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Creamy Tom Yum Noodle Soup

March 8, 2023 by The Natural Grocery Company

If you think of imperfectly rehydrated vegetables and a foam cup when you hear noodle cup, you’re not alone. This creamy Tom Yum noodle soup is way beyond that mediocre convenience food! With a few minutes and a bit of slicing, you’ve got a mix of fresh and sauteed veggies, crispy tofu, and a hearty meal ready to stave off any lingering chill of winter. No air fryer? You can always start the tofu in the pan and sauté the veggies once you’ve got some crispy edges. For a more hands off approach, you can also cook the tofu in a 400° F oven on a lined baking sheet. Either way, you’re just a few minutes away from creamy, rich, hot and sour soup!

Creamy Tom Yum Noodle Soup

Serves 1

Total Time: 15 minutes

Vegan, Gluten-Free

1 Lotus Foods Tom Yum Rice Ramen Noodle Soup

4 oz extra firm tofu, cubed

Avocado oil spray

½ a baby bok choy, sliced

½ cup button mushrooms, quartered

¼ cup coconut cream

¼ cup baby corn, rinsed and drained

1 green onion, sliced

2-3 pieces of cilantro

Prepare noodle soup according to directions on package.
Spray tofu with avocado oil, add to the air fryer at 400° F until brown and crispy.
Heat pan with avocado oil, add bok choy and mushrooms, and fry for two to three minutes.
Pour cooked noodle soup into a bowl; stir in coconut cream.
Top with cooked veggies, baby corn, green onions, and cilantro.

March is Fairtrade Banana Month

March 7, 2023 by The Natural Grocery Company

Choosing Fairtrade makes a difference!

In March we are featuring Fairtrade Bananas for $0.99/lb

Photo courtesy of Equal Exchange

Fairtrade banana producers are paid a Fairtrade Minimum Price that acts as a safety net against falling prices. This price varies by region, factoring in local conditions and aiming to cover the average costs of sustainable production.
Plantation workers and small-scale banana farmers also receive a Fairtrade Premium – an extra sum of money that farmers and workers invest in business or community projects of their choice. Banana workers have often used the Premium to improve their housing, build schools and clinics, or offer other benefits they see a need for.
The Fairtrade Standards are designed to improve employment conditions and protect the rights of workers in the large plantations where the majority of export bananas are grown. In recent years Fairtrade has undertaken pioneering work to define and progress toward living wages for banana workers.
For smallholder farms, Fairtrade supports these banana growers to improve their income and their bargaining position in banana supply chains that are often dominated by larger entities.

Photo courtesy of Equal Exchange

Season: Bananas are grown in tropical areas and can produce nearly year-round, so seasonality is not particularly relevant to the fruit. Bananas are not grown in California.

Flavor: The flavor changes as they ripen. Green bananas are more starchy, very firm and less sweet. As they ripen the taste has been described as having melon, pineapple, candy and clove flavor notes. Yellow bananas have higher sugar concentrations and therefore taste sweeter. Finally, when the peel has become brown, the banana contains notes which are reminiscent of vanilla, honey and rum and the texture is very soft.

Storage: Ripen green bananas on the counter. You can also store them on the counter – but note that they will continue to ripen, and sometimes quickly, depending on how warm it is. If they are too green for you then put them in a plastic bag with an apple to help ripen them.

You can also use bananas’ ethylene gas to your advantage: to ripen a hard avocado overnight, stick it in a paper bag with a ripe banana. The banana’s ethylene gas will work its magic on the avocado, making it perfectly ripe and ready for your next batch of guacamole.

How to use: The most common way to eat bananas is of course, out of hand. But they’re also used for a variety of sweet and savory dishes. Very ripe bananas are perfect for baking in dishes such as Banana Bread.

Bananas freeze beautifully — just peel them and stick them in a zip-top bag for use in smoothies or banana ice cream. If you’re going to freeze them, go one step further and make chocolate covered bananas for an instant dessert.

Nutrition: Bananas are really, really good for you! One medium-sized banana will give you about 12 percent of your daily fiber needs, plus lots of Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, potassium and manganese. Bananas even have a bit of protein, iron and calcium.

Our stores only carry organic produce!

Emerald Lentil Salad Recipe

March 6, 2023 by The Natural Grocery Company

This is what we call a spoon salad! Use a spoon to make sure you don’t miss a drop. We’ve got all the shades of green in this salad, with no soggy lettuce in sight. Perfect for meal planning, potlucks, or feeding a crowd. Roasted pumpkin seeds add a salty crunch. Creamy avocado keeps you satisfied. Thinly sliced broccoli is perfect raw, but if you have leftover roasted broccoli, you can use that instead. The bulk of this salad comes from the French green lentils. Unlike red lentils, these will keep their shape and ensure this hearty salad satisfies.

Emerald Lentil Salad

Serves 4

Total Time: 45 minutes

Vegan, Gluten-Free

¾ cup green or French lentils

1 pound broccoli florets, thinly sliced

1 avocado, chopped

1/3 cup roasted and salted pumpkin seeds

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

½ cup micro greens

Place lentils and five cups water in a medium saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook until lentils are just tender, approximately 35 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool.
In a medium mixing bowl, place cooled lentils, broccoli, avocado, and pumpkin seeds.
Whisk together dressing ingredients and toss with salad. Adjust seasoning to taste and serve garnished with micro greens.

