Friday, January 31, 2014

Weekend Dinner Ideas

Hope you're enjoying another snowy day in Boulder. At this rate, we'd do better joining our friends in Manhattan and New Jersey for the Super Bowl just for the weather. In any case, here's a quick rundown of plans for the weekend.

With an infinite number of dinner options, I look toward natural sales as a way to channel all those possibilities into some concrete ideas, and that worked splendidly for tonight. Looking at Sprouts' current sales on asparagus for $1.48 a pound and medium-sized sea scallops for $6.99 a pound, I hit upon three-green pasta with scallops and pesto sauce from Bon Appetit. The pesto is also an advantageous element since I have plenty in my freezer from last summer's basil bounty, it was just about half price at Whole Foods two days ago, and is on the olive bar at the Whole Foods on Pearl Street, where it's $6.99 a pound every Thursday, a steal.

We'll start cranking up the Super Bowl mood tomorrow with a main course spin on chicken wings, made a bit healthier by using boneless skinless chicken breasts, value packs of which are $1.99 a pound this week at Sprouts. It's buffalo chicken "fries," which I saw in a magazine I've subsequently lost but has been replicated at that link, and you can lower the cholesterol further by using something like Earth Balance instead of the butter called for in the dipping sauce. Regular chicken wings probably have the highest skin to meat ratio of any chicken cut, so this recipe practically looks like health food instead.

For Super Bowl Sunday proper, we have a tradition of going for our favorite vegetarian chili, black bean and butternut squash chili with Swiss chard, accompanied by green onion corn bread, both from Bon Appetit. The chili won't really be vegetarian, since I'll use Imagine's wonderful organic low-sodium chicken broth in it, but at least the menu will be a foil to the bucket of chicken wings from Whole Foods that we'll be devouring (weekend sale price noted a few posts below).

Thursday, January 30, 2014

Super Bowl Sampling At Whole Foods

This sounds like a wickedly good one. Every department at the Pearl Street Whole Foods will be sampling a Super Bowl party food this Saturday from 11 to 1 pm.  Here are the details from them (an apologies if it cuts off on the right):

BRING YOUR A GAME!

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 1ST
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
WHOLE FOODS MARKET PEARL STREET, FREE
Join us for a taste of some of our best Big Game recipes. Each department will be sampling an item that's sure to please the biggest football fans at your party. Bring your A game!

Weekend Sales At Whole Foods

Our local Whole Foods stores will offer us a slew of specials ranging from a flash sale for tomorrow only through several specials for all three days (note the chicken wings!!!). Looks like lots of good Super Bowl finger food in there. Here's what they say:

FRI FLASH SALES :: JAN 31
<<3-7pm Only>>
Home Run Inn Pizza50% OFF
All Varieties

Izze Soda: 50% OFF
All Varieties

FRI-SUN :: JAN 31-FEB 2
2lb Chicken Wing Buckets: $7 OFF
No Antibiotics Ever
Sale Price: $7.99 Each

Seafood Appetizers: 10 for $10

1/4 Single Layer Sheet Cakes: $7 OFF
Sale Price: $9.99 Each

Evol Burritos: 50% OFF
Sale Price: 2 for $3

Ricola Cough Drops: 
3 bags for $3Screaming with joy? Stock up!

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

The Chicken Wing Sale Is Coming!!!!

I knew it, I knew it. For this Friday through Sunday only, Whole Foods will have their fabulous two pound buckets of chicken wings nearly half off at $7.99 a bucket. Super Bowl weekend is the one time of year I indulge in chicken wings, and Whole Foods' own are so good, they somehow manage to not even be greasy.

This Week's Hot Grocery Deals (IMHO)

We have new sales starting today at our Boulder Sprouts and Whole Foods stores. Here's what's looking good to me now.

In Sprouts' sale through February 5th, value packs of boneless skinless chicken breasts are $1.99 a pound, boneless ribeye steaks are $8.99 a pound, and stuffed chicken breasts are $2.99 a pound. In fish, previously frozen 30/40 count sea scallops are $6.99 a pound (those were good in a chowder a couple of weeks ago), and previously frozen Alaskan coho salmon fillets are $9.99 a pound. If you're looking for a way to expedite your Super Bowl cooking, 22 ounce full racks of cooked baby back ribs are $12.99 each (they were really good when I caught them recently for an even better $9.99). Also, for Friday through Sunday only, all fresh sausage is just $2.50 a pound.

In produce at Sprouts, the news to me this week is in conventional, with asparagus for $1.48 a pound and Hass avocados 50 cents each. In organic produce, curly or Lacinato kale are $1.50 a bunch, broccoli is $1.50 a pound, one pound bags of baby carrots are $1.50 each, three pound bags of yellow onions or five pound bags of russet potatoes are $2.88 each, and Fuji or Granny Smith apples are both $1.88 a pound. Elsewhere in the store, select "game day snacks" are 20% off (Garden of Eatin' blue chips are in the picture, and that would give you a hard-to-come-by blue food for Sunday), Seapoint Farms' frozen edamame are $2 a bag, and select Asian products are 25% off for the Lunar New Year.

