Dressing or Stuffing? Our cornbread pan dressing is made with chicken stock and unbleached flours, wholesome as all get-out and tradition, southern-style. For stuffing you can choose from one made with rosemary bread and stout chestnuts, or a sourdough-based sage version that’s yeasty and filling.

Taters?  Thanksgiving’s a carb-loading day, right? We’ve got scalloped potatoes topped with Emmenthal, provolone and parmesan cheeses, sweet potatoes humming with honey, brown sugar and cinnamon,  and good ole’ fashioned mashed russets.

Craving a casserole? Ditch the soup can—we’ve got a green bean casserole that’ll knock your socks off, made without all the canned sodium and unpronounceable ingredients. Our mac and cheese is made with real cheddar—it’s a real hit with kids. And the squash casserole is thick with yellow veggies and carrots and dusted with a light breadcrumb topping. Creamy, deliciously good.

Sweating over the stove?  No way with our turkey gravy! We’ll end your endless stirring with gravy made from natural turkey juices, bay leaves and unbleached flour. And why mess with cranberries in a can—we make our cranberry relish thick and chunky and studded with oranges. It’s so tasty spread over bread for that leftover turkey sandwich.

Pies? Puh-leeze.  You name it, we’ve got it. Pumpkin, pecan (made with Georgia grown pecans!), chocolate bourbon pecan, chocolate silk, banana cream, apple, blackberry, cherry, mixed berry, gluten-free pies, no sugar added pies, three kinds of cheesecake, and cookie platters galore, all guaranteed to give you a natural sugar buzz all the way until Black Friday.  Our bakery’s got lots of rolls for the crowd in front of the TV snarfing down turkey sandwiches, too.

Table Décor? Hostess Gifts? We’ve got it covered! We have a beautiful cornucopia centerpiece in Garden & Floral, and fruit baskets in small or large sizes.  They’re perfect as hostess gifts!

But does it all taste good? Come try for yourself at our second Holiday Tasting this Saturday the 21^st, from 12-3pm. You can order all these goodies there, too, but remember: the ordering system cuts off on Sunday at 8 pm in the store and midnight online at www.wholefoodsmarket.com/holidays.

FIG UPDATE:  Remember when I told you I was going to try to freeze whole figs? I recently took out a small batch to roast as appetizers. I let them thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours before roasting and they turned out great. Yay! Fresh figs all holiday season!

One of the questions I’m most frequently asked is, “where do your turkeys come from?”  While it’d be easy to be clever and say “the meat department,” that answer just won’t fly. Actually, we can trace our turkey’s roots right back to their hometowns.

For example, our raw fresh and organic turkeys come from two family farms in Pennsylvania: Jaindl Farms, in the Lehigh Valley, and Koch Farms, in the Lewiston Valley. The rolling farmland affords these turkeys room to roam. Their barns have big open sides and their litter is healthy, dry and free of bacteria. The organic birds get organic feed, made from locally grown corn and roasted soybeans. Pretty good eats if you’re a turkey!

New this year is our kosher turkey. They hail from Kosher Valley’s farms in Plainville, New York. Like our other birds, they’re fed a special vegetarian diet and get more space to do their turkey thing than in conventional farms. They’re raised and processed according to ancient laws, but they meet the modern demand for healthy kosher choices. These turkeys are all rolling into the store at approximately 15 pounds, enough to feed about 10-12 people with plenty of leftovers.

Our Heirloom turkeys come from Diestel farms in Sonora, California. An heirloom is a turkey variety that is no longer widely raised, so this is as close to a wild turkey as most consumers will get.  The Diestel family has been in the business of raising turkeys for over 40 years, and their farm is dotted with trees and ponds and clean, dry barns so the occupants can come and go at will. (Pretty nice crib for a turkey). The Diestels raise their birds more slowly, so their flavor develops naturally. This results in more meat and less fat and water in the turkey. We’re getting these birds in the 20-pound range, so if you’ve got a lot of guests who love richly flavored meat this is the turkey for you.

Remember, all our turkeys are antibiotic and hormone-free. Drop by the table or visit us online. We’ve got lots of turkey to talk about!

