Easy Quinoa Dinner After a Hot Day

by millvalley, May 17, 2009 | Permalink

I love to cook, but when it’s 90 degrees outside, even I tone it down. Here’s a great dinner plan for a hot day. Quinoa takes only 20 minutes to cook - and it’s a good source of protein. It makes a perfect base for a filling grain salad. For this sald, start with a cup of quinoa. Add 2 cups of water and bring to a simmer - cook about 20 minutes, covered - or until water is absorbed.

Our produce department is full of great deals and fresh, seasonal fruits and veggies right now. Check out the sweet spring onions and local greens for a fresh salad. Dessert? Berries, berries, and more berries. Local Blue Moon strawberries are here - look for their signature blue basket! We also have good blueberries and raspberries coming in now and the pineapples have been fantastic.

Quinoa Salad

Combine the following:

• 1 cup quinoa, cooked
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 small spring onions, diced
• 1 carrot, grated
• 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
• kernels from 2 ears of corn (if desired, lightly steam or saute first)
• 1/2 cup brown rice vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 small handful Italian parsley, minced
• 2 green onions, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• salt & pepper, to taste

Mix well and serve. If desired, top with diced fresh avocado tossed in lime juice just before serving.

Banana Breakfast Bread

by millvalley, May 4, 2009 | Permalink

Just 6 days until Mother’s Day! How will you treat all the wonderful moms you know? Here’s a personal favorite recipe. Most banana bread recipes are heavy on oil and light on bananas, which is not my cup of tea. This is a banana-lover’s bread. (The addition of candied ginger or a few handfuls of chocolate chips makes this extra-sweet.) I prefer to bake this as a muffin because it’s faster, but it makes a gorgeous loaf - allow about one hour for baking.

At Whole Foods, you may have noticed our EARTH University™ bananas. EARTH University™ bananas, grown in Costa Rica, are a Whole Foods Market exclusive. This program supports education, entrepreneurship, and sustainable agriculture in the developing world. EARTH was also the first banana farm to recycle the plastic bags that are a serious source of waste for banana farmers. To see a short about the program go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWeo7VA4b4k (And, BTW, they make great banana bread, too!)

The Recipe

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  In a bowl, combine the following:

• 3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

In a separate bowl, combine the following:

• 2 cups mashed banana
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup almond or safflower oil
• 1/2 cup agave nectar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• pinch nutmeg (freshly grated is ideal)

Fold the wet into the dry ingredients. Pour into oiled or paper-lined muffin tins and bake until set and lightly browned - or a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Enjoy!

Pizza just like homemade - our secret…

by millvalley, May 4, 2009 | Permalink

Of course sometimes we’re just so busy that we don’t have time for even the easiest recipes. Here’s a secret from Melanie at Whole Foods in Mill Valley. Melanie’s worked for Whole Foods for about 8 years - that’s 8 years of tasting and trying the foods on our sheclves. If you’re looking for a great idea for dinner or something special, she’s a great person to ask. Here’s her secret of the week…

Mom’s Frozen Pizza Dough is one of those perfect foods to have in your freezer for a quick, nourishing meal. It’s made only with whole wheat, organic, and vegan ingredients, and it’s super-easy to use. Just thaw it, shape and bake! You can also shape it into breadsticks - Melanie brushes them with olive oil or melted butter before baking.

Locally made by a local mom

What’s another thing we love about Mom’s Pizza Dough? It’s locally made by a small company in Oakland. Look for Mom’s pizza dough in the freezer section - it’s next to the gluten-free freezer are, on the bottom right. If you can’t find it, just ask a team member for assistance.

Mama mia - Homemade Pizza!

by millvalley, May 4, 2009 | Permalink

Whenever I pull a hot pizza out of the oven I ask myself, “Why don’t I make pizza more often - it’s so easy & so good!” If you’re not home during the day to let this rise, you can make it the night ahead and keep it in the fridge. Just pull it out to let it come back to room temperature before baking. This recipe makes 2 medium-sized pizzas, but the dough is very versatile. Sometimes I make one large pizza and a few bread sticks or just 6 large calzones.