Whole Foods' new sale runs through February 11th, but this time, their taste and mine aren't matching up a whole lot. Organic broccoli is a very good price for them at $1.69 a pound, but it's still cheaper in the Sprouts sale above, and the same goes for organic Fuji apples at $1.99 a pound. Their fine American Homestead boneless pork shoulder roast is $3.99 a pound, but that's only 50 cents off the regular price. Two pound bags of individually frozen Nature's Rancher chicken are $5.99 each, and it looks like you can choose from a variety of cuts. Aleutian Islands sockeye salmon fillet is $14.99 a pound, and the $7.99 a pound salmon burger sale this time is the spinach feta variety, and I unfortunately can't stand feta. I'll spring for the ones I love at their regular price instead, which I think is $9.99 a pound.

One-Day Sale At Whole Foods Today

Our local Whole Foods stores will offer us a duo of special sales for today only, the 29th. I wonder which basil pesto they mean, as it can be found in a variety of places in the store. Here's what they say:

WED ONLY :: JAN 29
Basil Pesto: 48% OFF
Sale Price: $3.99 Each

Pistachios: $3 OFF/LB
Sale Price: $4.99/lb

Monday, January 27, 2014

I'd Be Willing To Bet...

I'm not a betting person, but I'd almost be willing to wager that Whole Foods will offer us a really good deal this weekend on their addictive buckets of chicken wings in time for the Super Bowl.  Stay tuned.

Sunday, January 26, 2014

Super Bowl Party Ideas

With the Broncos in the Super Bowl next weekend, even a non-football person like me will be whooping it up. Besides, what's not to like about chicken wings, funny commercials, and beer? Planning a party for it might take some flexibility, since the weather in New Jersey a little outside Manhattan can be so wicked, I've heard there are contingency plans for holding the game anytime from Friday to Monday. If you're looking for a little culinary inspiration in planning your celebration, here are a few guides to help you out: Super Bowl Party Central from Epicurious, 5 Super Bowl Food Makeovers from Cooking Light, and Score Big with these Favorite Football Party Foods from Whole Foods.

Weekday Dinner Ideas

I didn't manage to plan in a big item for an easy weekday reheat this weekend, so that's going to happen tomorrow with a favorite, New England seafood chowder from Bon Appetit.  Sprouts has the cod for $6.99 a pound, and they also have organic kale for $1.50 a bunch through Wednesday. I love the surprise of curry in this chowder, but when you think of how those Nantucket whalers traversed the globe, it probably shouldn't be a surprise at all.

We'll want some pasta by Tuesday, so this week it will be strisce alla chiatigiana from Bon Appetit, one of the better pastas I've ever had, although anything with pancetta tastes good.

Wednesday will be our easy reheat, this week of the New England seafood chowder.

Simplicity will reign again for Thursday, since I'll catch some of the boneless center cut pork loin chops on sale at Sprouts for $2.99 a pound through Wednesday for a quick meal of sauteed pork chops.  Sprouts also has organic russets at just 88 cents a pound and chard or kale $1.50 a bunch through Wednesday for the sides.

Saturday, January 25, 2014

No News Re Vitamin Cottage Sale

When I stopped by the Boulder Vitamin Cottage recently, they still didn't have a new sale flyer, so perhaps they remain on hiatus.  Nice staff person said he thought they'd be getting new flyers perhaps in early February.

Friday, January 24, 2014

Weekend Dinner Ideas

Super quick rundown.  I'll hit up Whole Foods today to take care of the entire weekend, with teriyaki salmon burgers on sale for $7.99 a pound making for a fast Friday dinner. Today's one-day sale is coho salmon fillets (see a couple of posts below), so we'll keep the omega-3s going for tomorrow with salmon (a fillet is so totally different from a burger, nobody is going to notice it's salmon two nights in a row).  Sunday will be a classic, roast chicken with roasted winter veggies on the side, since I've been wanting to take advantage of Whole Foods' sale on fine air chilled whole chickens for $1.99 a pound, and the current sale only goes through Tuesday.

Which gets us through the weekend. Highs in the 60s tomorrow and 20s with possible snow Monday, typical Boulder.

Plant-Based Gluten-Free Demo At Alfalfa's

This Sunday, Alfalfa's will offer a cooking demo featuring plant-based gluten-free foods.  Should be a pretty popular topic for Boulder.  Here's what they say:

Plant-Based, Gluten Free Cooking Demo with Julia Hellerman of Julia's Kitchen
Sunday, January 26th 3:00 to 5:00pm
Alfalfa's Demo Kitchen
Join Julia Hellerman, renowned Boulder chef, as she leads an informative and tasty cooking demo on gluten-free and plant-based foods perfect for the new year!
Julia has been serving Boulder vibrant, delicious, and healthy food for the past eight years. Julia believes that all food (and treats too!) should be served up with its full potential intact, so all of her creations are made from organic high-quality ingredients that are mindfully prepared for complete and optimal nourishment and true satisfaction. Be sure to check out her North Boulder restaurant, Julia's Kitchen!

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Electronics Recycling Saturday

Good cold and snowy morning Boulder! Stay safe on the ice that's under that snow. Remember, it's supposed to be 60 by Saturday.

And for the return of those warm temps, the Pearl Street Whole Foods will host an electronics recycling event Saturday for all those things you know you should get rid of.  Here's what they say, and I'm sorry if it cuts off on the right side:

ELECTRONICS RECYCLING

SATURDAY, JANUARY 25TH
10:00 AM - 2:00 PM
WHOLE FOODS MARKET PEARL STREET WEST PATIO, VARIES
Have unwanted electronics? Not sure what to do with them? Stop by the Pearl Street store from 10am to 2pm and Sustainability Recycling will take them off your hands!

