Hello Wheatsville friends and fans!
Hard to believe that another school year is already upon us. U-Haul's are rolling in to town, kids are getting their Back to School shopping done and our aisles are full of great healthy foods for your lunchbox and quick easy meals to make nourishing dinners.
We know this time of year has people learning new routines, getting acquainted with new faces and learning new places. We are here to help you maintain your energy and your pantry. Look to our deli for easy take-home meals & sides, our grocery aisles for lunchbox favorites, our frozen section for healthy make-at-home meals and our nutrition department for energy and health support. If you need quick, tasty and healthy - we got that!
Community Action for the month of August
Wheatsville Food Coop is proud to support Hospice Austin as our Community Action donation recipient for the month of August. Hospice Austin provides family-centered, quality end-of-life care that emphasizes compassion, dignity, independence and respect.
Wheatsville Food Coop has committed to donating 1% of sales for the first four Wednesdays in August to support this vital service in our community. Customers may donate by shopping on Wednesday, giving donations of money at the register and/or by making food contributions to Hospice Austin’s food pantry by using the bins provided near the Hospitality Desk.
Please refer to their website, hospiceaustin.org for more information about their services, volunteer information and event news.
Lunch on the go!
Take advantage of the Texas Tax-Free Weekend holiday August 19, 20 & 21 and pick up your Back to School Laptop Lunch kit or a Stainless Steel Lunch Tiffin.
Laptop Lunches® are American-style bento boxes designed to help you pack nutritious, eco-friendly lunches.The lunch boxes are reusable, recyclable, and dishwasher safe. They also contain NO phthalates, bisphenol A (BPA), or lead.
Our 2-Tier Stainless Steel Tiffin Set (a nifty lunch box system that hails from India) is reusable, lightweight, and has a lid that doubles as a plate. It’s easy to carry and clean, but hard to live without. Great for both cold or hot food, and the planet, too.
Tomato Goodness
Our featured seasonal produce item this week is the Organic Sungold Cherry Tomato. These things are so incredible, you will not believe your taste buds. Sweet, fruity, and low in acidity, the Sungold will make anyone a believer. At $2.99 per pound, they’re a great deal and are delicious rolled into a pita with some tabouli and bell pepper, in a pasta dish with herbs and chicken, or just eaten out of hand.
This summer has been tough on local farmers, so we’re glad to support them whenever we can. Burnet’s Hairston Creek Farms grows some beautiful, delicious organic okra that you really must try. Lots of people are afraid to cook okra. Can’t get down with the slime? Fact of the matter is the slime is your friend! The slimy, mucous-y substance (High in soluble fiber! Hungry already, aren’t you?) given off by cooking okra is a great thickener for soups and stews, enchiladas, even lasagna! Give it a try.
Okra shouldn’t be cooked too long. Think of it like green beans or asparagus. Fresh, lightly cooked asparagus is awesome. Overcooked asparagus is awful. Same with Okra. If you’re still on the fence, pick up a packet of Aurora Creations’ Authentic Indian Spice Blends in the Asian foods section in aisle two. There’s a package of Bhindi Masala spices (it’s the green one) that makes it so easy to create a delicious okra dish in under 15 minutes. Add some hot rice or naan bread and a side of plain yogurt to round out your meal and you’re eating delicious, good-for-you, authentic Indian food with locally grown produce.
Eat well, be well!
Sushi’s Summertime Fruit Salad Wraps & More!
Sushi is a summertime sensation! With great portion sizes, reasonable prices, and fresh ingredients hand-rolled daily on premises, our sushi boats are both filling and tasty! From vegan rolls, potstickers and spring rolls to a wide variety of fish sushi and wraps and even some alternate meat options, there’s something for everyone. Right now, Sushi’s hot new item is the Fruit Salad Wrap, a fresh, cold, wonderful summer spring roll! Light & tasty, these rice paper-wrapped rolls are filled with fresh salady goodness like spinach and avocado, PLUS an assortment of cut fresh fruit, including strawberries and mango! Depending on what’s in season and available, the fruits can change with the weather! With peanut sauce for dipping, these are a hit and sell out quickly – if you come in and don’t see them on the shelf, just ask one of our Deli staff for help and they should be able to have our Sushi folks make you one on the spot! Don’t forget to grab chopsticks on your way out!
Click here to read about all of our Deli deals & specials!
Romano for you!
Have you heard? We have some new cheeses here at cheese island. Based on feedback from you we are now carrying a Pecorino Romano. Pecorino romano is a hard sheeps milk cheese that can be grated on top of pasta dishes or used as an ingredient in such cheesy dishes as Mac ‘n Cheese or potatoes au gratin. We are also carrying an Asiago. This cheese is a semi-hard, Italian cow’s milk cheese. It is made on the Italian side of the Alps and is similar to its Alpine cousins French Comte and Swiss Emental. Sweet and nutty in flavor, it can be sliced for sandwiches or eaten with crackers or crusty bread. You can grate it and use it for a topping for your baked potato.
Here is a wonderful article I read recently. I want to share it with you http://www.culturecheesemag.com/autumn_plating_lunchbox
Lunchbox Treats
We are in full swing for back to school over in bulk with lots of pre-bagged snacks. Easy and convenient, we've bagged up little grab & go snack sizes for you!
