Natural Grocery

Independently owned, organic grocery store. Our Annex serves prepared foods and offers a selection of wine and beer. Our florists are here to help you with fresh local cuts and dried bouquets.

EL CERRITO STORE
10367 San Pablo Ave.
(510) 526-1155
Every Day Hours
PREPARED FOOD ANNEX
10387 San Pablo Ave.
(510) 526-5150
Every Day Hours
BERKELEY STORE
1336 Gilman St.
(510) 526-2456
Every Day Hours
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Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding Recipe

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This decadent chocolate chia seed pudding is equal parts indulgent and delicious!

 

Whether you’re meal prepping tomorrow’s breakfast or craving a chocolate-y dessert – this is the recipe for you!

 

Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding

 5 min prep + 2-4 hr chilling time

Serves 2-3

Vegetarian

 

Ingredients

1 cup milk (whole, almond, oat, etc.)

½ cup plain yogurt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ cup chia seeds

2-4 tablespoons agave syrup

3 tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted

1 teaspoon mushroom powder

Pinch of salt

Shaved chocolate, for garnish

Sliced almonds, for garnish

Mint leaves, for garnish

 

Directions

  • Whisk together all ingredients in a mixing bowl until smooth. Adjust sweetness to taste and place in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours to thicken.
  • Spoon pudding into serving dishes and garnish with shaved chocolate, sliced almonds, and mint leaves.

World Fair Trade Day – May 10, 2025

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We definitely believe that World Fair Trade Day is an occasion to be celebrated. After all, it helps to create a more ethical world!

The Fair Trade movement campaigns to improve the lives of workers and small producers, especially those within developing economies, by asserting their rights and raising their visibility within international trade.

World Fair Trade Day was started by the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) in 2002, though the WFTO itself came into existence 15 years earlier, in 1989.

WFTO is a global association of 324 organizations in over 70 countries, and World Fair Trade Day takes place on the second Saturday of May of each year, and it is an inclusive worldwide festival of events celebrating Fair Trade as a tangible contribution to the fight against poverty and exploitation, climate change and the economic crisis that has the greatest impact on the world’s most vulnerable populations.

If you want to take part in this special day, researching the work conditions of people around the world would be a good place to start, just so you can get a general idea about how some people are forced to live. You are likely to be shocked at how the things you enjoy on an everyday basis are made, but awareness is the first step towards making any kind of change.

When workers are paid fairly, they and their families are able to lead better lives. Everyone benefits because there is a fairer and healthier world. It helps to open our eyes to some of the injustices in the world so that we can all fight to do better.

Start with today and make the simple but effective promise to only buy certified Fair Trade products whenever possible, thereby giving your hard-earned money to only those companies that truly care about the well-being of those less fortunate.

 

The Annex Sessions: 2024 Fundraising Report

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Recently Amer Budayr, representing Sunjams, presented a check for $5,000 to Barbara Hodgkinson of the California Symphony. These funds were raised in 2024 by the Annex Sessions, Wednesday night music performances at the Annex in El Cerrito. These weekly free music events are sponsored through the joint efforts of The Annex, Sunjams, and Javier Navarrette Music. The funds will be used to support the Sound Minds program at Downer Elementary School in San Pablo, providing free instruments and instruction to students.
2024 Financial Report
The Annex Sessions presented 48 shows in 2024.
The Natural Grocery Company donated $12,000 in 2024 in support of The Annex Sessions.
From the donations you gave, money disbursed to musicians in 2024:
$42,343 (this includes $9600 paid to produce the shows).
SunJams pledged to give $100 per show to the California Symphony/ Sound Minds organization. The check was for was $5K (SunJams rounded up the amount of the donation).
Thank you for your generous donations and support for this series!