Weekend Sales At Whole Foods

Our local Whole Foods stores will offer us a salmon sale for tomorrow only, plus a duo of sales running the whole weekend, through Sunday. This being January, that coho would presumably be previously frozen. Here's what they say:

FRI ONLY :: JAN 24

Coho Salmon Fillet: $5 OFF/LB
Sale Price: $9.99/lb

FRI-SUN :: JAN 24-26

Evolution Juice
& Energy Bars: 30% OFF

Raw Protein Powder: 43% OFF
Garden of Life | 28 Servings
Sale Price: $22.99 Each

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

This Week's Hot Grocery Deals (IMHO)

We have a new sale starting today at our Boulder Sprouts stores, while the current one continues at Whole Foods through January 28th.  Vitamin Cottage seems to be on sale hiatus, as when I stopped by recently, they had no sale flyers.  Here's what's looking good to me now.

Some weeks are better than others in terms of sales, and Sprouts seems to be pulling out all the stops this week, at least for the types of items that appeal to me.  In their new sale through the 29th, a highlight is a Gluten-Free favorites sale, with select items a whopping 40% off. The trick is that it is now select rather than across the board, so I hope my favorites are among their favorites too.  At least I see my fave Nut Thins included in the picture, and I hope yummy Pamela's cookies are also in the sale. If Lundberg rice is included, I'm in heaven.

The attractive deals also make their way into fish and meat at Sprouts, where fresh (farmed) Atlantic salmon fillets are just $5.99 a pound and wild Alaskan previously frozen cod fillets are $6.99 a pound. Swordfish steaks are also $6.99 a pound but never seem to be from the USA anymore, and fresh boneless catfish fillets are $5.99 a pound, but I haven't eaten catfish since sharing an airport shuttle with a fish-savvy dude who told me he didn't eat catfish because he'd "never eat a bottom-feeder." There's an image for you.  In meat, boneless center-cut pork loin chops are $2.99 a pound, chicken breast tenders are $1.99 a pound, fresh ground chicken, pork or chicken breast are all $3.99 a pound, three types of chicken sausage are $2.99 a pound, and boneless New York steaks are $7.99 a pound.

In organic produce at Sprouts, there's a theme of $1.50, with bunched spinach, green or red leaf lettuce, curly, Lacinato or Russian red kales, red, green or rainbow chard all $1.50 a bunch, and broccoli or cauliflower $1.50 a head. Russet potatoes or yellow onions are just 88 cents a pound, and Braeburn or red delicious apples are 98 cents a pound, a great price for an organic apple.

Elsewhere in the store at Sprouts, I'm liking Chobani Greek yogurts for $1 each, select gluten-free San-J 10 ounce sauce bottles at $2 each (and it looks like my fave reduced sodium soy sauce is in the picture), plus the gluten-free sale that's all over the store. Looks like a good week!

One-Day Sale At Whole Foods Today

Our local Whole Foods stores will offer us a quartet of special sales for today only, the 22nd.  Nachos fans, take note of the cheddar sale for your Super Bowl party.  Here's what they say:

WED ONLY :: JAN 22

Extra Sharp Cheddar: 40% OFF
1 lb blocks by Organic Valley
Sale Price: $5.99 Each

Ground Buffalo Meat: 40% OFF
Sale Price: $5.99/lb

Buffalo Stew Meat: 40% OFF
Sale Price: $5.99/lb

Buffalo Shoulder Roast: 45% OFF
Sale Price: $5.99/lb

Monday, January 20, 2014

Get Your Meal Planning Game On

This is something I firmly believe in (and in fact is the genesis of this blog), planning your meals in advance to optimize taste, efficiency and cost.  The Whole Foods in Superior will offer a free talk this Wednesday evening to get you going.  Here's what they say (and sorry that it cuts off at the right side, nothing I can do about it):

MEAL PLANNING 101

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22ND
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
SUPERIOR WHOLE FOODS MARKET- CAFE, FREE
Wednesday, January 22
6:30-7:30
Meal Planning 101
Free
Join us at the Superior Whole Foods Market for Meal Planning 101! Learn the benefits of planning meals in advance. Diana Walley is a Certified Nutrition Therapist and the founder of Every Bite Counts Nutrition, LLC.  She is also passionate about nutrition and showing you how to save time and money while serving nutritious and delicious meals. Please sign up at our Customer Service Counter or emailrm.sup.events@wholefoods.com  to reserve your spot today.

Winter Bike To Work Day Wednesday

It doesn't seem to be getting much press, but this Wednesday the 22nd is Boulder's Winter Bike to Work day, and it looks like the weather will be pretty decent for it.  Maybe it's because there are fewer free breakfast stations than with the summer Bike to Work, but you can view them all and do the optional registration here.

Sunday, January 19, 2014

Weekday Dinner Ideas

Busy day, possibly including a peek at football as our temps are supposed to top 60 degrees this afternoon, so this is quick.

Tomorrow will be a total cheat, since we've been dining pretty well all weekend.  Since today is the last day of Whole Foods' weekend sale (see post a bit below) that includes their take and bake pizzas at 40% off, that's what I'll grab today for a very easy dinner tomorrow.  The plain variety works super well when dressed up with vegetarian Yves pepperoni, sliced shrooms, maybe a little onion, whatever your fancy.  Too bad Whole Foods has downsized these pizzas so dramatically, but they're still yummy and definitely convenient.

