<p>California Giant Berry Farms and Stemilt Growers teamed up to host an exclusive fresh fruit inspired cocktail party in Seattle, WA for food bloggers.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Tom Douglas, a star chef, Seattle restaurateur, and two-time James Beard award winner, and Jody Hall, owner of the popular Cupcake Royale in Seattle, inspired the crowd of 125 food bloggers during the event, according to a press release.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> Both Douglas and Hall shared their thoughts on the food industry, encouraging bloggers to “follow their passion,” and offered advice and stories on how their food businesses thrived via a fresh approach to cooking and emphasis on social responsibility.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> California Giant berries and Stemilt apples and pears were featured in unique savory and sweet bites, as well as fun cocktails and fruit-infused waters during the event. Attendees loved the exclusive recipes Cupcake Royale created for the event, which included Blackberry Crème Brûlée Cupcakes and Salted Caramel Granny Smith Apple Babycakes.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> Coryanne Etienne, well-known food blogger and author of <I>Kitchen Living with Coryanne</i> helped bring the food blogging and fresh produce communities together for the evening. Etienne has featured products from both companies on her iFoodTV channel, and has also hosted Twitter parties on their behalf. Both Stemilt and California Giant Berry Farms have been using the #FreshBloggers hashtag to engage with bloggers about the Seattle event and their joint contest that will send two food bloggers to a popular food blogging conference in 2014.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> “The food blogging community is passionate about fresh fruit and farming, and we wanted to celebrate that through a unique event and contest,” said Brianna Shales, Stemilt communications manager. “It’s been fun to team up with California Giant Berry Farms, who like us is family-owned, to share our story and healthy products with such an influential audience.”<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> “We are excited about engaging with food bloggers that are really providing a fun and interactive experience for moms looking for new ways to cook for their family and entertain at home,” said Cindy Jewell, Director of Marketing for California Giant Berry Farms. “Building relationships with food bloggers and with innovative produce companies like Stemilt helps us extend our reach to consumers through social media.”<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.calgiant.com" target="_new"> California Giant Berry Farms </a><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.stemilt.com" target="_new"> Stemilt </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
