Picnics do not have to be limited to the park. You can also have your picnic in other locations, such as, the pool, baseball field, soccer field and many other places depending on your plan for that day.

We made two recipes in our Rada Cutlery Test kitchen that will help you pack a perfect picnic for you and your children. Both recipes are fun finger food so the silverware can be left at home.

The first recipe is a refreshingly, sweet apple berry salsa that can be made in minutes. It is the perfect companion to a picnic lunch and can be served with cinnamon pita chips or cinnamon tortilla chips.

What you will need…

• 2 medium apples
• 2 kiwi
• 1 orange
• 2 C. fresh or frozen strawberries
• 2 T. brown sugar
• 2 T. orange juice
• 2 T. apple jelly
• Measuring utensils, paring knife, mixing spoon, food chopper, measuring cup and spoons.

Cooking instructions…

1. First dice apples.
2. Then use chopper to chop the rest of it. *Note: Your salsa thickness preference will decide how much you chop the salsa. The more you chop the thinner the salsa will be.
3. Finally mix all together and serve with chips.

The second recipe is a turkey ranch wrap that is easy to make and your kids can help assemble the wraps. The recipe can be easily modified with ingredients of your choosing. The recipe we used makes four wraps.

What you will need…

Turkey Ranch Wraps

• 8 turkey deli slices
• 4 flour tortillas (7 in)
• 1 large tomato, thinly sliced
• 1 medium green pepper, cut into thin strips
• 1 cup shredded lettuce
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/3 cup Ranch salad dressing
• Knife (Rada’s tomato slicer is perfect for cutting tomatoes without squishing them)

Cooking instructions…

1. Place two slices of turkey on each tortilla.
2. Layer with tomato, green pepper, lettuce and cheese.
3. Drizzle with salad dressing.
4. Roll up tightly.
5. Refrigerate or keep in a cooler until you are ready for your picnic or serve immediately.

Along with your picnic lunch pack a craft or activity for your kids to make outside. If you are looking for some ideas here are 60 different summer activities your kids will love. This list includes everything from making homemade stamps to activities like creating a fun obstacle course.

Rada Cutlery has many kitchen utensils and products that would be perfect for a high school graduate or college graduate.

Below is a sample basket where we selected a variety of different items we thought would be useful for a college student and arranged them in a basket for a unique, customizable gift. You can choose your favorite items when developing your graduation gifts.

In our basket we included:

Pizza Cutter: Pizza is a college student’s best friend and for those with a pizzazz or pizza oven this pizza cutter will definitely come in handy. The cutter can quickly cut all types of pizza from frozen to homemade.

Ice Cream Scoop: Ice cream is a basic food group for some college students so we thought this would be a perfect item to include in our gift basket. Rada’s ice cream scoop serves the hardest ice cream with ease.

Paring knife: This knife is small and comes in handy for a college student. It is the perfect introduction, for your graduate, to the Rada Cutlery’s knife selection, and it very useful for cutting foods, like fruit.

Rada Quick-Grip-Clips: These clips are perfect for resealing bags, especially chip bags. The Rada Quick-Grip-Clip seals the bag so securely you can carry the bag by the clip without worrying about it slipping out.

Oodles and Oodles of Ramen Noodles: When a person thinks of a stereotypical college student they probably picture them eating Ramen. This cookbook provides recipes for meals and even desserts using this affordable ingredient.

Quick Mixes: At Rada we offer a variety of Quick Mixes including soups, dips and sauces. We included Quick Mixes from our 6 different soups that provide a homemade taste and are easy to make, like the Cheddar Broccoli Soup and the Baked Potato Soup.

Peanut Butter cookbook: The Peanut Butter cookbook has fun, easy to make recipes with peanut butter as the main ingredient. The cookbook is pocket sized so it is very easy to store. Rada also offers 7 other books focusing on one main ingredient, like bananas and chocolate, with 101 recipes.

Candles: Lit candles are usually not allowed in most dorm rooms but candle warmers are allowed. All the candles we sell are made from 100% stabilized natural soy wax-a biodegradable resource. There are 14 different scents to choose from and two sizes to choose from, a 16 ounce and 4 ounce candle.