For Tuesday, I'm thinking fish tacos, since mahi mahi seems to be on sale everywhere, and I think it makes the best taco.  Sprouts has previously frozen mahi fillets for just $4.99 a pound through Wednesday, Whole Foods has a "mahi mahi portion" of a size not specified in the sale flyer at $5 each (but you can bet that portion isn't a pound, the sale price at Sprouts), and the new Lucky's Market in Longmont has mahi fillets for $8.99 a pound.  Fish taco recipes abound, and my favorite one that I unfortunately don't have time to look up right now calls for red snapper as the fish, but mahi works even better.

Wednesday will be our usual reheat of something previously made, which this week is tonight's shrimp and scallop posole from Bon Appetit, although I'm making it exclusively with scallops tonight on the last day of Sprouts' 72-hour sale that includes 30/40 count sea scallops at $6.99 a pound.

For Thursday, I'll dig into my stock of frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts from past sales at the new Lucky's (although they're also $1.99 a pound at the Longmont store through Wednesday, with Lucky's "never ever" standards) to do what's essentially a one pot dinner, crystallized ginger chicken, a recipe originally seen in the Daily Camera but has been picked up by somebody on the web here.  Sprouts and Lucky's in Longmont have organic garnet yams (jewel too at Lucky's) for just 98 cents a pound through Wednesday.

Which gets us through a rather pleasant-looking week.  I know I'm supposed to say Go Broncos, but I'll leave that to those with more enthusiasm for football.  Besides, although the New England Patriots are associated with Boston, they actually play in a stadium in Foxborough (unfortunately usually shortened to Foxboro), which is so far south in Massachusetts, it's just minutes from the Rhode Island border, and therefore close to some of my east coast relatives. So the outcome will be good all around for me.  Heresy, I know.

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Gluten-Free Tasting Fair Coming Up

Gluten-free friends with proximity to Longmont might be interested to know that the Lucky's Market there is planning a gluten-free tasting fair for this coming Wednesday, the 22nd.  Here are the details from them:

GLUTEN-FREE TASTING FAIR 
Wednesday, January 22nd5-7pm
Sample your way through our numerous, delicious gluten-free offerings and learn new ways to enjoy your menu!

Friday, January 17, 2014

Weekend Dinner Ideas

Quick rundown on pretty fundamental plans.  I'm going to grab some of the halibut during Whole Foods' flash sale from 3 to 7 pm today at $17.99 a pound to put on a grill pan, accompanied by pasta with a bit of pesto to dress it up.  For this kind of side, a fun alternative like Whole Foods' own 365 brand of tri-colored mini-shells seems a better option to me than something like linguine.  I also have homemade pesto stocked in my freezer, but prepared versions abound, and Whole Foods even has it on their olive bar, at least at the Pearl Street store.

We'll deviate from the usual healthy routine tomorrow with the full slabs of baby back ribs Sprouts has precooked for $9.99 each during their 72 hour sale (details a couple of posts below). A side of roasted yam spears might ease the guilt, and organic garnet yams are just 98 cents a pound at Sprouts this week.

Sprouts' 72 hour sale is also driving my thinking for Sunday, which will be shrimp and scallop posole from Bon Appetit.  During that special sale, Sprouts will have reasonably sized sea scallops for $6.99 a pound, and I'll either do it with the shrimp and scallop combo as written in the recipe, or simply make it all scallops.

Which will get us through another weekend of pretty balanced meals on all fronts.

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Weekend Sales At Whole Foods

Our local Whole Foods stores will offer us a trio of special sales, including a tempting flash sale on halibut from 3 to 7 pm for tomorrow only, plus a three-day sale on their take and bake pizzas that I find very convenient, although not quite as desirable as when they were practically twice the size they are now.  Here's what they say:

FRI FLASH SALE ::  JAN 17
3-7 pm Only
Halibut: $7 OFF/LB
Sale Price: $17.99/LB

FRI-SUN :: JAN 17-19

Take & Bake Pizza: 40% OFF
Pepperoni & Plain Varieties

Cara Cara Oranges: 50% OFF/LB
Sale Price: 10lbs for $10

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

This Week's Hot Grocery Deals (IMHO)

We have new sales starting today at our Boulder Sprouts and Whole Foods stores.  I believe something new is also happening at Vitamin Cottage, but when I was there a few days ago, they didn't have any flyers. Here's what's looking good to me now, IMHO as always.

For starters, Sprouts will be doing a 72 hour sale for this Friday through Sunday, the 17th through the 19th. The item particularly calling to me is the full 22 ounce slab of cooked baby back ribs for $9.99 each.  Having recently indulged in steaks, we could maybe compensate for the cholesterol by also incorporating the 30/40 count sea scallops for $6.99 a pound (Peruvian, previously frozen of course) into next week's planning. Value packs of boneless skinless chicken breasts are $1.69 a pound, but I did even better than that with the Longmont Lucky's sale (with "never ever" standards) a couple of weeks ago, many in the freezer now. Twelve ounce bags of Spectrum chia seeds (great on salads for extra Omega-3s) are $5.99 each, and there are a bunch of other specials on various things usually not on my list.

