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Home / Archives for Antioxidants

The Annex Sessions: Modupue Wednesday – Wednesday, December 18, 2024

December 10, 2024 by The Natural Grocery Company

The LAST “ANNEX SESSIONS OF 2024!”

 

“The Annex Sessions” will continue our music series held at El Cerrito Natural Grocery Company Prepared Food Annex (The Annex) on Wednesday, December 18, 2024, 6-8:30pm with

 

Javier Navarrette’s “MODUPUE Wednesday featuring: “Young Lions and Old Alley Cats”

 

Kai Lyons – Tres/ Guitar

Yadier Noa Chamble- Bass

Raul Navarrette- Trombone

Jeff Pier – percussion

Javier Navarrette- percussion

 

Afro Latino Jazz!

Natural Grocery Company is proud to present this series in partnership with SunJams and Javier Navarrette Music Productions.

SunJams is committed to funding children’s music education in underserved public elementary schools. Your donation will help support this ongoing program.

All of the proceeds will go directly to our network of local musicians, each of whom have been severely impacted by the lack of events during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Whether you donate $10, $100, or $1000 – any amount helps and will allow us to keep bringing music to our community! As always, your donation to SunJams 501(c)3 may qualify as tax exempt.

Javier Navarrette Music Productions continues to bring live music to several venues around the Bay Area. Javier has been a professional musician and music educator in the Oakland Unified School District for the past 20 years. Over the past few years Navarrette has produced outdoors events that have proven instrumental in enabling musicians to deal with some of the fallout of the pandemic and shutdown that followed.

COVID RELATED SAFETY MEASURES

Please be safe. Feel free to wear a mask if you prefer.

TICKETS

Tickets are NOT required for this venue, you can simply come in, order food and beverages at the Annex counter and pay at the register.

Filed Under: Annex, Antioxidants, Blog, Events, Neighborhood World Music Sessions, Special Events, The Annex Sessions

More About “Moro” Blood Oranges

January 20, 2023 by The Natural Grocery Company

Organic “Moro” Blood Oranges on sale in January 2023 for $2.59/lb

“Moro” blood oranges have a rind that is orange, kissed with red blush, and has a leathery texture, pebbled with prominent oil glands. Underneath the surface of the rind, there is a medium-thick pith that is white, spongy, and tightly adhered to the flesh. The flesh ranges in color from orange with red blush, to maroon, crimson, to a saturated, almost black hue, depending on the climate that it is grown in. The flesh is also soft, juicy, and nearly seedless, divided into 10-11 segments by thin membranes. Moro blood oranges have a slightly sweet, floral fragrance and a sweet-tart taste with notes of cherries and raspberries. The oranges with the deepest pigmentation will exhibit more intense sweet berry notes characteristic to blood oranges.

Moro blood oranges, botanically classified as Citrus sinensis, are an early season Italian variety that grows on a highly ornamental, evergreen tree that belongs to the Rutaceae or citrus family. Their color is due to a pigment called anthocyanin, not usually present in citrus but common in other red fruits and flowers. Fluctuations in temperature greatly affect the degree to which blood oranges develop their characteristic blush. Though the Moro can vary greatly in this respect, no other blood orange variety is known to exhibit such deeply red colored fruits.

Moro blood oranges are a good source of vitamin C, potassium, folate, thiamine, dietary fiber and most notably antioxidants supplied by its anthocyanin content.

Moro blood oranges are both intensely flavored and colored, adding a unique citrus flavor as well as visual appeal to a dish. They are often used raw and can be sliced and mixed into parfaits, desserts, salads, salsa, and garnished over seafood and poultry. Moro blood oranges also stand up well in cooked applications and may be paired with sweet or savory flavors. Moro blood orange juice can also be served as a stand-alone juice, used in cocktails with prosecco, cooked into syrups, sorbets, marmalades, compotes, sauces, and vinaigrettes, or used to flavor cheesecake, pound cake, or muffins. Moro blood oranges pair well with meats such as duck, poultry, pork, and seafood such as Mahi Mahi, other citrus, mint, tarragon, soft cheeses, shallots, arugula, roasted beets, fennel, shallot, Dijon mustard, Greek yogurt, honey, rolled oats, pistachios, sweetened coconut, mango, cinnamon, avocado, ginger, lime, mint, and cilantro.