But sometimes things don’t always go according to plan. Folks get sick and don’t have the energy to cook pumpkin pies.  Your college kids may bring home one or two extra mouths to feed—like the defensive line of their football team. And maybe Great-Aunt Matilda has decided to become a vegetarian, Uncle Bob’s on a new gluten-free diet, and Cousin Earline just flat-out can’t eat cheese anymore. When you’re thrown curveballs like that, what in the world can you do?

You can still count on us. Starting this Friday, November 6^th, Whole Foods Market Johns Creek will have our Holiday Table (affectionately known here as the “Turkey Table”) up and running.   At the Turkey Table you can order your just bird or a whole Thanksgiving dinner. We can tell you how big a turkey you need for any number of guests, get the scoop on the ingredients and our prepared foods, and just generally take the stress out of Thanksgiving Day so you can enjoy your family and friends. We’ve got vegan and vegetarian options and suggestions for almost every other kind of dietary restrictions.  And everything you order is all made to our exacting standards, with wholesome ingredients and no artificial unpronounceable.  We’ll take your order and print you a receipt on the spot, and if you change your mind you can call us back.  All you have to do is come back into the store on the 24^th or 25^th of November, and we’ll box it up for you.

Mouth watering for more? Well, I’m happy to tell you that you can get a taste of our Thanksgiving goodies on Saturday, November 14^th and November 21^st from 12 noon to 2 pm, when we’ll have our “Taste of Thanksgiving” holiday sampling. You’ll get to try our turkey, dressings and sides, pies and rolls and other treats, and we’ll be happy to take your order.  And if you can’t make it into the store, never fear—you can order everything online at www.wholefoodsmarket.com/holidays. Be sure that you’re ordering from the Johns Creek store—we’d love to see you and talk some turkey!

And it’s especially pumpkins.

At Whole Foods Market Johns Creek, the throbbing red heirloom tomato has surrendered center stage to the opulently orange pumpkin. We’ve got stacks of them, ready to be cut and carved into whatever design budding pumpkin Picassos can create.  Our carving pumpkins are still 3 for $12, so you can get one for each member of the family and still have some left over for a harvest vignette on the front porch. It’s a veritable Pumpkinpalooza of varieties—little warty pumpkins, petite baking pumpkins, even white pumpkins.  On Halloween—yes, this Saturday–from 11 am to 3 pm the whole family can get in on the act.  You can taste recipes made with variations on all things pumpkin, and the kids can wear their costumes and partake in some nifty crafts. And since all this festivity ends at 3 pm, you can get home in time for the Georgia-Florida kickoff and whip up the recipe for Pumpkin Seed Pesto.  Whether you’re tailgating or parked in front of the big screen, this pesto is easy to make and spread across some good crusty bread.  You can also smear it on a sandwich, toss it with pasta or serve it over roasted or steamed vegetables.  It’s the third-most popular recipe on our website!

Pumpkin Seed Pesto

2 cups unsalted hulled (green) pumpkin seeds

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Salt and pepper to taste

¼ cup water

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, or to taste

3 garlic cloves

1 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro

Preheat oven to 375˚. Toss pumpkin seeds with 2 tablespoons of the oil and salt and then spread in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Roast until seeds are puffed and fragrant—10 to 15 minutes—then set aside to cool.

Combine seeds in a food processor with water, lemon juice, garlic, cilantro and remaining 4 tablespoons oil. Pulse until mixture forms a coarse paste, then season with salt and pepper. Cover and chill until ready to use.  Makes about 2 ½ cups.

Flooded Farms Relief Fund update:  A gigantic THANK YOU to everyone who shopped in the store and our Farmer’s Market, bought lunch at our grill or won a bid at our silent auction last Wednesday.  Our store raised $4,370 dollars for the Slow Food Atlanta’s Flooded Farms Relief Fund.  In total the Atlanta stores raised almost $24,000. We’re continuing our “Donate your Dime” program to aid the Fund through October 31^st, so be sure to come down and help out your fellow Atlantans recover. If you’d like more information please visit www.slowfoodatlanta.org.

Will Harris is one such cowboy.

Will owns White Oaks Pastures and Harris Family Heritage Beef, a sustainable farm located in the far southwest corner of our fair state near Bluffton, Georgia.  The beef his cattle provide is one of the most popular products in our Johns Creek store.  His cattle are born on the farm, graze on grass in the warm Georgia sunshine and are harvested on site, providing a humane and sustainable process that doesn’t include any artificial hormones, containment feeding, animal-by products or antibiotics.  

