Happy Easter on a beautiful Boulder morning. I covered our Easter dinner a couple of posts below, and with much to do on this gorgeous day, looking at the rest of the week will be quick.
We'll want something vegetarian tomorrow after tonight's ham feast, and pasta hasn't been on deck for a while, so it will be linguine with spicy leek and tomato sauce from Bon Appetit. Sprouts has organic on-the-vine tomatoes at $2.49 a pound through Wednesday for the sauce and the side salad (not as good as last week's fantastic $1.99, but very good nonetheless).
I previously mentioned I'm going very easy on myself this week (I seem to be burning out on cooking, and don't have enough time to devote to it either) by doing two reheats of big weekend dinners, instead of the usual one. So Tuesday will be a reprise of last night's delicious New England seafood chowder from Bon Appetit. It's packed with kale and one of our last hoorahs for butternut squash as we enter spring, plus the cod that's a great price at Sprouts through Wednesday.
Wednesday will be our second easy reprise of tonight's ham, along with the potato gratin experiment (see post below) that I hope will be a success. All we'll need is a fresh veggie on the side.
Expecting to still have a tad more of that beautiful Whole Foods ham left to finish off, Thursday will be a quick ham and veggie frittata, the veggies likely including spring-inspired asparagus and baby spinach.
Which quickly gets us through to Friday's planning. Enjoy our beautiful Boulder day today!
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Easter Dinner Plans
Just a reminder that if you're still angsting about aspects of your Easter dinner menu tomorrow, here are a few planning guides to help you out.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Weekend Dinner Ideas, Including Easter
Good heavens, another holiday upon us, but I have practically zero time, and am tired to boot, so this will be quick and easy, both in terms of dinner plans and writing time.
Tonight will be especially quick and easy, sticking with the Friday fish tradition and taking advantage of Whole Foods' sale on their lovely roasted red pepper & fennel salmon burgers, which are $7.99 a pound through Tuesday. The Lundberg gourmet rice blends I always have in stock from Vitamin Cottage and Sprouts sales add a festive starch, so I'll just need some quick green like kale or chard to round it out.
Saturday will be more ambitious, but since I have it in mind to do two big dishes for reheats this week instead of one, it will be worth it. With previously frozen Alaskan wild cod fillets so low at Sprouts at $4.99 a pound, that spells one last winter-like stab at a favorite, New England seafood chowder from Bon Appetit. I love this one, because it includes kale, the last of our winter butternut squash, and the surprise of curry powder (which as I've previously mentioned is probably not really a surprise, given New England's sailing history).
Sunday will be the Easter ham, coming from either Whole Foods or Vitamin Cottage. I don't mess with the ham since it's a fine one, although there are a ton of recipes for glazes, etc., if you want to spend more time with it. For the potato side, I'm going to experiment with asiago, potato, and bacon gratin from Cooking Light. I'm hoping to find something almost as delicious as the potato gratin a friend brought to our Thanksgiving feast, but since hers was loaded with gruyere and sour cream (undoubtedly a lot of butter too, and this was from a Boulder runner), something just a little close will do. Asparagus will also have to be on the table, either simply roasted or steamed, or another recipe we've enjoyed from Cooking Light, asparagus with balsamic tomatoes.
Which gets us through the Easter weekend, with leftovers to look forward to!
Tonight will be especially quick and easy, sticking with the Friday fish tradition and taking advantage of Whole Foods' sale on their lovely roasted red pepper & fennel salmon burgers, which are $7.99 a pound through Tuesday. The Lundberg gourmet rice blends I always have in stock from Vitamin Cottage and Sprouts sales add a festive starch, so I'll just need some quick green like kale or chard to round it out.
Saturday will be more ambitious, but since I have it in mind to do two big dishes for reheats this week instead of one, it will be worth it. With previously frozen Alaskan wild cod fillets so low at Sprouts at $4.99 a pound, that spells one last winter-like stab at a favorite, New England seafood chowder from Bon Appetit. I love this one, because it includes kale, the last of our winter butternut squash, and the surprise of curry powder (which as I've previously mentioned is probably not really a surprise, given New England's sailing history).
Sunday will be the Easter ham, coming from either Whole Foods or Vitamin Cottage. I don't mess with the ham since it's a fine one, although there are a ton of recipes for glazes, etc., if you want to spend more time with it. For the potato side, I'm going to experiment with asiago, potato, and bacon gratin from Cooking Light. I'm hoping to find something almost as delicious as the potato gratin a friend brought to our Thanksgiving feast, but since hers was loaded with gruyere and sour cream (undoubtedly a lot of butter too, and this was from a Boulder runner), something just a little close will do. Asparagus will also have to be on the table, either simply roasted or steamed, or another recipe we've enjoyed from Cooking Light, asparagus with balsamic tomatoes.