Bulk is also a great way to start your day with our wide selection of cereals, granolas and oats. In fact we have our Regular Rolled Oats on sale for $.99 Reg. $1.19.
Also in the bulk department are featuring some recipe cards for some quick and easy meal ideas. At the moment we have some great recipes featuring quinoa, but keep an eye out for many more to come.
Surf & Turf
This seasons Alaskan Sockeye Salmon is still going strong. I could end any day, but until then we will carry this fresh wild caught fish. When the seasons over we will still have this great quality fish, that we filet ourselves, but it will have been frozen.
New to the department is Organic Prairie Uncured Beef Summer Sausage On Sale! $7.99 reg. $9.99.
Starting on Friday August 19th, all of our Organic Prairie Sliced Lunch Meat will be On Sale! for $5.99 to help get those school lunches underway.
We have some new products from Niman Ranch. This company is forging new ground with their animal welfare ideology and sustainability. I highly recommend looking at their website to learn more about their humane treatment and sustainability practices.
At the end of August Dana Tomlin and I will be visiting Paul Willis Hog Farm in Iowa. We are both looking forward to this trip.
Pork Short Tender on sale for $8.99lb. and St. Louis Style Pork Ribs on sale for $5.99. Keep an eye out for more Niman Ranch sales all the way through September.
We also have Dewberry Hills Chicken livers. These are one pound packages in the self serve case for $2.99/lb.
Fat to the Rescue!
We all need fat in our diets. Just make sure they are the right ones: Omega-3 Fatty Acids help cardiovascular, mind, mood, and joint health! And, we have many on sale this week:
All NORDIC NATURALS Children’s Fish Oil and DHA supplements are on sale!!!
SPECTRUM ESSENTIALS Omega-3 Fish Oil, 250 softgels, Regularly $26.99, now only $19.99
And, some fish-free, vegetarian options:
UDO’S Oil 3.6.9 Blend, Regularly $27.49, on sale now for $21.49
UDO’S Oil 3.6.9 DHA Blend, Regularly $37.49, on sale now for $27.49
Let Wheatsville help you start your fall garden!
Although the heat might have you thinking otherwise, it’s finally time to start planning your fall garden - and Wheatsville has lots of seeds that are in season to PLANT NOW! Many of our seeds are organic, ALL of them are heirloom, and ALL of them are only $1.99!
BEETS can be planted from early August right through October. Currently we carry a wide variety from Detroit Dark Red, to Organic Burpee’s Golden, and red and white swirled Chioggia.
RADISHES like to be put in the ground from September well into November, with our Early Scarlett Globe variety, you can see a harvest in as little as 25 days!
SPINACH rounds out your complete garden salad and Red Malabar and New Zealand varieties thrive in our Austin conditions.
Wheatsville carries plenty more in season heirloom seeds and more are about to roll in, so keep your eyes peeled for new fall varieties on the seed rack by bulk herbs!
Sweet!
New this week: Austin Sugarworks all-natural, handmade sugar cubes. Beautifully crafted, the sugar “cubes” are shaped into slices of lemon, rosettes and hearts; making a charming addition to an iced tea, cupcake or hot coffee. Elayne Crain, founder and Austin resident, was inspired by trips to Paris to create these eye-pleasing treats from natural sugar and vegetable based colorants. Enjoy and let us know your favorite way to use them!
Hopp-n-Grapes
Left Coast Brewing Company Hop Juice Double IPA is here! This hop monster uses Premium American 2– Row and a touch of light crystal malt to create a solid malt foundation. Five different Hop Varieties are used in the Hop Juice. It spends two weeks dry hopping , contributing to its great hop aroma. Starts out sweet and finishes with the crisp bitterness of a Double IPA.
Pago Malarina Rioja is on sale for just $6.99 regularly $12.99! Ruby Red in color with nose of black plum, cedar and white pepper with the flavors of ripe fruit and currant with a bit of spice on the finish, this is a rich, full bodied wine from Spain’s Rioja Region and at $6.99 it is a steal!
Co+op Deals
Cascadian Farms Organic Cereals are on Deal just in time for Back to School! We’ve lowered the price to $2.99 from the regular price of $4.99. Delicious flavors include Raisin Bran, Purely O’s, Honey Nut O’s, Cinnamon Crunch, Hearty Morning, Multi Grain Squares, Fruitful O’s and Clifford Crunch. We’re also lowered prices on Cascadian Farm Organic Granola Cereals to $2.99 reg. $4.99. Flavors include Cinnamon Raisin, Oats & Honey and Maple Brown Sugar.
Click here for more Co+op Deals
Valid Wednesday, August 17th through Tuesday, August 30th
Brooks Wood, Co+op Deals Coordinator
Owner Deals
Good Health Avocado Oil Potato Chips are on Deal this week for $2.29 reg. $2.99. Did you know Avocado’s have been ranked by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s most nutritious fruit? Avocado oil is a healthy alternative to conventional cooking oils. It contains a high concentration of vitamins and minerals, along with monounsaturated fats that help reduce LDL cholesterol. So stock up and enjoy these tasty chips with your next lunch.
Click here for more Owner Deals
Valid Wednesday, August 17th through Tuesday, August 30th
Brooks Wood, Co+op Deals Coordinator
I hope you have a most excellent week!
Dan Gillotte
Wheatsville GM and e-mail guy
