men and women who have protected our freedoms and our national security that allow us all to celebrate together. 

Keeping with the spirit of freedom, celebration, and decoration – we at Milton’s invite you to decorate our crackers with delicious and colorful toppings to entertain family and friends. A delicious and easy complement to your holiday weekend barbecues and picnics is our Honey Raspberry Delights recipe. This quick and simple recipe is an easy dessert or a nice refreshing sweet treat between savory party foods – print out the recipe here. Drop us a line after the long weekend and tell us how much your family and friends liked it!

One of the little known facts about Milton’s is that our products are served, baked, and sold in military commissaries here in the US and around the world. So as we reflect on our blessings, we offer special tribute to our military servicemen and women. This Memorial Day as we decorate, celebrate, and remember our loved ones - we at Milton’s would like to thank our military, both at home and abroad, for their service and for all that they do to protect our freedoms and keep our nation secure. 

We’ll keep the ovens on – and look forward to your return.

It’s always a challenge when you have a lot of leftovers.  Sometimes your family just doesn’t want the same thing over and over again and it can be a struggle to come up with something different for dinner without being wasteful.  Well, last weekend, I had a leftover Milton’s moment of genius! 

Here in So Cal, in addition to our multi-grain addiction to Milton’s bread and crackers, we also love to eat tacos.  After a mini taco fiesta, I was left with a lot of leftover taco meat and toppings, but (*gasp*) no tortillas!  So after a bit of indecision/panic of what to do for dinner, I looked over at my bag of Milton’s Gourmet White Hamburger Buns (exclusively at Trader Joes) and the lightbulb lit up!

We are proud to introduce to you the new spicy twist on the traditional Sloppy Joe…we call them Taco Joes!  My family was so excited when I served these up, that I think I might just make them for dinner instead of tacos from now on. The soft bread combined with the crunchy lettuce and the spicy hot sauce made for a delicious combination. Our breads and buns really hold up well to a lot of soggy ingredients so whether you’re serving Sloppy Joes or Taco Joes, it won’t be nearly as “sloppy” as you’d expect.

Milton’s Taco Joes Recipe: Serves 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes for leftovers, 30 minutes for fresh preparation

Ingredients:
4  Milton’s Gourmet White Hamburger Buns or 8 slices of Milton’s Multi-Grain bread
1 pound of leftover taco meat -or- 1 pound freshly cooked ground beef or turkey seasoned with cumin, chili powder, garlic salt, pepper, onions, etc.
1-2 cups shredded lettuce
4 tablespoons sour cream
1/2 – 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup of diced tomatoes
Salsa or Hot Sauce to taste

Additional toppings can include: black olives, guacamole or sliced avocado, onions, peppers, etc. Lightly toast buns or bread slices.  Re-heat or cook taco meat and pile on top of one slice or bun half.  Top hot meat with shredded cheese (to get melted) and then pile on all your favorite taco toppings listed above and serve either open faced or as a sandwich.  Don’t forget the napkins!

We hope you enjoy this fun new way to enjoy Milton’s.  What’s your favorite thing to do with leftovers?  Let us know in the comments below!