They will keep up to one week when stored at room temperature and up to two weeks when stored in the refrigerator.

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Organic foods, Produce Notes, Stores_both

Organic Celery

July 27, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Season: Grown in California and available year-round.

Flavor: Celery has a mild and strong taste at the same time, giving it a bold flavor. It can remind you of raw or green onions in a way, with an earthy taste. It can also taste unpleasant to some people and has a plant-like taste much like lettuce and kale does.

Choosing & Storage: It’s a not good idea to keep celery at room temperature for more than a few hours at a time. If you want to avoid celery from going bad, you will need to use a storage bag and make sure it stays in the refrigerator less than five days. Don’t keep celery for too long since it will start to rot. The vegetable crisper is your safest bet, but it would be a good idea to use an airtight container as well. Celery (especially if cut) has a strong smell and may contaminate other foods, so be mindful.

How to use: Fresh – with peanut butter for snacking or finely chopped and added to potato salad, egg salad or tuna salad. Cooked in soups and stews. Juice and drink it fresh by itself or combine with other fruits or vegetables.

Nutrition: Celery is mainly made up of water, but it also provides dietary fiber. Beyond apigenin and luteolin, celery contains other plant compounds that have powerful antioxidant properties, selinene, limonene, kaempferol, p-coumaric acid. Celery also provides small amounts of vitamin K, folate, vitamin A, potassium, and vitamin C.

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Organic foods, Produce Notes, Stores_both

Organic Pineapple

April 11, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Season: Although available year-round, pineapples from the Western Hemisphere are at their peak from March through June. Our pineapples are coming from Costa Rica

Flavor: Pineapple is one of those fruits that just reminds you of all things tropical. Really ripe pineapple is incredibly sweet and fruity, tasting something like a marriage of citrus and apple. There’s a tang to pineapple that may be relatively absent from the ripest fruit and bolder in less ripe pineapples. It’s like the tang of an orange, zesty and bright.

Storage: Many pineapple lovers prefer to keep it at room temperature until ready to carve, but there’s no harm in keeping it chilled, either. On the one hand, a pineapple on the kitchen counter will perfume the room; on the other hand, it will decompose much more quickly than if stored in the refrigerator.

Once peeled and trimmed, fresh pineapple must be stored in the refrigerator where it will keep for three to five days in an airtight container.

How to use: Raw pineapple isn’t just for brunch buffet fruit salad anymore; it loves to play with savory ingredients, including herbs, chiles, garlic, fish sauce and lime.

Cooked pineapple delivers a very different flavor profile. Its acidity mellows significantly, and the natural sugars really get a chance to shine.

Don’t throw out the skins: Underneath the scratchy surface, there’s enough pineapple-y goodness to make juice, vinegar or a fermented beer-like brew. In Mexico, that brew is called tepache.

Nutrition: One cup of raw pineapple offers more than the daily recommended amount of Vitamin C (105 percent). It’s also rich in manganese and Vitamin B1, all of which offer antioxidant protection and immune support. A good source of fiber and folate, pineapple is also a unique source of bromelain, a protein-digesting (and tenderizing) enzyme with potential anti-inflammatory benefits.

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Eating Well, Organic foods, Produce Notes, Stores_both

Organic Ataulfo Mango

April 8, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Season: Peak season in Mexico is March to July.

History: The Ataulfo is a cultivar originally from Mexico. That’s where ours are coming from. Mangoes came to Mexico from Brazil via Portuguese travelers who brought the tropical fruit to South America in the 1700s. Though the Spanish may have also brought mangoes with them to Mexico a century earlier. The Ataulfo mango was the result of cross-pollination by several varieties (including an Indian variety) in the southern Soconusco region of Mexico in the state of Chiapas, on the border of Guatemala. They were named for grower Ataulfo Morales Gordillo. The sweet mangos are grown primarily in Southern and Central Mexico, with Chiapas being the top producer.

Flavor: It’s one of the smoothest-eating varieties of mango and doesn’t have the fibrous texture found in other types. When ripe, it will be soft to the touch (and possibly even wrinkled). The fruit will have a velvety texture and a sweet mango taste.