For more tips on arranging gift baskets visit eHow and watch their series on making gift baskets. All the heading of the products listed are clickable to allow an easy shopping experience for your graduation gifts.

Rada Cutlery has been working with fundraising groups since 1948.  Based on over 60 years of experience with helping groups fundraise, we have compiled of list of five common mistakes that can hurt your school fundraiser. For successful fundraising, avoid:  1) lack of organization, 2) not setting deadlines, 3) failing to communicate your cause, 4) loosing order takers and 5) failing to hold a fundraiser kickoff.

1. Unorganized. An unorganized fundraiser can become a headache for a leader from the very beginning. If a leader does not have a fundraising strategy in place for their class or school before the fundraiser starts this can lead to confusion and affect the amount of selling the students do.

Make sure you know about the company you are selling with and any policies they have in place. Then communicate these policies to the students. One of the serious issues some leaders face is collecting the money. When fundraising with Rada Cutlery we suggest you collect the money at the time the sale is made. This helps avoid confusion when it is time to deliver the products. Make sure to communicate with your students when you would like the money collected.

2. No set deadline. A successful fundraiser needs to have a defined start and end date. Students need to be aware of the end date because it can become frustrating and confusing for leaders when late order forms are submitted. Usually, school fundraisers span two to three weeks. This provides an adequate amount of time for students to sell without them loosing interest in the fundraiser. Providing students periodic reminders will help nudge them to keep contacting friends and family about the fundraiser.

3. Loosing order takers. This can be an issue with students, especially younger students participating in the fundraiser. Loosing an order taker frustrates the customer and may create a negative relationship between the customers and the schools. It is really important that leaders stress the importance of the order takers to students. For younger children fundraising leaders may want to consider sending a letter home to the parents so they are aware the fundraiser is occurring and will know when the order taker needs to be returned.

4. Fundraiser’s purpose. Not communicating why your group is raising funds is another very common mistake that can harm the success of your school fundraiser. When a customer knows what their money will be used for they will be more likely to be supportive. For example, if a student is raising money for a class trip tell that to your customer when approaching them. This helps the customer know that their purchase is going to make a difference.

5. Fundraiser kickoff. Holding a kickoff for your fundraiser is something many groups fail to do when fundraising – and it can hurt the amount of products they sell. As the leader of your school fundraiser instead of just passing out the materials and having them begin, gather everyone together for a short meeting. Share with them the importance of this fundraiser and how it will benefit them as students. This will hopefully spark some enthusiasm with the students and increase your school’s sales which will lead to more profits for your cause!

Th benefits of an herb garden are similar to a vegetable garden. The fresh herbs will be used in your cooking and make your cooking even better.

When deciding to start a herb garden, the location is something you need to consider. Are you going to plant your herbs in the ground? Or grow them in a container? Both options have their benefits.

Traditional Gardening

When planting herbs in the ground it is convenient to plant it near the kitchen so you have easy access when cooking. Other factors to consider are the type of soil and the amount of sun your location will have. Drainage is very important when growing herbs so you will want to use a looser soil. Most herbs also do well in full sunlight – so keep this in mind when choosing a location.

Container Gardening

If you choose to grow your herbs in a container, the most important thing to remember is choosing the appropriate sized container.  A container with a minimum of one gallon capacity is ideal for each herb. If you are planting more than one herb in a container make sure they are spaced out.

One benefit to container gardening is the mobility of the plants. You can move the container easily to make sure the plants are getting an adequate amount of sunlight.

Selecting herbs

Some of the more commonly grown herbs are:

Dill: the seeds are used for pickling and are usually harvested in late summer.

Thyme: the fresh leaves can be used at any time. It is often used in soups, salads and even in pizza.

Oregano: this plant spreads quickly so be aware of this when choosing a location to plant. Harvest only when you are ready to use the leaf immediately after. The oregano leaves are also used to top pizza, in stir fry and can be used in a grilled cheese.

