Bulk going local...

As changes keep happening around us, the world of bulk is no exception. Recently we switched three of our dry beans (black, navy and pinto) to locally grown. They are now coming from Cayuga Pure Organics in the Ithaca area upstate N.Y., as opposed to China for the blacks beans and Canada for the navy and pintos. You may have noticed a price increase for these local beans. We feel that it is in keeping with the Coop mission and important to support local growers whenever we can. Cayuga also has other locally grown products that we carry-Spelt Berries-and look forward to their Farro, Vinton Soy Beans, small Red Beans, Barley, Oats, steel cut and groats.

Most of our flours are now local too. Whole Wheat Bread flour is grown and milled in Ithaca at Farmer Ground, near Cayuga Pure. The Whole Wheat Pastry is milled at Daisy in Lancaster, Pa. The Spelt is also from Lancaster grown there and milled at Small Valley Milling. The exciting thing about these new flours is that not only are they local, but they are very fresh. They are usually milled a week or two before being delivered to us.

In a world where availability of products is uncertain, I will continue to bring in more local bulk when I can. Just a footnote: the price of Red Lentils will be coming down soon due to the fact our supplier International Harvest has them available again. They also will be selling us organic Chia (Mexico) and Black Sesame (India) Seeds at a lower price. These products are not grown locally.

Cheers till next time I see you in the bulk aisle

Ron

Recipes for Health

When the New York Times speaks, our members shop. We try to keep up to date, but, hey, we didn't know the Times was going to post a recipe featuring farro late Friday. We do sell farro (aisle 6A), but only a case or two a week. So don't expect to find any on Monday--our next delivery will be later in the week.

This week Martha Rose Shulman is featuring recipes using whole grains in her Recipes for Health column. I primarily read the Times online and surprisingly usually do not find this column in the Dining and Wine section. I access it through the Health section. I find her column is a terrific resource--she is systematically going through the vegetables plus other basic foods, usually offering a week of daily recipes of a food, for example beets or even stale bread. These recipes don't require much preparation and include soups, salads, entrees, and sides. The point is that even if you are not a skilled cook and don't have a lot of time, you can make delicious and healthy food. She indicates which ingredients can be prepared in advance, i.e., cook the farro the night before while you are watching TV, and then the dish will be easy to assemble when you get home from work the next day. These recipes are neatly archived on the Times website. Have chard in the fridge? Click on its photo and see your options.

Earlier in the week, she posted a recipe for red quinoa--which she called "royal." Shulman wrote that red quinoa has more protein than white. I did a little Googling, and the nutritional info I came up with showed white and red equally high in protein. Quinoa is one of the highest protein grains. We sell more than 400 pounds of white quinoa/week. Only a case or two of red quinoa (Aisle 6A). Both are organic. I bought extra red quinoa--so give it a try.