January 2012

Valley Natural Foods STAFF PICK of the WEEK: Chicken Wings! How will you wing it for game day? Here's what we have to offer for game day, or any day: Meat Department: Pick up some of our tasty, all-natural chicken wings from the fresh meat cooler. Place wings on a cookie sheet with salt and pepper and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Serve with your favorite hot sauce for dipping. Or, purchase pre-marinated, ready-to-bake wings from our meat service counter. Deli Department: Want your wings pre-cooked instead? Look in our grab and go cooler for Buffalo, Sweet & Sour or our "Throw Down" (chef's choice recipe) ready-to-heat-and-eat wings. Produce Department: Don't forget to serve organic celery with Marzetti Organic Blue Cheese dressing (look for dressing in the produce cooler near the sprouts) with your platter of wings. Grocery Department: We have a

Garden Fresh Salsa is our STAFF PICK of the WEEK! Valley Natural Foods is committed to providing the freshest, healthiest fare we possibly can. That’s why our garden fresh salsa is definitely worth a mention. Made almost daily on-site by produce staff, it's as fresh as you can get! We commit to using fresh organic ingredients when they're available including tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, cilantro, lime juice and sea salt---most are locally sourced throughout the summer and early fall seasons. What's your game day plan? If you’re craving a fresh, healthy, no-cook snack for game day, make it a super bowl of house-made garden fresh salsa from our own produce department here at Valley Natural Foods! Garden Fresh Salsa Facts: At least 350 pounds of salsa (sometimes more) is produced each week at Valley Natural Foods---that means we make it almost every day! Eight years ago,

By: Loris Sofia Gregory, Healthy Kitchen Coach, Apple Valley, MN If “eat healthier,” “try new foods” and “save more money” are on your list of resolutions for 2012, consider the dazzling diversity of our bulk foods trail from nourishing soups to energizing nuts. Our new helpful booklet, available in mid January, entitled “Discovering Bulk Foods: A Cooperative Guidebook” and my FRESH & LOCAL classes from January through March will show you how to easily buy and prepare package-free and earth-friendly bulk foods, while saving an average of 30 to 50% on our 300+ choices.  You can now register for these classes online.  Most of us are not looking to “get bulkier” in this New Year. So what’s the real story behind “buying bulk”? Read more to realize the benefits of shopping on our bulk trail. First of all, don’t confuse “bulk foods”