Parsley: this plant is very rich in vitamins and is best to eat fresh instead of dried. Parsley is often used in dressings, on fish and in salsa.

Rosemary: the plant can be used fresh or dried. If used fresh be sure to remove the stems before serving the dish or chop very finely. It is often used with lamb, to make shish kabobs and in Red Stew.

Sage: the sage leaves are used dried and fresh. The purple blooms from the plants are often used in flower arrangements or as a garnish. It is often used when cooking stuffing, meats and fruits with vinegar.

Basil: when the plant is about a foot tall the first harvest can usually take place. Basil is used when making pesto, bruschetta and different pasta dishes.

For more tips on planting and growing herbs visit the Rada Cutlery’s Facebook page or Herb Fest.

The marching band from Sweet Water High School in Alabama is one of the many schools that fund raise by selling Rada Cutlery. Paul is the director of the Sweet Water Band that includes about 60 students. Paul’s band is selling Rada Cutlery products for their second year to help raise funds for his group.

Paul contacted us recently to share his fundraising experiences. He said he encourages his students to set individual goals for the amount they want to fundraise according to the band fees the students are applying their profit.

This school year, the Sweet Water High School Band fund raised for the band to take a spring trip. The 40 percent Rada Cutlery fundraiser’s profit allowed students to reach above and beyond their goals.

“We had several members who raised enough money to pay off their spring trip with the band,” said Paul. “We also had three members who raised so much money that they not only paid off their trips, they also helped other students pay off their spring trips.”

Paul said his group enjoys their annual Rada fundraising. The Sweet Water High School Band chooses to sell using the traditional method of catalogs and order takers. However, they also use the free Internet Fundraising option to allow their of town friends and family to log in and place an order. These orders are shipped directly to the supporter and the band receives the same amount of profit as if it was sold face to face.

“The online ordering makes it so much easier for students to sell items to their relatives who live out of county or even out of state,” said Paul.

Rada Mfg. Co. has been helping non-profit groups raise money for their causes since 1948. The easy fund raising system has evolved over the decades to make it as straight forward as possible for both the leaders and sellers.

“Items are always shipped quickly. If there are any mistakes in an order, they are quickly fixed,” Paul said. The Rada Cutlery customer service team enjoys helping fundraising groups be successful. Rada Cutlery products are 100% made in the USA and always in inventory.

Supporters appreciate being able to select useful products that they want and need while supporting the cause. Groups work directly with the factory so there are no middlemen that add costs for the fundraiser’s customers.

If you are part of a school organization and are interested in fundraising with Rada Cutlery click here to request a catalog.

 —–Original Message—–

Hello!

I am gathering information on several fundraising opportunities for our high school chorale group.

We are in search of the easiest, quickest- selling, most desirable fundraising tools your company has to offer. We need a product that almost sells itself and has a high profit. This fundraiser will help our children get to the places they need to go for their choral competitions abroad.

Please tell me why your company can do this and what you have to offer in helping us make this an easy task. In other words, sell me on why we should choose your company; i.e., time needed for ordering, how the order is processed, how long for turn around, if your company packs it per seller…what do we have to do as the buyer vs. your company as the vendor. Does your company ever run out of offerings in your catalog, well stocked, etc. Do some schools ever just choose a few items, in the event we can get bulk pricing?

Also, what is the percentage our school would get to keep from the fundraiser? Are there certain products that warrant a higher percentage and if so, what are they?

Thanks so much for your time and we look forward to working with you! A quick response would be helpful.

Thank you!

Heidi

—–Response—–

Heidi,

Thank you for your interest in our fundraising system. We are confident that you will enjoy our easy system and fast service while selling quality American made products. We have over 19,000 groups that fundraise with Rada each year. In fact, many groups do Rada fundraisers several times each year, year after year. Our products are known to “sell themselves” so once your customers see the quality and value of our products, they want to order more the next time you have a fundraiser. Our products are all American Made and carry a lifetime guarantee. Your group will realize a 40% profit selling Rada products.