The dough

In a mixing bowl, combine:

• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 2 teaspoons dry yeast

Let sit about 10 minutes. Stir in:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt

Mix well, then add:

• about 3 cups whole wheat flour

Add enough flour so that your dough is moist but not sticky. Form the dough into a ball and lightly oil; let rise in a towel-covered bowl for about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 500 degrees. Shape the dough and let it sit on a cornmeal-dusted baking pan for about 10 minutes. Add you toppings and bake just until crust begins to brown - only about 8-1o minutes. Enjoy!

The tops

In lieu of pizza sause, I like to just brush the top of my crust with tomato paste and then add fresh chopepd Roma tomatoes as one of the toppings. My favorite tomato paste at Whole Foods in Mill Valley is Bionaturae’s organic no-salt tomato paste in a jar - it has a rich, tomato flavor and is the next best thing to fresh. Another great choice is our 365 brand double-concentrated tomato paste in the tube. At the time of this posting it is just 99 cents! Not only is this a great price for imported tomatoe paste, but it also has a rich, sweet flavor and, unlike leftover jarreed or canned paste, the leftovers are well-sealed in the tube and more impervious to mold.

Can’t wait for fresh apricots? Try this…

by millvalley, May 1, 2009 | Permalink

Apricots, anyone?

Any day now I know we’ll have fresh, local cherries, peaches, and nectarines from Frog Hollow Farm, but not yet…Meanwhile, I find myself buying dried apricots to get through these last weeks before the fresh stone fruits arrive. The dried apricots we have in bulk at Whole Foods in Mill Valley are excellent and make a great snack - I love to eat one (well, maybe a few more than one) with a square of very dark chocolate for an afternoon treat.  

Here’s a super-easy apricot preserve I like to make from the dried apricots. It keeps for weeks in the fridge - but you probably won’t need to keep it for long. I love it on my morning toast, but it also makes a great filling for cakes or spread for sandwiches. 

I use Rapadura unrefined cane sugar, because I love the quality and flavor of this sweetener - read the label and you’ll see it contains 11% of the RDA of iron in just a teaspoon. Add that to iron-rich dried apricots, and you have a super-nutritious treat. (If that’s not your style, you can substitute your preferred sugar.) Present it in a pretty canning jar & you’ll have a sweet treat for Mother’s Day.

Dried Apricot Preserve

Combine the following in a saucepan:

• 3 cups unsulphured dried apricots, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup water 

Simmer on low until apricots are very soft - stirring occasionally and adding more water only if needed. Stir in the following:

• 1/2 - 3/4 cup unrefined cane sugar

Stir continuously until sugar dissolves and mixture has thickened. Stir in:

• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon almond extract 

Pack into jars and let cool. Store tightly covered in refrigerator.

1-2-3 Biscuits

by millvalley, May 1, 2009 | Permalink

Who has time to make homemade biscuits? This recipe is simple enough even for those weeknights when making dinner is crammed in between getting home from work and doing everything else. The secret to speedy biscuits is to use olive oil in place of butter and drop the biscuits on the baking sheet.  (If you want a more sophisticated version, you can roll the dough out on a lightly floured counter and cut with a biscuit cutter.) Soy milk makes for a tender biscuit and, when combined with a little vinegar, makes a suitable substitute for buttermilk. 

Step 1 - the dry ingredients

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. In a medium bowl combine:

• 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Step 2 - the wet ingredients

In a small bowl, combine:

• 6 tablespoons olive (or other vegetable) oil
• 1 tablespoon brown rice vinegar
• 1 cup soy milk

Add liquid to flour mixture. Stir just until combined - don’t worry about the lumps.

Step 3 - the home stretch

Drop the biscuits onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake until light brown, about 15 minutes. Enjoy while warm!

This basic recipe can be jazzed up with the addition of fresh, minced herbs from our produce department. Wondering what the best pick in produce is? Ask Iain, Binh, Santiago or one of our other Produce Specialists the next time you’re shopping.