In Sprouts' regular sale running through January 22nd, grass-fed organic ground beef is $4.99 a pound, boneless ribeye steaks are $9.99 a pound, all chicken sausage (pork too) is $2.99 a pound, and previously frozen Alaskan coho salmon fillets are $9.99 a pound.

In organic produce at Sprouts, garnet yams are 98 cents a pound, broccoli is $1.48 a pound, five pound bags of "table carrots" are just $2.98 each, five pound bags of russet or red potatoes are also just $2.98 each, grape tomatoes are $2.50 a pint, 5.6 ounces of blackberries are also $2.50 each, and Fuji or Granny Smith apples are just $1.48 a pound.  Elsewhere in the store, I'm enthused about bulk coffee at $6.99 a pound, some half gallons of Horizon Organic milk at $3 each, and Voskos Greek yogurts $1 each.

In Whole Foods' new sale through January 28th, I'm finding several things to like.  First of all, their very fine air-chilled whole chickens are nearly $1 off at $1.99 a pound, and these are exceptionally tasty birds. They're breaking out the previously frozen Copper River salmon fillets for $16.99 a pound (although Sprouts' plain old coho is considerably cheaper at $9.99 a pound), and this sale's salmon burger du jour is the teriyaki one at $7.99 a pound. Organic chard is good at $2 for the pretty big bunches they usually have, but I don't consider $3.99 a pound a very good sale price for organic cluster tomatoes. My favorite seeduction bread loaves are $3.49 each (and don't forget the bakery people are always happy to cut a loaf in half if an entire one is too big for you), and Andalou Naturals shampoos and conditioners are half off at $4.99 each.

One-Day Sale Today At Whole Foods

Whole Foods will offer us a duo of special sales for today, the 15th.  As for the $6.99 olive bar sale, also be aware that it's that price (as opposed to its usual $9.99) every Thursday, at least at the Pearl Street store. And that olive bar tempts with so much more than wonderful olives, offering marinated artichokes, mushroom mixes, tapenades, and even fresh pesto.  Here's what they say:

WED ONLY  ::  JAN 15

Olive Bar: 30% OFF
Sale Price: $6.99/LB

Beef Shoulder Roasts & Steaks: $3.99/LB

Monday, January 13, 2014

Whole Foods Supper Club Coming Up

The Whole Foods store on Pearl Street will host a Tasty Resolutions Supper Club this Thursday, the 16th, to prove to you how delicious healthy eating can be.  And it will be gluten-free, seasonal, and only $10 to boot!  Here are the details from them:

TASTY RESOLUTIONS SUPPER CLUB
THURSDAY, JANUARY 16TH
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
WHOLE FOODS MARKET PEARL STREET, $10

Join Steph and Dana for this four course supper club that proves healthy eating can be delicious and fun! All courses will be made without gluten ingredients and highlight seasonal ingrediedients.

Tickets are just $10 per person, plus handlng and can be purchased here: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/tasty-resolutions-supper-club-tickets-997683...

Sunday, January 12, 2014

Weekday Dinner Ideas

In a super-quick view.  Since Lucky's Longmont sale on boneless NY strip steaks for just $5.99 a pound veered us into steak territory this weekend (too bad the winds have been so nasty, they couldn't go out on the grill), I'm revamping tomorrow into healthier territory.  I'll scrap the previously planned country style pork ribs from the sale at Sprouts in favor of trying another new recipe from my organizing time over the holidays, spicy tilapia and fennel stew from last month's issue of Cooking Light.  It's superfast, so suitable for a weeknight, and readers so far are rating it five stars out of five, pretty impressive.

Tuesday will be our customary reheat of something big made over the weekend, which this week is tonight's baked rigatoni with ricotta and collard greens, also from Cooking Light.

Wednesday will be another easy one, mushroom and sausage ragu with polenta, yet another from Cooking Light.  It's easy enough as written, but can be made even easier by simply sauteing sausage with some shrooms and onion, then adding a good jarred pasta sauce.  Sprouts has hot or sweet Italian chicken sausage for $2.99 a pound through Wednesday.

With so many excellent chicken breasts in the freezer from last week's spectacular sale at the Lucky's in Longmont (also $1.99 a pound for value packs at Sprouts through Wednesday), I'll start working on those for Thursday with an improvisation I haven't made in a couple of years, curried chicken and rice.  Basically you just cook some rice, and while that's working on it, saute diced boneless skinless chicken breast with some onion and shrooms, stir in curry powder to taste and a few defrosted peas, then mix in the cooked rice.  Could not be easier.

Which quickly gets us through the week.  Maybe I should get my grocery shopping done this afternoon during the "BIG GAME," when the stores will be deserted while everyone will be watching the Broncos in the playoffs.  At least that means it's getting closer to my annual indulgence in chicken wings.

Food Sensitivities Event At Superior Whole Foods

The Whole Foods store in Superior will host a free nutrition talk and tour this coming Wednesday to help you find any hidden food sensitivities (fortunately seemingly not an issue for me).  Here's what they say, although it looks like they have some formatting in there that I just can't avoid that will make copying it ugly.  But I do like their typo asking us to "please sing up at Customer Service"!  Let's form a choir!