Will changed his production model for cattle after re-thinking about what was best for the animal and his land. He rode to their rescue, and now his farm is a shining example of all that is good about sustainable, artisan farming. He rides to the rescue of the consumer who has been wary about the content of their beef and provides them with a product that is wholesome and delicious. He also rides to the rescue for those who believe in the cause of good food by serving as president of Georgia Organics and working with Whole Foods Market to educate and advocate to consumers about healthy eating choices.

And this past Wednesday, when our store hosted a benefit for Slow Food Atlanta’s Flooded Farms Relief Fund, Will Harris rode to the rescue of those devastated by the September floods. He came straight off a big, white airplane and drove through Atlanta traffic to our store to sell his beef and chat with the crowd, working his cowboy charm on everyone who came by that day.  We made some hamburgers with his grassfed beef and sold those as part of a box lunch, with all the proceeds going toward the relief fund.  So to Will we say—thanks, pardner. We couldn’t have done it without you.

David Lennox’s words are an apt description of the circumstances he and his family face after last month’s floods. David and his wife Leslie own and operate Hope’s Gardens, LLC, a small specialty business named after their daughter. The floodwaters of Nancy Creek wiped out 4,000 of their basil plants, David’s entire garden and the electrical elements of their greenhouse. The waters engulfed the lowest level of their 3-story home and rose two and a half to three feet into the second level.  Despite their losses, David and Leslie plan to have Hope’s Gardens’ back up and running before Thanksgiving—“beginning a new normal,” David says.

At 2 am Monday, September 21^st, David awoke to the sounds of a struggling sump pump. At 7 am the family was moving furniture from the lowest level of the house to the second level. By late morning the waters of Nancy Creek had reached the greenhouse on their property, and by 3:30 pm there was approximately three feet of water in the main house and in the greenhouse. With water rising 6 inches an hour, the family evacuated to a hotel with their two cats and watched the flood coverage on the local news.

The next day, with the full extent of damage revealed, the family began the arduous task of assessment and recovery of their home and the little company that had grown as quickly and fruitfully as David’s garden.  Hope’s Gardens began in 2007, when Leslie was invited to come to the Peachtree Road Farmer’s Market and sell some of her homemade greeting cards. While at the market they noticed the “buzz” around locally grown food and persuaded her husband David, an avid gardener, to come down and sell some of his produce.  When 15 bags of lettuce sold in one hour Leslie decided that the next week they would bring some of her homemade pesto, which had been winning raves from friends and family for years. They sold out at the end of the day and decided to procure a producer’s license for the product. Through a friendship with Elisa Gambino of Via Elisa Pasta, they started to build their business.  Alisha Bess at Whole Foods on West Paces Ferry tasted the pesto at the Peachtree Road Farmers Market and helped them make the proper introductions to Whole Foods.  Hope’s Gardens pesto has become a favorite on the specialty shelves at Whole Foods stores across Atlanta.

Though spirits are low and frustrations high, David and Leslie plan to have their jars of sweet basil, roasted jalapeño and sundried tomato pesto ready for customers before the holidays.  They have found a rental house 3 miles from their current home and are working with FEMA and GEMA to get their lives righted.  “This business is our family”, Leslie says, “it grew out of family days at the market.”

Besides the Lennox family, many local growers and producers have been deeply affected by the September floods. To help them out, all Whole Foods Market stores in Atlanta will donate 5% of their net profits on Wednesday, October 21^st to Slow Food Atlanta’s Georgia Flooded Farmers Relief Fund.  Our Johns Creek store will be having a special farmer’s market that day from 11am to 2 pm with some of your favorite vendors such as Will Harris and his grass-fed beef, Stokes’ famous purple sweet potatoes, Mercier apples, Sweetwater Growers, the Bee Factory and others on hand to provide samples and help out. Make plans to come visit us that day and shop for a most delicious—and urgent—cause. 