Which gets us through the Easter weekend, with leftovers to look forward to!
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Better Brunch Cooking Class
The Whole Foods store on Pearl Street will host a Better Brunch Cooking Class this Saturday, just in time for sprucing up your Easter plans. Here are the details from them:
Better Brunch Cooking Class
Saturday, March 30th
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Whole Foods Market Pearl Street, FREE
Join our Healthy Eating Specialist Steph, and our Cooking Coach Dana for a lesson in all things brunch. Just in time to plan and shop for your Easter spread! Space is limited, please RSVP to boulderevents@wholefoods.com.
Better Brunch Cooking Class
Saturday, March 30th
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Whole Foods Market Pearl Street, FREE
Join our Healthy Eating Specialist Steph, and our Cooking Coach Dana for a lesson in all things brunch. Just in time to plan and shop for your Easter spread! Space is limited, please RSVP to boulderevents@wholefoods.com.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
This Week's Hot Grocery Deals (IMHO)
We have a new sale starting today at our local Sprouts stores, while the current ones continue at Whole Foods through April 2nd, and at Vitamin Cottage through April 6th (click for prior reports). Here's what's looking good to me in the new sales.
In Sprouts' new sale running through April 3rd, bone-in Presidential-cut rib roast or steaks continue to be an excellent price at $5.99 a pound, all grass-fed lamb is 25% off (although, as I've previously mentioned, I haven't had good luck cooking lamb), fresh ground chicken, pork, or chicken breast are all $2.99 a pound, bulk (that's the loose type that isn't in links) chicken sausage (pork also) is $1.99 a pound, and boneless pork shoulder roast or country style ribs are also $1.99 a pound. In fish, fresh (farmed) Atlantic salmon is $8.99 a pound (bear in mind that Whole Foods has previously frozen wild coho for $11.99 a pound through next Tuesday), and previously frozen wild Alaskan cod fillets are quite low at $4.99 a pound. Sprouts also has a low price on spiral-sliced hams, but I'll head to either Whole Foods or Vitamin Cottage for my Easter ham.
In organic produce, Sprouts has garnet yams for $1.29 a pound, one pound packages of baby carrots at $1.50 each, bulk spring salad or spinach remain fantastic at $3.99 a pound, and organic on-the-vine tomatoes will bump up a bit to a still pretty good $2.49 a pound, up from this week's great $1.99 a pound, good through today. There are also good organic fruit specials, including Cameo or red delicious apples at 99 cents a pound, and four pound bags of Valencia oranges for just $2.50 each. In conventional produce, avocado fans will be dismayed to find them at 99 cents a pound (you can get the organics for the same price), and asparagus is okay at $2.50 a pound (conventional asparagus.is $1.49 a pound at Safeway and $1.69 at King Soopers with card through Tuesday, if you happen to be heading that way).
Elsewhere in Sprouts' store, select Horizon Organic "baking essentials" (the picture includes butter and sour cream) are 25% off, some Near East side dishes are $1.50 a box (I'm particularly partial to their rice pilafs), and Sprouts' own organic spices are 25% off. Also, I don't usually cover much in the body care sales, but since Sprouts' new sale is advertising 25% off Avalon Organics hair care, I'm compelled to mention that today is the last day of Sprouts' "line drive savings" on Avalon, with a whopping 35% off the entire vast line of Avalon Organics products, that includes some very fine ones. I used to spend ridiculous amounts on cleansers and makeup removers at Boulder's skin boutiques, until I discovered Avalon's CoQ10 Repair facial cleansing milk that gets it all done as well or better in one product, at a much lower price, and largely organically, to boot.
In Sprouts' new sale running through April 3rd, bone-in Presidential-cut rib roast or steaks continue to be an excellent price at $5.99 a pound, all grass-fed lamb is 25% off (although, as I've previously mentioned, I haven't had good luck cooking lamb), fresh ground chicken, pork, or chicken breast are all $2.99 a pound, bulk (that's the loose type that isn't in links) chicken sausage (pork also) is $1.99 a pound, and boneless pork shoulder roast or country style ribs are also $1.99 a pound. In fish, fresh (farmed) Atlantic salmon is $8.99 a pound (bear in mind that Whole Foods has previously frozen wild coho for $11.99 a pound through next Tuesday), and previously frozen wild Alaskan cod fillets are quite low at $4.99 a pound. Sprouts also has a low price on spiral-sliced hams, but I'll head to either Whole Foods or Vitamin Cottage for my Easter ham.