Typically, groups sell from our catalogs, turn the orders in to the leader, and the leader places the order with Rada. If your group sells at least $1,000, which won’t be difficult, we can sort your order per salesperson for you at no extra charge. This means that the entire order will be shipped to one address that you choose and in that order will be an individual package for each salesperson. This eliminates the sorting hassle for the leader. You can schedule a pickup time for the parents to pick up their child’s order so the kids never need to handle the knives, etc. Our individual knives are packaged with a cardboard sleeve on each blade and then sealed in a poly bag for safety. The individual utensils are poly bagged as well. These sorted orders can either be mailed to Rada or entered on our online system.

Heidi, we will be happy to send you our fundraising information packet which includes a current catalog, order form, order taker, and our Easy Guide to Fundraising. Our Easy Guide has a lot of helpful information on how to fundraise with Rada. Would you like the information packet mailed to you as well?  Also, please visit our website to see what we offer, our guarantee, ordering options, etc.

We are convinced that you will be happy you chose Rada.

The most popular Rada Cutlery fundraising option is to take orders with the 32 page catalog and order takers.  However, many Church Youth Groups choose our Express Sales option – selling two of our best sellers, the paring knife and the vegetable peeler, packaged in tubes.

Each box includes 24 knives or peelers in safe plastic tubes. For every box of paring knives sold the group receives a $44.15 profit.  Selling a box of peelers nets $57.35 in profits for the youth group.

Youth Groups often sell after church service – usually from a card table. Customers really appreciate receiving the product immediately.  Many groups who start with the Express Sales approach later decide to sell from the catalog based on requests from their customers.

Many Youth Groups have found success with Rada Fundraising. Everything we offer is 100 percent made in the USA. This is a great selling point. We also make and ship everything from our factory in Waverly, Iowa. By doing this we are able to offer groups the best product at the best price for organizations, like Youth Groups.

Below are a few recent comments from Church Youth Groups that have fundraised previously with Rada Cutlery when requesting new catalogs.

Souled Out Youth Ministries from Ohio said, “This will be our second time doing the fundraiser; it went great last time raised almost $200 for our Youth Ministry!”

Pentecostals of Mittie Youth Group from Louisiana said, “We have done this fundraiser before and have been very pleased. We are excited to get started again.”

Hill Creek Baptist Youth from Virginia said, “Rada Knives is one of the best fund raisers we have ever participated in, because everyone has heard of your wonderful products.”

Salem 1st Assembly of God youth from Arkansas said, “Hello, we would like to do another fundraiser starting the first part of November and go until just before Thanksgiving.  We have done some in the past and hope it will not be a problem.  We love this product and will do a good job selling it.”

If your Youth Group thinks fundraising with Rada Cutlery is right for them call 1-800-311-9691 or visit our webpage to request a catalog. Or if you are interested in starting a Youth Group at your church, some nationally recognized Youth Groups include Simple Youth Ministry, Acquire the Fire and Youth For Christ.

Fresh fruit bouquets are very simple to make and are a healthy treat that can be enjoyed by many. At Rada Cutlery we offer a Fruit Bouquet Cookbook. This book will show you step by step how to make fruit bouquets.

In the Rada Cutlery Test Kitchen we made a version of the basket of daisies edible fruit bouquet by following these simple steps.

Supplies: 2 or 3 pineapples, grapes, 2 bananas, grapefruit, knife or cookie cutter, wooden skewers, and a bucket or basket to display it in. (The amount of fruit you use will vary on the size of the bouquet you would like to make.)

How to make a fruit bouquet:

1. Slice your pineapple in about ½ inch slices and remove the peel.

2. Take a knife and cut around the edges to make a flower look or use a flower cookie cutter if you have one.

3. Repeat the first two steps to create the flowers for your fruit bouquet.

4. When you finish creating your pineapple flowers stick the skewers through the core or center of the flowers.

5. Add a grape to the end of the skewer for the center.

6. Place a grapefruit in the bottom of your display container.

7. Stick the grape and pineapple flower on the skewer into the grapefruit.

8. Repeat the steps and until you have the desired amount of flowers in the bouquet. You may need to shorten the sticks as you arrange them.