Squash is one of those transition vegetables that mean business when it comes to a change of season. They’re a great reason to fire up the oven to 400 degrees and roast away. Acorn squash, nutty and fibrous with a deep orange exterior, is perfect for slicing and stuffing with a whole grain. Those big butternuts are good all cubed up and roasted. (Note to whoever buys that six-pounder:  that squash would be perfect for freezing and using for soup later.) The fashionably striped delicata is sweet with a custard-y texture. It’d be delicious in a light buttery sauté with other vegetables. We’ve got the cutest little pie pumpkins, so you can get a head start on making and freezing batches of pumpkin soup.  And for those of you watching your carbs—that’s fine, but you need your fiber, too. You can get it with spaghetti squash. Slice the squash in half and seed it; then place it cut side down on a lightly greased baking sheet. Cook in a 350˚ preheated oven for 30 minutes and then let it cool until it is easy to handle. Flip the squash over and run a fork through the meat and make “spaghetti” strands. You can eat it as is, with a little salt and pepper, or add sautéed veggies.

Since I’m dining solo tonight it’s the perfect time to try new squash recipes before I spring them on dinner guests or tailgate pals.  The one below is brand spanking new from our website, and it adds an extra healthy kick of spinach.

Roasted Butternut Squash with wilted Spinach and crumbled Blue Cheese

1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles
3 tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 (5-ounce) package baby spinach
4 cups cubed and roasted butternut squash, warmed

Use a fork to mash together blue cheese and lemon juice in a large bowl to make a thick smooth dressing. Season with salt and pepper; set aside. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add spinach and cook, tossing often, until slightly wilted and warm, 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer contents of skillet to bowl with dressing, add squash, salt and pepper and toss to combine.

To roast Butternut Squash: preheat oven to 400˚. Halve the squash lengthwise and scoop out and discard seeds. Peel squash with a vegetable peeler, if desired; cut into 1-inch cubes. Transfer to a large rimmed baking sheet. Toss with extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and then spread in a single layer. Roast, tossing occasionally, until the squash is tender and golden brown, usually about 30 minutes.

It’s “holidays.”

Yes, there they are, winking at us from around the corner of the calendar as we turn into October.  It’s time for party planning—Halloween or harvest parties for the little ones, Thanksgiving for the family, Passover and Christmas and New Year’s for the neighbors and long-distance friends and everyone else that wanders through your door. With all the goings-on it’s easy to fall into the trap of convenient food echoing with empty calories and no nutrition.  And if you’ve been working hard on eating healthier this year it’s easy to get discouraged, especially if you’ve done a pantry makeover and invested in fresh foods and wholesome staples.

Never fear! Whole Foods Market Johns Creek is the place where you can stay on track with your healthy eating resolutions, make everyone’s belly happy and save money.  Where to start? Your pantry!  I’ve listed some ideas below to get you started.  Print and tear out this list, then bring it to the store the next time you shop. You’ll have a head start on “H”-word planning!

PANTRY “TWEAKS” FOR THE HOLIDAYS

·         Substitute low sodium chicken or beef broth and canned beans for canned soups: canned soup can be loaded with sodium. Keep low-sodium broth and beans on hand and you control more of the sodium content plus the rest of the soup or stew ingredients.

·         Substitute low sodium canned peeled tomatoes for barbeque sauces: again, you’ll save sodium, plus you can put your own spin on sauces for grilled meats or pasta sauces.

·         Take out one box of sugared cereal and replace it with a box of whole oats:  instead of two sugared cereals, mix your morning breakfast with half a bowl of cereal and half a bowl of whole oats, then add a low-fat milk.  The kids will get their favorite flavors with a fibrous boost that’ll power them all through the school days and into sports, school plays and concerts.

·         Cook, puree and freeze your favorite squash: That way you can stir it into macaroni and cheese. You get an extra vegetable serving that doesn’t throw off the appealing color of the orange-y delicious mac and cheese.

·         Substitute whole wheat breadcrumbs for plain: and you’ll get the extra fiber and whole grain goodness. Use them as coating for boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cut into planks, then bake them in the oven. They’re great for feeding hungry kids or the crowd in front of the game on TV.

·         Look for our 365 Everyday Value™ Organic Brand:  trade out your high-priced organics for our private label line when you’re baking. We’ve got great values in organic flour, cane sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, chocolate chips, and pumpkin puree.

·         Easy as (365 Everyday Value™ Organic Brand) pie: Did you know we’ve got a private label frozen whole wheat pie crust? It’s perfect for easy desserts. And if you’re craving a fruit pie, we’ve got organic frozen fruit for the filling. Pick your favorites and fill your freezer. They’re ideal for smoothies in a hurry, too.

