Shop Small In Boulder Today

Something of an antidote to Black Friday (which I detest, and even more so as it has crept into Black Thanksgiving), today is Small Business Saturday, a day to "shop small" in downtown Boulder.  (Using an adjective instead of an adverb has always bugged me, but nobody else seems to care about that anymore, and besides, "shop smally" would be positively weird.)  Think about visiting our beautiful one-of-a-kind Boulder stores for your Christmas shopping.  You might have a friend or relative who would be thrilled with a beautiful serving dish or other fun item from Boulder's incomparable cooking store, Peppercorn.  Visit one of the fantastic downtown restaurants for lunch or dinner while you're at it (I recently had a great dinner at Bramble and Hare on 13th Street).

Thanksgiving Leftovers Help

Hope all went stunningly for your Thanksgiving dinner (mine sure did).  I love at least one simple reprise of the basics for another dinner before spinning the leftovers into more innovative incarnations.  For some ideas on what to do with all those leftovers, here are a few guides to help you out:  Global Recipes for Thanksgiving Leftovers from Cooking Light, Thanksgiving Recipes from Epicurious (scroll way down to the Leftovers section, second from the bottom), and Love Your Leftovers from Whole Foods.

Weekend Sale At Whole Foods

Everyone's focused on the bird and trimmings today, but if your thoughts start straying towards a post-turkey future, you might consider the sale offerings Whole Foods will have for tomorrow through Sunday.  That fine salmon, almost always Norwegian, at $11.99 a pound will tempt me as a diversion from turkey leftovers.  Here's Whole Foods' rather substantial list:

:: FRI-SUN • NOV 29-DEC 1 ::

Black Bean Quinoa Salad: $3 OFF/LB
Sale Price: $5.99/lb

Market-Made Breakfast Burritos: 50% OFF
Sale Price: $1.99 Each

3lb Clementine Bags: $2 OFF
Sale Price: $3.99 Each

Rump Roast: $3 OFF/LB
Sale Price: $3.99/lb

Coffee Cake: 50% OFF
Sale Price: $2.99 Each

365 Everyday Value^®
Winter Blend Coffee: $3 OFF/24oz Bag
Sale Price: $7.99 Each

Atlantic Salmon: 25% OFFSale Price: $11.99/lb
Threads 4 Thought Leggings: 20% OFF
Pact Apparel: 35% OFF
Root Candles: 30% OFF

Best Wishes For A Great Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all.  Hopefully you have everything planned and prepped, but if you're still angsting about some possibilities at this late hour, here's a reminder about the Thanksgiving guides post I did a couple of weeks ago.  Plus, Sprouts will be open from 7 am to 4 pm today, and Whole Foods, at least the Pearl Street store, is open 7 am to 3 pm, not sure I approve of that.  Heck, even my gym is open today.  I haven't checked for this, but Vitamin Cottage has always had the decency to stay completely closed for the holiday.  Enjoy!

Baseline Whole Foods Discount Today

With its big remodel underway, everything except turkeys is 20% off today at the Whole Foods store at Baseline and Broadway.  It was posted on Facebook late yesterday, so "tomorrow" now means today.  Here's what they say:

Whole Foods Market Boulder

BREAKING NEWS! Tomorrow only, everything at our Baseline location will be 20% off, (SAY WHAT?!?!) We are having this fantastic sale in order to make space for our "mini-store" as part of our remodel. In our mini-store, all departments will be represented while they do construction on the left side of the store.

Check out our upcoming store hours:
Wednesday 11/27: 7:30am-6pm
Thursday 11/28-Sunday 12/1: CLOSED...
Monday 12/2 until mid-February: 8am-8pm

*20% off sale valid at 2584 Baseline Rd., Boulder CO 80305 on 11/27/13 only. Turkeys excluded. No rain checks. While supplies last.

One-Day Sale At Whole Foods Today

Whole Foods is making it easy to add a shrimp appetizer to your feast tomorrow, with shrimp trio platters 35% off today.  Here's what they say:

:: WED • NOV 27 ::

Shrimp Trio Platters: 35% OFF
Sale Price: $12.99 Each

Current Sales Continue

Wednesday is usually the opening day for all the new sales at our Boulder natural grocery stores, but in this Thanksgiving week, that's not the case.  Sprouts' previously reported sale extends through tomorrow (when they'll be open from 7 am to 4 pm for your last minute emergencies), Whole Foods' current sale runs through December 3rd, and the one at Vitamin Cottage extends through December 14th.  Glance through the list of November posts over there on the left to find those links.

Asparagus Near Giveaway, Plus More

A friend contacted me today to let me know that fresh asparagus (conventional, but it almost always is) is only 99 cents a pound right now at the Sprouts store in Longmont.  I called the Sprouts on Arapahoe here, and evidently this is only in Longmont, lucky folks.

Also, no word yet about any customary one-day sale tomorrow at Whole Foods.  One might still come up, as they've been tending to mention it quite late in the day on Tuesdays, but on the day before Thanksgiving, who needs any added grocery shopping concerns.  Also, a warning that the parking lot at the Pearl Street store was already a complete zoo yesterday.  For the sake of sanity, I'll make any last minute purchases tomorrow at the Superior store, which has always managed to stay reasonably calm on the day before Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving? There's An App For That

Frankly, I'd rather just cook mostly familiar foods (along with a few new twists) for Thanksgiving and enjoy the time with friends, since family is so far away, but if you really want to be consulting a device for guidance for your Thanksgiving dinner, Bon Appetit has just the thing for you, their Thanksgiving app.  Good luck.  I'll be hoisting a glass of wine instead.

Quick Weekday Dinners For Thanksgiving Week

No time to even describe them, either.  Simplicity of cooking and avoidance of poultry remain the motivating factors for dinners leading up to Thanksgiving.  For tomorrow, I'll make my second attempt to get the Korean beef bracciole on sale at Whole Foods for $6.99 a pound, since the Pearl Street store was out of them when I tried to get them earlier this weekend.  Again, sobas and edamame are planned on the side.

Tuesday will be a shrimp and corn pilaf from Bon Appetit, a pretty light dish that should fit well into the week.

For Wednesday on Thanksgiving eve, we'll go completely vegetarian with a quick weekday Florentine omelet from Bon Appetit.  Using NuLaid eggs totally cuts out the cholesterol wallop of the eggs.

Then we're on to the excesses of Thanksgiving!