9. For foliage slice bananas and slide them on the skewers to fill any spaces in your bouquet. (You only need a few slices on the skewer since most of the stick will be hidden.)

10. Enjoy!

If your mother has a sweet tooth Rada Cutlery also offers a Candy Bouquet Cookbook and a Cookie Bouquet Cookbook. This fall we will also be introducing a new cookbook as part of the gift series called Dessert Bouquets.

This Mother’s Day remember those who are in need Women for Women is an international organization that helps provide food, clean water and clothing for mothers and their children in war-torn countries.

Why are TOPS Clubs choosing Rada?

We are not your average fundraiser – we don’t offer cookie dough, candy bars, magazines or wrapping paper. What we do offer is an unique fundraising idea that our customers have told us practically sells itself. Rada Cutlery’s knives and other products are 100% made in the USAand your group will receive a 40% profit of everything sold.

TOPS is a large non-profit weight-loss support group that helps people on their journey while they lose weight. Around 10,000 chapters exist between Canada and the United. The group started in 1948 by a woman who wanted to use the power of support from her peers while they strived for thinner figure and an overall improved health.

Why TOPS fundraises?

Many members of Take Off Pounds Sensibly fundraise for reasons such as attending conferences. Each year a three day event, “International Recognition Days” or “IRD,” is held. This celebration is hosted in a different city in North America every year. Fundraising helps members cover the cost of registration fees and housing. This year International Recognition Days will be inSan Diego, California from July 5 to the 7. There are other rallies, workshops and retreats held throughout the year that members of TOPS Club fundraise for as well.

TOPS in Michigan just started a fundraiser with Rada Cutlery and said, “We are a small group of ladies in a weight loss group (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) and wish to raise money for our group.”

Another TOPS group from Georgia had this to say, “We have a small group of ladies. TOPS is a weight loss support group that is non-profit. We are raising funds to attend the annual convention. We’d like to get stated as soon as possible. I need several catalogs to show the others. Thanks!”

Groups that have fundraised with Rada previously have found success at reaching their goal which keeps them coming back.

A Take Off Pounds Sensibly group fromSouth Carolina said “We use Rada as our fund raiser each year in our organization. It’s great! Thanks for sending the catalogs.

In Virginiaa TOPS group has experienced success with Rada in the past. “We have used this fundraiser before. Your products are very good and I have been a Rada user for many years. Thanks!”

One Take Off Pounds Sensibly club has been selling Rada Cutlery for years. “We have been selling your items at our TOPS chapter for as long as I can remember. I love them and so do our members and their families. Thank you so much!”

Are you a member of a TOPS chapter and have fundraised with Rada? We want to hear your story!

NOTE:  Rada Mfg. Co. was also founded in 1948.  Non-profit groups work directly with our factory as they fundraise for their causes.

1.  Asparagus is a member of the Lily family. 

2.  Asparagus has no fat, contains no cholesterol and is low in sodium.

3.  Asparagus has the potential to grow quickly.  In ideal conditions an asparagus spear can grow 10 inches in a day.

4.  The asparagus plant needs to establish a healthy crown before harvesting. Do not harvest your asparagus the first two years after planting.

5.  Prime asparagus season is in spring from February to June with April being the most active harvest month in the northern hemisphere.

6.  There are three types of asparagus.  1.  Green which is what most people buy in the store.  2.  White is green asparagus that has been denied light while growing so the chlorophyll never developed and is less bitter. 3. Purple asparagus has a high sugar and low fiber content. The purple color comes from a phytochemical. This is the same deep-purplish blue pigment found in blueberries.

7. When storing asparagus do not wash asparagus or never soak it. Instead, trim the ends of the fresh asparagus and stand them upright in a jar with an inch of water. Cover the asparagus with a plastic bag and store spears in the refrigerator for no more than to two days for best use.

8. Learn how to cut and prepare asparagus with the video below.

For more information about asparagus visit www.asparagus.org.