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes Recipe

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Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes 

1 hr 30 mins

Makes 18-20

Vegetarian

 

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour or cake flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon sea salt

12 tbps (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 ½ cups cane sugar

3 egg whites

1 cup buttermilk

Zest and juice of 2 medium lemons

1 lb unsalted butter, softened

2 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted

¾ cup strawberry jam, divided

10 ripe strawberries, halved

 

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
  • In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and cane sugar together until pale in color. Whisk in egg whites until batter is smooth.
  • Fold in half the dry ingredients, then half the buttermilk and repeat. Fold in lemon zest and juice.
  • Line two cupcake pans with cupcake liners and fill 2/3 full of batter. Bake for 20 minutes (rotating pans halfway through baking) or until a toothpick inserted in the centers come out clean. Set aside to cool completely.
  • Cream butter and add sifted confectioner’s sugar. Beat frosting until smooth then mix in ½ cup of strawberry jam. Place in a piping bag fitted with a star piping tip.
  • To decorate cupcakes, pipe frosting in a circular pattern over the top of the cupcake leaving a well in the center. Place a teaspoon of strawberry jam in the center of the frosting. Top cupcakes with a strawberry half.

Natural Dyed Eggs Recipe

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Natural Dyed Eggs Recipe

1-2 hr

 

Ingredients

1 quart water

2 tablespoons white vinegar

Hard boiled eggs

For pink eggs: 2 medium beets, shredded or 2 tablespoons beet powder

For blue eggs: ¼ small red cabbage

For orange eggs: 4 yellow onion skins

For yellow eggs: 2 tablespoons ground turmeric

 

Directions

  • Place water and one natural coloring agent into a 2-quart pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15-30 minutes. Cool mixture and strain each mixture into a separate bowl using a fine sieve. Stir in vinegar.
  • Place hard boiled eggs into respective dyes for 20 minutes, longer for deeper color.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Recipe

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Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Recipe

 1 hr

Makes 2 loaves

Vegetarian

 

Ingredients

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup cane sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

3 ripe bananas, mashed

2 large eggs

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder, sifted

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon sea salt

½ cup sour cream

¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips

 

Directions

  • Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla together until pale in color. In a separate bowl, whisk together bananas and eggs. Add the banana mixture to the creamed butter and mix until just combined. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Fold into wet ingredients.
  • Add sour cream and fold the batter again until just combined then fold in chocolate chips.
  • Grease loaf pans with butter or baking spray, optionally, line them with parchment paper. Divide batter evenly between the two prepared pans.
  • Bake for 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow banana bread to rest for 10 minutes before removing from pan.

Tuna Pasta Salad Recipe

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Tuna Pasta Salad

  • 30 mins
  • Serves 8

Ingredients

  • 1 pound farfalle pasta
  • 2-5 oz cans tuna, drained
  • 6 ribs celery, sliced
  • 1 medium red onion, diced
  • 2 cups mayonnaise
  • 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon dried dill
  • 1 teaspoon chia seeds
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
  • 1-15 oz can peas, drained

Directions

  • Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside to cool.
  • Add the tuna to a medium mixing bowl. Using a fork, break apart the tuna. Stir in the celery and red onion.
  • Whisk together mayonnaise, vinegar, dill, chia seeds, sea salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
  • Add pasta and dressing to the veggie/tuna mixture then toss to combine.
  • Fold in peas and adjust seasonings to taste.

Smothered Potato Puffs Recipe

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Smothered Potato Puffs

Gluten free

30 Min

Serves 4

 

Ingredients

16 oz frozen tater tots

1/3 cup crumbled feta

½ small red onion, julienned

1 handful cilantro leaves

½ teaspoon dried oregano

 

Sauce

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1 Tablespoon sriracha hot sauce

 

Directions

  • Bake tater tots following the package instructions or until extra crispy.
  • Meanwhile, stir together sauce ingredients. Set aside.
  • Place tater tots on a serving plate and drizzle with sauce.
  • Sprinkle on feta, red onion, oregano, and cilantro. Serve promptly.
OPEN EVERY DAY
El Cerrito: 8:30am to 8:30pm, seven days a week
Berkeley: 8:30am to 8:30pm, seven days a week
Annex : 7:30am to 8:30pm
Wine opens at 9am
EL CERRITO STORE
10367 San Pablo Ave.
(510) 526-1155
Seven days a week 8:30am-8:30pm
EL CERRITO ANNEX
10367 San Pablo Ave.
(510) 526-5150
Every Day 7:30am-8:30pm
Wine: 9am-8:30pm
BERKELEY STORE
1336 Gilman St.
(510) 526-2456
Seven days a week 8:30am-8:30pm