Storage: Do not refrigerate mangoes! Keep them at room temperature. If you only want to eat half, cut and score the remaining half, remove from the skin and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where it will keep for a few days.

How to use: Ataulfo mangos make excellent sorbet, jams, tarts and chutneys. Try adding mango cubes to pancakes, muffins and waffles. Sauteed mango is a great accompaniment to poultry and roasted meats. Pureed mango makes a great addition to smoothies, juices, ice cream and curries.

Mango salsa is another great way to use it; chop it up and mix with classic salsa ingredients like cilantro, red onion, lime juice and garlic.

Nutrition: If you’re looking for a source of Vitamin A and its antioxidant companion beta-carotene, you’re in the right place. The mango is also rich in Vitamin C and a respectable source of fiber as well as potassium – in fact, it actually beats the banana in the potassium contest.

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Eating Well, Organic foods, Produce Notes, Stores_both

Organic Asparagus (Green)

March 26, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Organic Asparagus (green)

Season: Grown in California! February to June

Flavor: Its flavor is mildly sulphuric, mostly sweet and slightly nutty, more-so when grilled.

Storage: Store asparagus in a bag in the refrigerator, preferably in the crisper between 32 and 36 degrees F. Properly stored asparagus can last between 1 and 2 weeks. Things can go downhill for asparagus pretty rapidly, especially the tips, so try to eat it as soon as possible. If you must wait, you can preserve your spring-y bounty by trimming the ends of the stalks and standing the bunch (still bound together — if you bought them loose, then tie them up for balance) in a cup of water in the refrigerator.

How to use: Some people peel asparagus, but unless you are dealing with exceptionally woody stalks, it is generally unnecessary. However, you absolutely should trim the end of each spear. The question is, how much should you trim before preparing? This tip takes the guesswork out of trimming: Grasp a stalk with one hand around the root end at its furthest point, and the other about mid-way down the stalk and gently bend. Wherever it breaks is where it should be trimmed to.

Don’t be afraid of Jumbo/XL/Large Asparagus! Fat asparagus is actually more tender than thin. Each stalk has the same amount of support fibers, so Large Asparagus stalk has more flesh in between those fibers.

The most important thing — by far — about preparing asparagus is not to overcook it. It is delicious raw, shaved or sliced quite thin, steamed or roasted or grilled (which enhances its nutty flavor).

Nutrition: Like most green vegetables, asparagus is good for you. Among its healthful properties are folate, Vitamin C, potassium, inulin (which is said to be “prebiotic” and is known to aid in digestion), anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and possibly anti-cancer effects. Asparagus has also been used medicinally as a laxative, and its cooking water has been used as a wash to treat acne.

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Organic foods, Produce Notes, Stores_both

Organic Green Kale

March 21, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Organic Green Kale

Season: Grown in California!

Flavor: Kale has a strong and earthy taste.  The leaves are dry, tough, crunchy, and strong tasting.  It is a hearty leafy green, yet it is not spicy like arugula.  Young kale has softer, thinner leaves with a mild taste.

Storage: For a bunch of whole leaves, it’s all about avoiding excess moisture. Wrap the bunch of kale in a layer of paper towels, and store in an airtight bag in the refrigerator crisper drawer. The kale should be in great shape for a week.

How to use: Kale is delicious steamed, stir-fried, roasted, raw and “massaged,” and is tasty in smoothies, salads, stir fried, wilted into soup, mashed with potatoes, kale pesto; the list of uses for this vegetable go on and on.

Nutrition: Anti-inflammatories in the form of Omega-3 fatty acids and Vitamin K; antioxidants in the form of carotenoids, Vitamins C and E, as well as dozens of flavonoids (found in the pigments); cancer-fighting glucosinolates, just to name a few. For just 36 calories, one cup of kale contains three grams of fiber, 93 mg of calcium, 2.5 grams of protein.

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Organic foods, Produce Notes, Stores_both, Superfoods

Organic Russet Potatoes

March 16, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Organic Russet Potatoes

Season: These potatoes are currently coming from Oregon

Flavor: Mild; earthy; medium sugar content. Russets are long and large with a thick, rough, skin. A high-starch potato, with a flesh that’s snowy white and very dry, they are the quintessential baking potato.

