New Nickels for Non-Profits Recipients Announced!

by jward, June 25, 2011 | Permalink

 Just 5¢ can make a BIG difference!  Consider donating your bag refund to one of our new Nickels for Non-profits organizations!  

Because of our unique location at the crossroads of Montgomery County, Maryland and Washington, D.C., we are committed to serving the surrounding communities where our customers and Team Members live, work and play!

In our first year here in the Friendship Heights/Chevy Chase community, we partnered with 2 non-profits doing great work for our community.  Audubon Naturalist Society and Live It Learn It.  Due to the generosity of customer donations, Whole Foods Market Friendship Heights raised over $800 for each organization.

Last week, we kicked off our new Nickels for Non-Profits partnerships with two more deserving organizations: Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and Friendship House!

Both of these organizations represent a strong commitment to our community, so please consider donating your 5¢ bag refund to one or both of them the next time you shop with us!

If you have any questions about this program or would like to suggest a future Nickels for Non-Profits recipient, please email us!

My ‘Shroom Trip (A Guest Blog by Team Member Douglas Kuhn)

by jward, April 29, 2011 | Permalink

________________________________________________________________

 I can see for miles and miles, all I see is mushrooms. No, I wasn’t on a psychedelic trip, I was on a Whole Foods Market field trip to Landenburg, Pennsylvania where 50 percent of the mushrooms in the US are grown. The teams at Mother Earth Organic Mushroom farm were gracious enough to give our group a tour of their operations.

After today, I will never take for granted the variety and year round selection of mushrooms. I just didn’t know that raising mushrooms was such a delicate process. The actual growth takes place in covered barns on top of compost beds. The compost is carefully selected, mixed, watered, aerated and kept at constant temperatures for several weeks before the mushroom spores are introduced. When the compost is just right, spores are introduced and the twelve-week growth cycle begins. Being an organic operation, all the stages of production are carefully recorded to keep the organic certification. Even the air circulating in the barns goes through filters to keep out stray fungus and mushroom-eating bacteria. Cleaning of the equipment and barns is done with environmentally friendly cleaner.

The entire farm smelled of potting soil with a little manure thrown in. We saw crimini varieties and white buttons growing. I learned that mushrooms produce heat as they grow and continue to produce heat and grow after they are picked. (Wow…maybe a possible alternative energy source, but let me focus on eating them for now.) It is important to chill them down to stop the growth and keep them fresh. So right to the refrigerator after purchasing, everyone! I never knew that mushrooms are a low calorie source of minerals and B vitamins. We got to taste the white buttons straight from the barn. Definitely the freshest crispest mushroom I ever munched. And, best of all we got to take home lots of free samples.

But what to do with all those white button mushrooms? I really like to oven roast them to concentrate the flavor and give them a beautiful golden color. They keep for at least five days after roasting and can be used in a variety of ways such as in salads, tossed with pasta or added to steamed vegetables.  

To roast: Wipe the mushrooms clean with a paper towel. Toss with enough olive oil to coat, a pinch of sea salt and a grind of pepper. Spread onto a baking dish. Roast in a 475 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring once during cooking. You can tell they are done when they are dry to the touch and golden brown.

Engine 2 Diet via Station 6

by jward, January 5, 2011 | Permalink

Maybe you’ve heard of this little thing called Twitter.  In case you haven’t, it’s a great social media tool that connects you to the daily everything of your friends, favorite celebrities, companies and so many more—in 140 characters or less.  At Whole Foods Market, we use Twitter as a way to connect to our customers and the community.  We tweet about in-store specials and sales, as well as community partnerships, vendor stories, upcoming classes and events and daily musings on things natural and organic.

A few months ago, we reached out to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue through Twitter and proposed a challenge—find a local fire station and we’ll help them get plant strong.  This is how 5 guys from Station 6 Shift A came to know the Whole Foods Market Friendship Heights Engine 2 Diet Challenge.  In a nutshell, this plant-based diet focuses on whole foods, including vegetables, whole grains, fruit, legumes, seeds and nuts for the purposes of losing weight, lowing cholesterol, significantly reduce the risk of disease, and become physically fit.

To get them ready, the crew from Station 6 stopped by for a store tour and overview of the program.  We talked buying bulk (a great way to save money on Engine 2 approved foods), choosing your fruits and vegetables (anything goes) and foods to avoid.  We discussed challenges of the diet and successful testimonials of Engine 2 graduates.

Shift A will kick off their challenge in January.  We’ll be updating you on their journey here.  MCFRS will also be blogging about adventures in the Engine 2 Diet via Station 6!  

Posted by: Jill Ward

I Wonder: Fresh Pasta (A Guest Blog by Sabrina Snyder)

by jward, December 21, 2010 | Permalink

Have you ever found yourself saying “I wonder what to do with that?” when shopping our store?

Meet Sabrina Snyder, Personal Chef of Dinner, then Dessert.  She will be guest blogging and sharing delicious recipes for Whole Foods Market throughout the year.  Her first blog is inspired by our fresh Severino Pasta, locally made from a family-owned company in New Jersey.  You can find Severino Pasta in our Specialty Department.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

If you are looking for a fabulous seafood dish to serve this holiday season, Shrimp and Scallop Saffron Cream Pasta works great for dinner parties, as well as for your weekend meals at home as it takes just over an hour from beginning to end. Serve with crusty garlic bread using a loaf of Italian bread from the Whole Foods fresh bakery and you’ve got a great meal! Add a caprese salad and you’re on your way to a fabulous dinner party!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 cups clam juice

1 cup heavy cream*

1 cup whole milk*

1 cup white wine

6 tablespoons tomato sauce*

¾ teaspoon saffron

1 ½ pounds shrimp [the larger the better!]

1 pound scallops [10/20 Scallops work best]

8 tablespoons butter, unsalted*, divided

2 tablespoons flour*

3 medium leeks, white part only, sliced

½ cup Panko crumbs

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese + Additional cheese to top the pasta

2 teaspoons garlic, minced

2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon

2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley

1 lb fresh Severino linguine

Salt and pepper*

Cast Iron Skillet or any oven safe 10” or greater fry pan

Ingredients with an asterisk (*) are available as Whole Foods Market Brands.

Delicious 365 Brand Ingredients

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Sauce: Combine the stock, cream, wine, tomato puree, and saffron in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and continue to cook the sauce until reduced by half, about 18 minutes. Mash 1 tablespoon of the butter together with 1 tablespoons flour. Whisk the butter mixture into the sauce along with ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Simmer, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Set aside.

Leeks: Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a medium sauté pan. Add leeks and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, until softened. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, until tender. Set aside.

Topping: Combine the panko, 1/3 cup parmesan, tarragon, and garlic. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and mix it into the crumbs until they’re moistened and stir in small fry pan to toast for 2 – 3 minutes over medium heat.

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter into the bottom of the cast iron skillet. Place the scallops and shrimp in the pan, being careful not to overcrowd. Spoon the leeks over the seafood and add half of the sauce to the seafood.  Bake for 15 minutes or until the top is browned.

Assembly: While Seafood is cooking, prepare the fresh pasta and combine with the second half of the sauce and equally divide the pasta onto 4 plates. When the seafood comes out of the oven, evenly distribute the shrimp and scallops to each plate and top with crispy panko topping. Sprinkle fresh parsley and grate fresh parmesan over the top of each plate.

Simply decadent!

Enjoy!

Post By: Sabrina Snyder, Dinner, then Dessert