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.

Peach Shake Recipe from Frog Hollow Farms

September 8, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Our friends at Frog Hollow Farms posted this great recipe for Peach Shakes! Imagine switching out frozen yogurt for the ice cream for a Peach Lassi drink! You’re welcome!

Cool down with this quick recipe to use up those almost to the end of the season !

Ingredients:
2 peaches, with seed and skin, removed
2 cups of quality vanilla ice cream
1/3 cup of whole milk

Method:
In a blender, add the ingredients and blend until well incorporated (about 45 seconds)
Serve in a tall chilled glass, garnish with a slice of peach.
Enjoy!

Thank you Frog Hollow Farms!

Hummingbird Container Re-Use

September 8, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Since 2003, Hummingbird Wholesale has managed a successful container reuse program. Co-owner Charlie Tilt wanted to use an alternative system to recycling that would save more energy and be gentler on the environment.

When you shop our stores you will notice that we collect a deposit for Hummingbird products that are in jars. When you return the clean container to us you get your deposit back and we return them to Hummingbird to be sanitized and used again. Learn more about their program and the savings it is realizing for the company while helping reduce waste.

Learn More

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.

Organic Bananas

July 19, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Season: They’re native to Southeast Asia but grown in several countries near the equator and are available year-round.

Flavor: Bananas have an interesting flavor transition during their ripening process. Unripe bananas which still contain the green peel have a bland flavor with apparent notes of grassiness. Furthermore, less ripe bananas contain higher levels of starch and therefore have a “starchier” taste. As they ripen a more distinctive fruity flavor develops accompanied melon, pineapple, candy and clove flavor notes. Yellow bananas have higher sugar concentrations and therefore taste sweeter. Finally, when the peel has become brown, the banana contains notes which are reminiscent of vanilla, honey and rum.

Choosing & Storage: Look for plump, firm, and brightly colored bananas. Occasional brown spots on the skin are normal. Avoid sunken, moist-looking dark areas, split skins or stems.

Bananas that require ripening should be left at room temperature, but away from heat or direct sun. To speed ripening, place them in a closed paper bag. Once ripe bananas can be held at room temperature for a day or two. Refrigerate to slow down ripening. Although the skins will turn dark, the fruits will remain edible. Keep refrigerated bananas for up to two weeks. Do not refrigerate unripe bananas because the exposure to cold interrupts their ripening cycle.

How to use: Eat them fresh! Bake them into “banana bread”. Use to thicken and sweeten smoothies. Dip in melted chocolate, roll in nuts and freeze for a sweet frozen treat.

Nutrition: Bananas are a healthy source of fiber, potassium, vitamin B6, vitamin C, and various antioxidants and phytonutrients. Vitamin C, Riboflavin, Folate, Niacin, Copper, Potassium, Magnesium.

Organic Red Watermelon

July 15, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Season: July & August are the height of watermelon season in California. Watermelons are native to Africa.

Flavor: A watermelon is a large fruit that is green and striped on the outside and red and juicy on the inside. It is a very sweet, fresh, green and fruity taste with cucumber notes. It has a soft, crisp flesh.

Choosing & Storage: When choosing a watermelon, obviously you want to avoid any that show signs of decay, but that yellow spot – as long as it’s not mushy – merely shows where that watermelon ripened in the field and it’s perfectly fine. Ripe watermelons make a dull thud when you tap them with your fingers.

Place melons in a cool, shady spot or put them on ice. Watermelons can be stored uncut and unrefrigerated for about 10 days to 2 weeks. Place them in a very cool place to increase their storage time. If cut, watermelon will keep in the refrigerator for about 4 days wrapped tightly in plastic. Once refrigerated, they should remain refrigerated.

How to use: Fresh, eaten as is! Try grilling it and adding to salads or salsa. It’s easy to juice for a sweet summer drink. I like to add a bit of lime juice to balance the sweet!

Nutrition: This fruit is a good source of vitamin C, potassium, copper, vitamin B5, and vitamin A.

Organic Peaches from Frog Hollow Farms

July 10, 2022 by The Natural Grocery Company

Season: Now! A sweet and fragrant peach that’s ripe enough to drip juice down your chin is one of the ultimate joys of summer! Frog Hollow Farms grows over nineteen varieties of organic yellow peaches. How many will you try this year?

Flavor: White peaches tend to be sweeter than yellow ones. Yellow peaches have a bit more acid. Depending on the variety the flesh may be firm or soft, the flesh may cling to the pit (cling-stone) or separate easily (cling-free and free-stone). Frog Hollow hand picks and hand packs their peaches and we are so lucky to be situated close to their operations.

Storage: When buying peaches, choose fruits that smell sweet. They should have a creamy, yellow, or yellow-orange color and unwrinkled skin. Avoid green skin or bruising.

Once picked, mature peaches do continue to ripen and soften. If you must store them then let them breath, don’t stack them and keep them dry. Too many ripe peaches on hand? Consider washing, slicing and freezing them.

How to use: Fresh – whole, juice dripping down your chin! In a mixed fruit salad or combine with berries and blue cheese and serve in little gem lettuce cups as an appetizer. I like using firm peaches to bake in pies or galettes and for grilling.

Nutrition: Peaches are a rich source of carbohydrates, fiber, and natural sugars with little fat or protein. Peaches provide vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, and B vitamins.

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