Storage: Store potatoes in a cool, dark place with low humidity (a basement is ideal). Kept dry and in a dark place, most potatoes will keep for at least a month and up to three months (or more!). We don’t recommend storing them in the refrigerator and store them away from onions, as they release gases that interact and make each spoil more quickly.

How to use: Varieties with high levels of starch, like russet potatoes, are well-suited to baking and mashing. Also good for French fries.

Nutrition: One baked medium russet potato with skin contains 168 calories, 5 grams of protein and 37 grams of carbohydrate, including 4 grams of fiber. The fiber and protein in the potato will help to fill you up so you eat fewer calories. Fiber may also help lower your risk for constipation, heart disease and diabetes.

Consuming a medium russet potato provides you with vitamin B-6, niacin, folate, thiamine, riboflavin and vitamin C. Vitamin B-6, niacin, folate, thiamine and riboflavin are B vitamins, which turn the food you eat into energy, help your nervous system function properly and keep your hair, skin, eyes and liver healthy. Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant and is important for growing new tissues and repairing wounds.

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Organic foods, Produce Notes, Stores_both

Sweet Potatoes or Yams?

November 9, 2021 by The Natural Grocery Company

We all love to make “yams” for Thanksgiving, but did you know that you are actually eating sweet potatoes? Perhaps you already know that they are different, but I think there are still some folks who do not. Keep reading if you want to know more.

I was a docent at The UC Botanical Garden for several years back when I had another life as a professional cook in the East Bay Area. I love learning about our foods both botanically and culturally and I hope I can interest you as well. In the United States we refer to an orange fleshed sweet potato as a yam, but they are really two completely different species. Botanically yams are a root while sweet potatoes are a stem (tuber). The true yam does not grow in the northern hemisphere. They are only grown in the Caribbean, Africa and parts of Asia. The Yam can grow up to 150lbs and 4.5′ in length. Their flesh ranges in color from white to yellow to pink and they have a very thick, scaly, alligator like skin. Their flesh is also very starchy and dry. Yams are more closely related to lilies and grasses than to sweet potatoes, which are in the morning glory family. Sweet potatoes are native to tropical regions of South America. Peruvian sweet potato remnants dating as far back as 8000 BC have been found. You can eat them raw, baked, boiled, steamed, roasted, broiled, grilled, fried and just about any other way you can think of!

There is a food origin documentary on Netflix called High on the Hog and in Episode 1 it delves into the differences between the two species and discusses how some traditional “American” dishes came into our combined cultural heritage while the origins were historically obscured. The series is based on the book “High on the Hog” by Dr. Jessica B. Harris and is well worth the read if you are at all interested in how our “American” food culture came to be. It is about the literal “roots” of our food culture.

At The Natural Grocery Company, we have a variety of different sweet potatoes to
choose from year round. The orange flesh varieties are known as “moist fleshed” and the white
fleshed varieties are known as “dry fleshed.” Here are the types we carry at both our stores:

Garnet-An orange fleshed variety that is the most popular. This is the traditional “yam” we eat at
Thanksgiving. With a dark red skin and bright pumpkin colored flesh, this sweet potato is great
prepared almost any way. It is very sweet and has a nice creamy, velvety texture when cooked.

Jewel and Beauregard-Both types have an orange flesh. These varieties have tan skin and tend
to be a little sweeter than the Garnet. I like to use the Beauregard in my sweet potato pie recipe.
It is very moist when cooked and has a texture that is not as velvety as the Garnet. Great for
making sweet potato fries or chips!

Hannah– This variety has a light tan, almost white skin with white flesh. The white flesh is
crumbly and has the texture of a russet potato when cooked. This year, I will be making a
Hannah sweet potato pie with cardamom and vanilla.

Japanese– Also a white fleshed variety, this sweet potato has a very dark purple skin. Because of
its drier texture, I like to slice these, drizzle with olive oil, cinnamon and cayenne and bake at
350 degrees until they soften and turn a golden brown color. They are also nice in soups.