In organic produce, Sprouts has garnet yams for $1.29 a pound, one pound packages of baby carrots at $1.50 each, bulk spring salad or spinach remain fantastic at $3.99 a pound, and organic on-the-vine tomatoes will bump up a bit to a still pretty good $2.49 a pound, up from this week's great $1.99 a pound, good through today. There are also good organic fruit specials, including Cameo or red delicious apples at 99 cents a pound, and four pound bags of Valencia oranges for just $2.50 each. In conventional produce, avocado fans will be dismayed to find them at 99 cents a pound (you can get the organics for the same price), and asparagus is okay at $2.50 a pound (conventional asparagus.is $1.49 a pound at Safeway and $1.69 at King Soopers with card through Tuesday, if you happen to be heading that way).
Elsewhere in Sprouts' store, select Horizon Organic "baking essentials" (the picture includes butter and sour cream) are 25% off, some Near East side dishes are $1.50 a box (I'm particularly partial to their rice pilafs), and Sprouts' own organic spices are 25% off. Also, I don't usually cover much in the body care sales, but since Sprouts' new sale is advertising 25% off Avalon Organics hair care, I'm compelled to mention that today is the last day of Sprouts' "line drive savings" on Avalon, with a whopping 35% off the entire vast line of Avalon Organics products, that includes some very fine ones. I used to spend ridiculous amounts on cleansers and makeup removers at Boulder's skin boutiques, until I discovered Avalon's CoQ10 Repair facial cleansing milk that gets it all done as well or better in one product, at a much lower price, and largely organically, to boot.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Minerals In Your Diet Webinar
Sprouts will host a webinar about dietary minerals this Thursday, for which you can register here. Here are the details from them:
Wellness Webinars
Mining the Importance of Minerals in Your Diet
Thursday, March 28, 2013, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM PDT (6-7 MST)
Even the healthiest eaters may lack the necessary minerals to boost energy and immunity. Sprouts nutritionist Janet Little will join Vital Earth Minerals, Dorothy Holden, to learn why liquid minerals are an easy and convenient way to supplement a healthy diet.
Wellness Webinars
Mining the Importance of Minerals in Your Diet
Thursday, March 28, 2013, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM PDT (6-7 MST)
Even the healthiest eaters may lack the necessary minerals to boost energy and immunity. Sprouts nutritionist Janet Little will join Vital Earth Minerals, Dorothy Holden, to learn why liquid minerals are an easy and convenient way to supplement a healthy diet.
One-Day Sale At Whole Foods Tomorrow
As our weekend snow melts and we look forward to Easter, our local Whole Foods stores are offering us a nice spring-like sale for tomorrow only on organic strawberries (and strawberries, blueberries, and other fruits that don't get peeled are something I'd only buy in organic). Here are the details from them:
One Day Sale
Tomorrow Only! Wednesday, March 27th!
Organic Strawberries
1 lb pack
2 for $6
(save $1/ea)
One Day Sale
Tomorrow Only! Wednesday, March 27th!
Organic Strawberries
1 lb pack
2 for $6
(save $1/ea)
Yolkless Noodles Found At Whole Foods!
I've previously mentioned how high in cholesterol wide egg noodles are, and they're the kind of wide noodle you find 99.99% of the time. I've been trekking to Safeway to get yolkless ones, but discovered late yesterday that I can get them again at Whole Foods, at least at the Pearl Street store. I used to find them there in the regular pasta section, where they've been absent for some time. Yesterday, I was passing by a section of Jewish foods, hopefully a year-round spot but maybe just for Passover, and my eye immediately was drawn to the Manischewitz wide yolk-free noodles, with zero cholesterol, yay!
Monday, March 25, 2013
Cleansing With Food At Pearl Street
The Pearl Street Whole Foods will host a lunch and learn tomorrow, with a focus on cleansing with food. Here are the details from them, including the typo:
Tuesday, March 26th
12:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Whole Foods Market Pearl Street, FREE
Join our Healthy Eating Specialist Steph for a light lunch and lesson on how to cleanse wtih food! Space is limited, please RSVP to boulderevents@wholefoods.com.
Tuesday, March 26th
12:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Whole Foods Market Pearl Street, FREE
Join our Healthy Eating Specialist Steph for a light lunch and lesson on how to cleanse wtih food! Space is limited, please RSVP to boulderevents@wholefoods.com.
Easter Dinner Ideas
Snow's on the ground, but we're less than a week away from Easter, so it's time to get planning. I need to do some investigating myself, since unlike my traditional Thanksgiving dinner that hardly changes, Easter is wide open, except for the ever-present ham. (I tried doing a leg of lamb one year and found it too gamey, not to mention the mental images it evoked that just don't seem to accompany a ham.) So here are a few guides to help with the planning: Easter Recipes, Gifts, and Egg Decorating from Epicurious, Celebrate Easter from Cooking Light, ham and lamb recipes from Food and Wine magazine, and the rather ecumenical Spring Gatherings from Whole Foods. Let the planning begin!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