FIND YOUR HIDDEN FOOD SENSITIVITIES IN THE NEW YEAR - FREE NUTRITION TALK AND TOUR
W


WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 15TH
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
SUPERIOR WHOLE FOODS MARKET, FREE
Wednesday, January 15
6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Find Your Hidden Food Sensitivities in the New Year - Free Nutrition Talk and Tour
When setting your goals for 2014 resolve to feel better. One step is to uncover hidden food sensitivities that could be the cause of fatigue, headaches, skin irritations, mood swings, digestion problems and even joint pain, among other seemingly unrelated symptoms.  Learn the ins and outs of food allergies and sensitivities and how to embark on an elimination diet with Louisville Wellness Center’s certified nutrition therapist, Jen Marshall.   
Please sing up at Customer Service or email rm.sup.events@wholefoods.com  to reserve your spot today
.

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Trappist Beer Now In America

This is a bit off my usual path, but this weekend NPR had a segment about a Trappist monastery in Spencer, Massachusetts creating the first Trappist ale to be brewed outside of Europe.  Those lucky people in Massachusetts, as it will only originally be available there, although the monks hope to expand soon, "God willing."  You can read the NPR story here.

More Events At Boulder Lucky's Market

In addition to today's Natural Living Fair (look a few posts below for that one), the Lucky's Market in north Boulder has a couple of other events of interest coming up shortly.  I particularly appreciate their support of Community Food Share.  Here's what they say:

SIMPLE BAKING 101 
Tuesday, January 14th6-7pm
Cost: $10 per person

Learn how to make Delicious Homemade Granola (you’ll take some home, too). More than that, learn other Gluten Free Baking Tips from our own Chef Jen Bush of the celebrated Lucky’s Bakehouse! A $10 cost to participate covers supplies.

5% DAY BENEFITING THE COMMUNITY FOOD SHARE
Thursday, January 16th, All Day

Lucky’s is proud to donate 5% of its net sales to local organizations during these special shopping days. Shop today and support the Community Food Share!

Friday, January 10, 2014

New Lucky's Deals Are Changing My Plans

Seeing the new specials at the Lucky's Market in Longmont today, I'm thinking about a shift in the already-cast plans for the weekend, plus those forming for the rest of the week.  The primary culprit is the New York strip steaks I discovered the Longmont Lucky's has for just $5.99 this week through Wednesday (with Lucky's "never ever" standards).  Not eating much beef in this house, I thought why do a ground beef chili when we could go all the way with a fine NY strip steak at an excellent price?  But such an indulgence will also require a shift in later week planning, as my thoughts on using the boneless country-style ribs with a great sale price at Sprouts for Monday will have to go out the window if we start the weekend with a steak in this cholesterol-watching house.  This will require further thought.

Meanwhile, if you happen to be in the neighborhood of the new Lucky's in Longmont, you might also want to check out the whole frying chickens for $1.29 a pound, red trout fillets or red rock cod both $7.99 a pound, organic beets $1.50 a bunch, organic red or green leaf lettuce $1.50 a head, organic broccoli or cauliflower $1.50 a pound, Late July multigrain chips $2 a bag, and all vitamins and supplements are 25% off, all through Wednesday the 15th.

Weekend Dinner Ideas

Quick roundup of what's ahead.  We rarely have ground beef in this house, but with Whole Foods' one-day sale on it today (see a few posts below), where at least at the Pearl Street store they track how freshly ground it is by the hour, we'll head for the beef tonight with baked potatoes with spiced beef chili from Bon Appetit.

Looks like tomorrow's dinner will be another indulgence that will come from Whole Foods, as I'm liking the idea of the halibut they have at the still-not-quite-so-friendly sale price of $19.99 a pound through Tuesday.  We can do some Lundberg black Japonica rice on the side, having had potatoes tonight and about to plan pasta for tomorrow.  The only question is that with our relatively mild temperatures, do we ask the family griller to head outside in the dark to cook a fine piece of fish?

For Sunday, we'll be looking for something big for a midweek reheat, not involving potatoes or rice since they've already had their turns, and vegetarian would be a nice option to mix in.  Combine those criteria with the organic collard greens on sale at Whole Foods for $2.50 a bunch through Tuesday, and what comes to mind is baked rigatoni with ricotta and collard greens from Cooking Light.  I'll be stocking up on DeLallo whole wheat pasta when I get to Sprouts, and I'm betting rigatoni and/or penne are included in the $2 sale.

Which gets us through a rather pleasant-looking weekend.

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Weekend Sales At Whole Foods

Our local Whole Foods stores will offer us a sale on their fine ground beef for tomorrow only, plus a quartet of special sales from tomorrow through Sunday.  Here's what they say:

JAN 10 :: FRI ONLY

Ground Beef: 20% OFF
No Antibiotics Ever • Ground In-House
Sale Price: $3.99/lb

JAN 10-12 :: FRI-SUN

Wallaby Yogurt (5oz): 10 FOR $10

Wallaby Yogurt (32oz): $3.49 EACH

Vega Nutritional Shakes30% OFF

Potstickers: 
2 DOZEN FOR $7Includes Dipping Sauce!

Natural Living Fair At Boulder Lucky's

Too bad I rarely get to north Boulder.  This Saturday afternoon, the Boulder Lucky's Market will host a Natural Living Fair that sounds pretty good.  Here's what they say:

NATURAL LIVING FAIR
Saturday, January 11th3-6pm
Mind, Body, and Healthy Living. Take care of yourself inside and out! Join some of our favorite vendors for free body care and vitamin samples, and hear why what you do for your outside matters just as much as what you do for your inside! Free chair massages and gift bag giveaways.