Our tale begins in Stokes County, a tiny, pretty bit of central North Carolina near the Virginia border. A gentleman named Mike Sizemore retired after 30 years of service to the Tarheel State and bought what every retiree wants—a tractor. (What, did you think I was going to say a condo in Florida? Keep reading.) You see, Mr. Sizemore had always wanted to be a farmer. He took his shiny new tractor and used it to plant sweet potatoes. 

These bright orange spuds were a hit, even winning a prize or two at local festivals.  Mr. Sizemore decided to try his luck with a new kind of sweet potato. He didn’t know how people were going to feel about it. It grew in the ground, all right, and it was packed with fiber like other sweet potatoes—but this potato was purple.  It was such a bright purple you’d think it’d been colored by an overzealous kindergartener. What would this tuber taste like?

Well, Mr. Sizemore’s newest crop might be ugly but it tastes real pretty.  It’s sweet, like its orange cousins, and because of the color it’s packed with healthy antioxidants. Unlike other blue or purple-hued fruits and veggies, it doesn’t lose any of its antioxidant powers when it’s cooked. And you’re going to want to cook them. A LOT.  Rich and thick, the texture is similar to a russet potato. For your first attempt you might want to try them simply baked and touched with butter as a pardner to your ribeye this weekend. They’re friendly with fish, chicken and any other meat you can think of, too.  

Nowadays Stokes County is the purple sweet potato kingdom.  The farmers that used to grow tobacco—farmers that, before this tuber appeared, were struggling not to lose their farms—are now growing these potatoes. The same equipment that farmed tobacco can be used to grow sweet potatoes so they didn’t suffer any extra expense.  All of the processing happens in North Carolina, from the building of the bins used for harvest to the processing plant that makes the creamy, delectable purple sweet potato butter. A simple purple tuber is doing its part to save North Carolina farms for North Carolina families.

This Saturday at Whole Foods Market Johns Creek we’re going to be doing demos featuring recipes with purple sweet potatoes. You’ll learn all the basics of storing and sautéing, plus we’ll hand out recipes for you to take home. Some of the friendly folks from Stokes will be here to talk about their product.  Our Captain’s Counter will feature purple sweet potato fries on its menu, and the Trattoria will serve up a purple sweet potato salad.  In other words, purple will reign!

Luckily there’s a terrific new resource available for parents that want to please their kid’s palates and feed them nutritious, fun food.  “Kids in the Kitchen” is a program developed by the Association of Junior Leagues International designed to help combat childhood obesity.  The Junior League is an organization of women dedicated to improving the communities they live in, and each Junior League can tailor the program to the needs of their community.  Our Whole Foods Market here in Johns Creek, in conjunction with the Junior League of Gwinnett and North Fulton Counties, is dedicating an entire day to “Kids in the Kitchen.” This Saturday, September 19^th, you can come by the store from 11 am to 3 pm and see some of this program in action. We’ll have cooking demonstrations from the “Kids in the Kitchen” cookbook and more demos and samples of other kid-friendly, nutritious foods.  Junior Jazzercise will be in the house to conduct a fun and energetic class—after all, exercise goes hand-in-hand with good nutrition—and the kids can take home a food craft they make with their own hands. Clementine Art will set-up an art station featuring non-toxic supplies for the budding artist.  If you’ve got to buy groceries with the kids, this event is a great way to get the whole family involved and entertained. I mean, who wouldn’t want to learn how to make a Bunny Salad, Pizza Salad or a spider? (Spider?  Yes. You’ll have to come into the store and find out.)

All these nutritious, creative recipes and ideas trigger a food memory. On my daughter’s first birthday I rented a bulky camcorder (hey, that was all we had in the late Eighties) and spent the entire day recording every moment.  At lunchtime I set the camera on an equally bulky tripod and recorded for all posterity what must be the longest lunch in history. She refused every delicacy I offered except for cottage cheese, which she dug into with the gusto of a runner at a pre-marathon pasta binge. She ate for so long she overlapped nap time, and at the end of the meal she was face down in the empty bowl, belly full and happily humming herself to sleep.  She was happy, but I was stressed.  How I wish “Kids in the Kitchen” and Whole Foods had been available to me then!