Larger burritos and new flavors of Aldens

Red's 11 oz burritos are now in the freezer case. Red's burritos got a thumbs up from the hardworking (and hungry) staff. Nutritional info suggests each burrito is two servings--so go find a friend or eat the 600 calories by yourself. Sour cream is the killer ingredient. Four flavors: rice & bean, turkey mole, chicken and steak.

Root beer float and peaches n'cream are Alden's ice cream newest flavors. Their vanilla is our top selling ice cream. It's organic and the price is right. The nutritional profile suggests you go out and get twelve friends to share a 48 oz tub--then there are only 160 calories per half cup. The tag "All Natural" is coming under increasing scrutiny. Organic tapioca syrup is natural--but is it natural that it is in Alden's ice cream?

Ben & Jerry's went further down the slippery additives slope--the Center for Science in the Public Interest didn't think that it was fair that they call their ice cream "All Natural" while containing un-natural ingredients like maltodextrin. The company, which sold out to Unilever long ago, recently agreed to drop the "All Natural" from the front of their containers.

Ronnybrook Farms Butter in the house

New in the butter case today... Ronnybrook Farms Salted Butter! (unsalted is pictured here, but the salted looks pretty much the same.) It's local, it's a family farm, it's affordable, it's yummy.

Here's a sweet story about Ronnybrook, if you want to know more about them.

New small potato chips and large tortilla chips!

There have been some quality issues with the small kettle chips so I discontinued them for the time being. We are now carrying 4 flavors of Dirty Chips: Sea Salt, Jalepeño, Sour Cream & Onion and Salt & Pepper. We also have Boulder Chips in 3 flavors: Totally Natural, Malt Vinegar and BBQ. Also, we carry locally made North Fork potato chips in BBQ and Salt. All the small chips are aisle 7.

Also there are 2 new large-sized tortilla chips in the produce aisle. There are "Fiesta Sized" 22 oz Garden of Eatin' White Restaurant-Style Corn chips and 16oz RedHot Blues.

-Delia

Some like it hot

Ever feel disappointed that the fresh jalapenos lack bite? I'm not a fan of garlic, but instead use hot peppers as my most basic seasoning, regardless if I'm cooking Indian, Italian or Chinese. So rather than take a chance, I always buy habanero, or Scotch bonnet, peppers whenever they are available. They never disappoint. I sometimes find myself coughing when the pepper hits the hot oil and volatile fumes are released--but it is an easy way to clear the sinuses. It is a good idea to wear gloves when chopping hot peppers. The oils can stay on your hands for some time, and it is very painful if you happen to rub your eyes.

A Perk of Our Evolution: Pleasure in the Pain of Chilies is an amusing article in the New York Times. Apparently we humans are the only mammals foolish enough to seek out hot chilies to eat. Habanero peppers can be found in the mixed hot peppers sold at the Coop.

Plum tomato sale this week

Amy Hepworth says it is time to bring out the canning jars--she is discounting her plum tomatoes this week. We'll be selling them for $21.78 for a 25 lb case. Which is less than one dollar a pound--a great price for organic, local tomatoes.

We've got the Ball jars--sold above the potatoes in Aisle 1A.

The internet is full of canning How To's and lots of recipes--here's one site. Pasta sauce, salsa, tomato jam. If you are too timid to jump right in, you can get prepared for next year by attending the Brooklyn Skills Share home canning class being offered on October 9. (Along with ice cream making, bike repair, crochet, claw hammer banjo intro ....)

Genetically engineered salmon and pigs?!?

Whaaa--do we really need this? Wall Street Journal reports that Aqua Bounty Technology has developed a salmon that grows twice as quickly as normal and is likely to be approved by the FDA.

The article also describes the Enviropig (the proposed critter on the left), being developed by the University of Guelph in Canada. This little piggy is being engineered to be a dynamo phosphorous processor, requiring less phosphorous in its feed, and thereby decreasing the amount of phosphorous in its waste. And voila! that makes it environmentally friendly!

More detailed information on the FDA salmon hearings and genetically modified crops was also reported in the same issue.

In the news....

• Park Slope Food Coop in Fortune magazine this week.
• Joint pain supplements-glucosamine and chondroitin : Do they work? Maybe not according to a recent study reported in the British Journal of Medicine and summarized in the LA Times. Conclusion is that they may have a placebo effect and do not appear to be harmful. Except maybe to your wallet.
• BPA: Article in NYTimes indicates that despite "extensive" research, whether or not BPA is harmful has not been conclusively proven, and therefore no ban on its use. BPA has been implicated in various maladies, from cancer to childhood obesity. Let's hope it is not as dangerous as some claim, as we all have been extensively exposed to BPA.
• Less soap, better for your dishwasher and wash machine and the environment Appliance repairman states in NY Times that because newer appliances use much less water and are more efficient, we should significantly reduce the amount of soap we use. Excess soap leaves clothing stiff, clogs dishwashers and wastes your money.
  

Here's what looks like a giant brain tomato. I'm not sure what variety of heirloom tomato this is, but it's big and cool.

Heirloom tomato? Yes!

This is a garden peach heirloom tomato from Hepworth farm, less than a 2 hour drive away. It's fuzzy! beautiful! and delicious! Try garden peach or one of the many other varieties of organic heirloom tomatoes at the coop now.

Woah! check out the new...

frozen gluten free bread by Udi's. As requested, Udi's is now stocked next to the Food for Life frozen gluten free bread.


AND...

Clams! These half-shelled clams are approved by the Marine Stewardship Council and come from Northern Chef.

New Buffalo Mozzarella

Mozzarella Di Bufala D.O.C from the ABC Cooperative in Piedmont, Italy.


We did a taste comparison of all the Buffalo milk Mozzarella that we were carrying and this one was above and beyond anything else we tried.

Enjoy while the tomatoes are still cheap and plentiful.

Anglophiles Rejoyce!

Every time I order an English product, the only response I hear is not, "Oh thank you, love!" or "Good on you, lad!". . .it's "What about Heinz Beans?" Here you are my lovelies. . .

As a bonus, LP Steak and Chop sauce.