Fruits, Nuts and Chocolates: Valentine’s Day Treats

Valentine’s Day means it’s time for fruity, nutty and chocolatey sweets and we’re your go-to place for just the right gifts. Our beautiful Gift Crates, Trays and Baskets will win the heart of your special valentine, including our California Traditional Crate with Chocolates, our Fruits & Chocolate Cherries gift basket, our Fruits & Chocolates Mix or our Organic Gift Crates and Trays! Or go cute and sweet with our Cupid’s Delight, a 4-ounce package of our Chocolate Covered Cherries in a heart-shaped box with a glittery vintage greeting card. Mix and match with our Chocolate Covered Bing Cherries, Chocolate Covered Strawberries, Chocolate Covered Cranberries,

Gifts and Chocolates: Happy Recipients Ahead!

When gifting your friends, family and business associates, it feels good to give them something that has some healthy virtues while looking really nice, right? We’re great at making this happen! Whether you want to give big or more modestly, we have just the right Gift Crates, Gift Baskets, Gift Trays and Chocolates to delight your favorite people! The team at Bella Viva Orchards is proud of the quality of our dried fruits, nuts and chocolates. From the orchard to your table, every step is taken to ensure that you love what you order. Each Gift Basket and Gift Crate item is personally-selected and

Fire up the Oven: Your Holiday Baking Essentials Are Here!

When you think of holiday baking, we’ll bet you think about nuts and dried fruits. That’s great, ‘cause we have your holiday baking essentials right here! While there are too many to mention, we’re highlighting just a few of our faves here! Holiday recipes calling for flour get healthier when you use our Almond Flour, which is tasty and has all the benefits of Almonds including being gluten-free, higher in protein and lower in sugar than wheat flour. Substitute it or combine it with wheat flour for extra goodness. Also, perfect for fruitcakes and more, our Natural Dried Muscat Raisins are plump and have

In the Kitchen: Cherry Scones

Easy to Make Cherry Scones: These fast and easy cherry scones are a flavor-packed and healthy way to enjoy Bella Viva Orchards’ sweet and plump Dried Cherries, our tasty Almond Flour and Sliced California Almonds. They have just the right amount of sweetness and flakiness and make a beautiful addition to your weekend brunch. They also make a nice weekday breakfast treat. Total Time: 25-30 minutes Yields: 10 Scones Prep Time: 10 Cook Time: 15-20 min. Ingredients: 2 cups packed down Bella Viva Orchards Almond Flour 1 heaping Tbs baking powder ½ tsp finely ground sea salt ¾ c to 1 cup sugar (to

A Brief History of Dried Fruit

Where It All Began: If you’re like a lot of people, you enjoy snacking on dried fruit. Have you ever stopped to think about how the idea of drying came about? Drying fruit has been around for centuries and is the process of extracting most of the original water content from the fruit. When fresh food was tougher to come by, having dried fruit on hand stood in place of fresh fruit in our diets. The main idea of drying fruit was to help preserve it; dried fruit lasts a lot longer than fresh fruit and is a lot easier to keep on hand.

In the Kitchen: Healthy Homemade Granola

Easy to Make Granola Recipe: Quick, easy, and healthy, you can’t go wrong with this homemade Bella Viva granola. This flourless, crunchy snack is packed with flavor and healthy fats! Unlike traditional granola, this recipe uses nuts and flax seed as the base which contain omega-3 fatty acids. You can even add 1 cup of your favorite Bella Viva dried fruits and nuts to make it your own! Total Time: 50 minutes Serves: 6 Yields: 6 Cups Prep Time: 15 min. Bake Time: 30 – 40 min. Ingredients: 1 ½ cups raw walnuts 1 ½ cups raw cashews 2 cups oats 1 cup ground

Bees and Blossoms

Blossoms Bring Beauty to the Central Valley: California accounts for producing over two-thirds of the nation’s entire fruit and nut supply. Thousands of people travel to the Central Valley every year to see and take pictures of the spectacular sight of the fruit and nut trees in full bloom (01). In fact, there are hundreds of different varieties of produce grown throughout the Central Valley. Popular crops found here include almonds, nectarines, peaches, plums and pluots, cherries and apricots. Alongside each crop is a different type of blossom and not all bloom at the same time. Some of the blossoms might look similar to

In the Kitchen: Persimmon Cookie Recipe

Persimmon Cookies: These cookies are chock full of walnuts and warm spices so they really are the perfect cookie for fall. They also freeze well, so you can make a bunch of them now to enjoy throughout the winter. Along with fresh persimmons and walnuts, we love to add Bella Viva dried cherries for a delicious and healthy bite. Enjoy! Total Time: 30 minutes Serves: 6 Ingredients: 1/2 cup shortening 1 cup sugar 1 egg 1 cup persimmon pulp 2 cups all purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon cloves 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 1 cup chopped

Oranges – March 2016

Beautiful California Oranges: March is the most beautiful time of year in the Bella Viva Orchards. Almonds, cherries, apricots, plums and many other fruit trees are in full bloom. But, right now the new orange crop is in and it is as sweet as ever! Throughout the grove branches are weighed down by these juicy glowing gems. Recently, the air around the dehydrators has been thick with the fragrance of ripe oranges. Our proprietary drying method preserves that fresh flavor and aroma perfectly so you can enjoy these dried oranges year round. Come on down to the store or order online and enjoy the

Sweet and Salty Fig Bars

Congratulations to Debra D. for winning second prize in the 2015 Bella Viva Recipe Contest! Her sweet and salty fig bars were delicious. We enjoyed the unique blend of flavors and the buttery rich taste. The beauty of this recipe is you can mix and match any dried fruit and nuts, such as: raisins, dates, prunes, apricots or cherries. Ingredients: ¾ cup dried figs ¾ cup water ½ cup butter (coconut oil might work, haven’t tested yet) 3 tablespoons coconut sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1¼ cup blanched almond flour ⅛ teaspoon baking soda ¾ cup chopped walnuts (or more) sea salt or Himalayan salt