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

One-Day Sale At Whole Foods Today

For today only, our local Whole Foods stores are offering us a duo of special sales.  Love the way they title their message with "Not cold enough?" in reference to the frozen fruit sale.  Here are the details from them:

JAN 8 :: WED ONLY

Organic Navel Oranges: 10 FOR $10

365 Everyday Value®
Organic Frozen Fruit: 2 FOR $4

This Week's Hot Grocery Deals (IMHO)

We have a new sale starting today at our local Sprouts stores, while the current one continues through January 14th at Whole Foods.  I also suspect there's a new one at Vitamin Cottage, but when I stopped by there on Sunday, they had no new sale flyers, and doing this from a website would be just too time consuming.  Here's what's looking good to me now.

In Sprouts' new sale through January 15th, the big news is the return of the Vitamin and Body Care Extravaganza, with everything in the department 25% off.  That's an excellent opportunity to stock up on those favorite products that you know otherwise never go on sale.  In meat, value packs of boneless skinless chicken breasts are a very good price at $1.99 a pound, but I've gotten even better ones with "never ever" standards from the Lucky's Market in Longmont at an even better price, an astonishing $1.58 a pound through today ($5.99 a pound at the Boulder Lucky's, to show you how good the Longmont price is).  Boneless pork shoulder roast or country style ribs are very good at $1.99 a pound, Sprouts' own stuffed chicken breasts are $2.99 a pound (one of them easily serves two people), and there's a Buffalo Stampede, with various types of bison featured.  In fish, if you're in the mood for halibut, six ounce previously frozen portions are $7.99 each, which works out to $21.30 a pound, so you'd do better to go to Whole Foods this week, where halibut fillets are $19.99 a pound through Tuesday.  For fresh fish, Sprouts has farmed Atlantic salmon for $8.99 a pound.

In organic produce at Sprouts, green or lacinato kale are $1.50 a bunch, celery remains good at $1.49 a bunch, bulk spring mix or spinach also remain very good at $3.99 a pound, pink lady apples are $1.49 a pound, four pound bags of Valencia oranges are just $2.50 each, and six ounce containers of organic blueberries look pretty good also at $2.50 each.  Elsewhere in the store, in addition to the big vitamin and body care sale, I'm enthused to see some Fage Greek yogurts at $1 each, and am curious as to which varieties of DeLallo whole wheat pasta are $2 a package.  That's an excellent price for DeLallo, my new favorite everyday whole wheat pasta, but the last time Sprouts did this, the standard cuts like linguine and fettuccine were not included in the sale.  Also, the large 25 ounce size of Westbrae organic beans is quite good at $2 each.

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Astonishing Deal At Longmont Lucky's

Although it's seemingly long past grand opening mode, the new Lucky's Market in Longmont continues to offer some amazing deals, plus sales generally lower than those at its Boulder store.  Case in point is boneless skinless chicken breasts for $1.58 a pound in Longmont through tomorrow (better late than never), while the sale price on them at the north Boulder store is $5.99 a pound.  Considering that Lucky's promises that they "only serve natural meats - antibiotic free, humanely processed, no preservatives," a price of $1.58 a pound is truly astonishing.  Since I find these freeze well, unlike something like a fine New York strip steak which never tastes as good after it's been frozen, I'll definitely stock up if I find myself in the area.  If so, I'll also grab a one pound bag of organic baby carrots for just 88 cents (98 cents at Lucky's Boulder store), and conventional pineapples are certainly notable at 48 cents each at both stores, but again, these prices are only good through tomorrow.

Sunday, January 5, 2014

Weekday Dinner Ideas

Good cold and snowy morning, Boulder.  Our 10.7 inches of snow yesterday evidently set a record for January 4th, and a little more is expected through this afternoon, so we're starting to rival my socked in friends and relatives on the East Coast.

As for dinner plans, something always needs to motivate my thinking process.  Usually I turn to our natural grocery sales to inspire ideas, although for this past weekend, efficiency of shopping and cooking played a greater role.  For the remainder of the week, the inspiration will come from trying new recipes, as I spent some recent holiday time organizing a backlog of them from my favorite cooking magazines.

Although the recipe is new to me, tomorrow's dinner is yet another spin on the Thai dish known as laab, larb, or laap, spicy pork lettuce cups from Cooking Light.  Rather than making it with pork, I think I'll try it with the ground chicken breast or turkey breast that Sprouts has for $3.99 a pound through Wednesday ($5.99 a pound sale on ground turkey breast at Whole Foods).  I love the many variations on this Thai dish that have been appearing recently, but they are nearly impossible to search since they never include the original names of the dish.

Tuesday will be our customary reheat of something big made over the weekend, which will be tonight's rice, corn and cheese casserole from Jane Brody's Good Food Book.  That book is too old to originally be on the web, but the recipe has been super popular, and replications of it are easily found by Googling it.  I like to spice it up by adding some diced roasted green chiles from last fall's roasting season that are stashed in my freezer.

Wednesday will be another new recipe from my day of organizing, pappardelle with arugula and prosciutto from Bon Appetit.  Since pappardelle is nearly always an egg-based pasta with a surprising cholesterol wallop, I'll stick with either fettuccine or the yolkless wide noodles that can be found at both Whole Foods and Lucky's.