Purple Stokes/ Okinawa sweet potato- This super food variety is my favorite! With a bluish
purple skin and deep royal purple flesh, this sweet potato has a texture very similar to the Garnet
but has an extra sweet earthiness to the taste. Originally from the Americas, this variety was
introduced to Japan in the 14th century and has become a staple on the Island of Okinawa where
it is eaten almost every day. This is believed to be the reason why Okinawa has the largest
percentage of people living over the age of 100 (more than any other country). This variety has
150% more antioxidants than blueberries and is wonderful prepared almost any way. Try using
these in a pie (beautiful) or mashed instead of regular potatoes.

Add some extra antioxidants to your Thanksgiving table and gain some insight into where OUR foods come from, celebrate our diversity and give thanks for the ability to come together!

By Laura Wilt, Communications & Marketing, The Natural Grocery Company

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Organic foods, Produce Notes, Stores_both, Thanksgiving

Extra Virgin Olive Oil – Burroughs Family Farms

March 7, 2017 by WineAndBeer

Burroughs Family Farms – Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

We recently started selling Burroughs Family Farms organic, non-GMO, cold-pressed extra-virgin organic olive oil [aka EVOO]. This exemplary family-owned farm, situated in the Sierra foothills below Yosemite, is one of our favorite regional producers. We already source quality pastured eggs, organic cheese, and almonds from their property.  The Burroughs Family Olive Oil is a blend of Arbeqina, Arbosana and Gretchenina olives (originally from Spain). The oil has a pleasant fruitiness with hints of grassy undertones. It is very versatile and may be used in sauces, salad dressings, as a topping to bread and for low heat cooking.

Here is what Burroughs Family Farms says about their oil:

Our olives are first cold-pressed at temperatures that do not exceed 80 degrees F. This protects the polyphenols, antioxidants, and vitamins that give the oil its nutritional value and its aroma and flavor.

Why extra-virgin olive oil?

  • EVOO is known to contain stronger concentrations of phytonutrients (especially polyphenols) that have well-known anti-inflammatory properties
  • EVOO supports blood vessels not only by providing antioxidants like vitamin E and beta-carotene, but also also providing unique molecules like HT that actually work at a genetic level to help the cellular walls of the blood vessels remain strong.
  • Cholesterol lowering and blood pressure lowering benefits of monounsaturated oil (olive oil contains 75%)

High quality extra virgin olive oil has a smoke point of around 405ºF (191ºC), making it ideal for lower temperature cooking such as light sautés and non-cooked uses such as dressing salads and dipping bread. Such uses protect the nutritional value and beneficial qualities of the oil.

Why California Olive Oil?

As with wine, it has taken years for people to discover that some of the world’s finest olive oils are produced in California. Our family owned and operated farms rest on the rolling hills near Yosemite National Park, where the combination of the moderate Mediterranean climate with good soils and water grows some of the world’s finest quality olives.

Buying California olive oils vs. imports supports our farm economy, and California olive oils have a lower carbon-footprint because their shipping distance is much shorter than that of imports.

Conservation on our farms

Ours is not the easiest way to grow olives, but we think it’s best for our land and for our family who lives and works here. From organic production to state-of-the-art irrigation systems, we do whatever we can to protect air, soil, and water from herbicides, pesticides, petrochemical nitrogen fertilizers, and genetically-modified organisms. All that, plus our hedgerows of native plants support the health of native species and bees who have the most important job – the pollination of the olive flowers.

We do it for the future of our farms. For you, it’s deliciousness and more.

Burroughs Family Olive Oil is certified annually by the California Olive Oil Council (COOC). Year after year it’s labeled “extra-virgin” by the council. To get the seal the oil is lab tested and undergoes a critical analysis by an expert panel. The trained sensory panel (think of these people as the sommeliers of olive oil) ensure that the oil is free of defects in flavor or odor. In the U.S., many oils are labeled “extra-virgin” but do not undergo any such testing.

Filed Under: Antioxidants, Blog, Health foods, Know Your Farmer, Miracle Fruit, Non-GMO, Organic farming, Stores_both, Superfoods, Sustainability, Wonder Foods Tagged With: Healthy Fats, Local Producer, Olive Oil, Organic, Organic Farming, Superfood, Sustainable Production

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