I'll be tired of cooking by Thursday so that will be something quick, either the boneless pork loin chops Sprouts has for $2.99 a pound through Wednesday, or the boneless skinless chicken breasts the new Lucky's Market in Longmont has for an astonishing $1.58 a pound also through Wednesday (with Lucky's fine "never ever" standards).  Either could benefit from the very quick mushroom sauce from Cooking Light that I've mentioned frequently here.

And that will get us through a week of roller coaster temperatures, absolutely frigid today and subzero tonight, with 50 by Tuesday.  Crazy.

Friday, January 3, 2014

Weekend Dinner Ideas

With little time, the next few days are motivated by simplicity of cooking and limiting the shopping to one store.  For starters, tonight will be the easy salmon burgers on sale for $7.99 a pound at Whole Foods.  Since that makes Whole Foods our store of the weekend, we'll supplement the burgers with the pre-made superfood salad that's also on sale there.

Tomorrow will be pizza night, homemade on Whole Foods' fresh dough, either from the containers I've long bought that fill an entire baking sheet, or the new prepared circular ones that would make about half that much pizza.  As for the toppings, I'll just wing it with cooked sausage, shrooms, the Rumiano mozzarella on sale at Whole Foods, and whatever else I feel like.  Over the weekend, I was organizing recipes of interest from a backlog of cooking magazines.  I'd noted several for various pizzas, but instead of saving those, I decided who really needs yet another recipe for pizza?

Sunday we really should be doing a special dinner of vintage foods to celebrate the opening of season four of Downton Abbey, which has inspired its own cookbooks.  Unfortunately not having time to do that, and looking at a big block of Seaside cheddar in the fridge from the prior Whole Foods sale, it will be a recipe I haven't made in ages, rice, corn and cheese casserole from Jane Brody's Good Food Book.  That book predates the web, but the recipe has evidently been so popular, it has been replicated all over it (just Google it).

Which quickly gets us through the weekend.

Weekend Sales At Whole Foods

Neither of these is familiar to me, but here's what's going on for this weekend's sale at Whole Foods:

FRI-SUN :: JAN 3-5Super Salads: 40% OFFLarge pre-packed salads made in-house daily

Buy Whole Trade Bananas, Get
Organic Wheat Grass Powder
by Amazing Grass 50% OFFSale Price: $13.49 for 30 Servings

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Upcoming Classes At Alfalfa's

Alfalfa's will host some interesting-sounding classes in the near future.  Food Is Your Best Medicine is a 14 day intensive, with lots of details here (whoops, looks like the registration fee for that just went up).  They'll also host a free Wellness Wednesday on Herbal Cleansing the evening of January 15th, details here.

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

New Grocery Sales For The New Year

Happy 2014!  What better way to ring in the new year than with a new set of sales at our Boulder natural food stores?  (I've got to get a life.)  We have new sales starting today at our local Sprouts and Whole Foods stores.  Vitamin Cottage has been on a sale hiatus, but when I was there a few days ago, they said there would probably be a new one right after the new year.  Here's what's looking good to me now.

In Sprouts' new sale through the 8th, I'm liking pork loin chops or boneless skinless chicken breasts (any size package for a change) at $2.99 a pound, and stuffed chicken breasts are also $2.99 a pound.  Whole, split or cut up chickens are $1.49 a pound, and ground chicken breast or turkey breast are both $3.99 a pound. Boneless rib eye steaks are $9.99 a pound.  In fish, previously frozen Alaskan coho salmon fillets are $7.99 a pound, and flash frozen center-cut swordfish steaks are very low at $5.99 a pound, but only once did I find them from the USA or Canada (where I like them from) when looking at Sprouts.  (Whole Foods has wild caught Canadian swordfish steaks in the frozen fish section for a pretty reasonable everyday price of $10.99 a pound, at least at the Pearl Street store.)

In organic produce at Sprouts, broccoli is great at 99 cents a pound, and we have a theme of $1.49 going, with one pound bags of baby carrots $1.49 each, celery or green curly kale $1.49 a bunch, and cameo apples or Bosc pears both $1.49 a pound.  Organic bulk spring salad mix or spinach are great at $3.99 a pound (nearly double that elsewhere), and four pound bags of Valencia oranges are just $2.50 each. Elsewhere in the store, local Noosa yoghurts are quite low at $1.79 for eight ounces, and fans of Nordic Naturals supplements may be interested in a line drive savings of 25% off their regular retail prices.

In Whole Foods' new sale through January 14th, I'm debating whether I'm liking wild caught halibut fillets for $19.99 a pound.  Fresh or previously frozen isn't specified.  If it's fresh, I just might bite at that price for a really fine piece of fish (it's $5 off Whole Foods' usual price).  Their own salmon burgers are always a sure bet, and the garden fresh variety is on sale for $7.99 a pound.  Organic collard greens (appropriate for the new year) are $2.50 a bunch, reminding me of a favorite vegetarian casserole that will probably go on this week's menu, and organic red grape tomatoes are okay at $2.99 a 10 ounce container.  In another item for the new year, their very good Market Made superfood salad is $6.99 a pound, $3 off (it's loaded with lots of good stuff like kale, and has an acai dressing if I remember correctly).  Also, Rumiano part-skim (also the whole milk) mozzarella is $4.99 a pound, making me think pizza.  Fans of Mychelle products will probably appreciate their facial care line all at 25% off.