I Just Thought I Was Excited

You have got to see that new Whole Foods store. 

I started shopping at Whole Foods way back when the store on Greenville was called Blue Bonnet.  It didn’t take long for Whole Foods to step in and take over.  I thought it was the neatest store back then… we’re talking early 80’s.  I had never been to a store that big with all natural products.  I had never even heard of ginseng or ugli fruit before then.  I loved exploring the aisles.  Eventually, I stopped going there, though.  The store seemed so cramped.  Two people could barely pass each other on an aisle if they were both pushing carts.  Once Central Market opened I didn’t even really think of Whole Foods anymore. 

This new store, though…  it’s completely different.  It’s beautiful!  It’s not at all cramped.  And it’s as green as it can be.  The store is winning award after award for it’s environmentally sound practices, freezer cases, solar lighting, etc.  It seems like every area of the store is about twice as big as the Greenville store.  There were some really good deals that our tour guide, Cookie, pointed out along the way.  Flash frozen fish and chicken products were super values.  They have a little BBQ section where they will sell smoked meats and sandwiches.  They will also smoke anything in the store for you.  There is a pizza oven with real flames leaping up.  Pizzas will be on sale for the month of March for $11.99.  Again, deal.  The baked goods section is much bigger.  They have a whole case of frozen gluten-free baked goods available.  There’s a sandwich bar.  Tons of  “gourmet to go” items.  I think there will be 8 different soups available in the seafood section.  At 7:30 the coffee bar opens, so you can grab something on the way to work.  There’s a long dining area that runs most of the length of the front of the store and outside seating, too.  I’ve heard they were going to have a water fixture outside.  But, I didn’t see that.  They have a concierge service that will do your shopping for you.  It’s really an amazing store.  I just wish it was open today!

We got a nice little re-usable goodie bag.  Mine had a jar of sundried tomato and olive bruschetta topping, a travel coffee carafe, some tomato basil soup, a little bottle of grapefruit scented shampoo, a big bar of dark chocolate and a box of sourdough crackers.  I love free stuff.  Oh, and I forgot to mention, the beer and wine section is seriously big for a grocery store.  A long aisle of beers.  That alone could keep me busy for a few months!

Let me know what you think when you visit.

Touring the New Whole Foods in Lakewood

Tomorrow, if everything goes as planned, I should be taking a VIP tour of the new Whole Foods in Lakewood.  I’m so excited about this.  I can’t take pictures inside (believe me, I asked).  But, she said I could blog about it all I want.  When I drove by this afternoon I looked at the store and thought, “Are they ready?”  The parking lot has been full of cars and trucks for months.  Ready or not, it’s going to happen.  Actually, in my former career, I attended a lot of store openings and I know for a fact that miracles can be performed in a 24 hour period.  The place looks pretty good from the outside.  So, I bet they’ll be all sparkling and polished by tomorrow afternoon. 

Now, I’m off to Bonnie Ruth’s for a nice $3 martini!

Making It Up As I Go…

The other night I was in the mood for potato soup.  I looked at about 10 different recipes and decided that some potato soup with cheese in it might be even better.  So, I pulled out the old soup pot and started cooking…

Chopped fine
1/2 onion
1 stalk of celery
1/4 cup red bell pepper
1 carrot, peeled
salt and pepper

Saute the above in some bacon grease or any oil really.  Add a couple of cloves of pressed garlic.  Saute until fragrant then add a bunch of chopped potatoes.  I used about 6-7 smallish russets.  You know, not really big enough for baked potatoes?  I’d say, 2 1/2 – 3 lbs.

To this I added six cups of chicken broth.  Vegetable broth would work fine, too.  I brought the mixture to a boil and then turned the heat down to a simmer for about 40 minutes.  The potatoes were very soft and basically ready to fall apart at that point.  Then I added cheese.  Not any good cheese.  But, instead, 4 ounces of cream cheese and 8 ounces of Velveeta.  Yes, that’s what I said, Velveeta.  Why?  Because it’s made for melting and I didn’t want to end up with something grainy or stringy and I don’t have much experience with “real” cheese soup.  I have, however, made queso about a thousand times and knew what to expect of these “cheeses”. 

As I slowly stirred the cheese into the hot broth, the potatoes began to partially dissolve into the soup.  Leaving me with a thick creamy, cheesy pot of goodness, just a few chunks of potatoes still intact.  After adding about a half cup of sour cream and a little more salt and pepper, I was feeling pretty good about this soup.  Now, how could I get away with serving this as our dinner?  Smoked sausage was the obvious the answer.  Bring along a sleeve of saltines and soft butter.   A perfect meal for sitting in front of the TV and watching the Oscars. 

Not Shopping

I just read a big egullet post about not shopping every week.  The idea was that if you spend $100 a week on groceries, you can save that much by just eating what’s in your freezer, pantry, etc. and skipping every other week’s grocery run.  I’m not so sure I think that’s a great idea. 

I agree that it’s better to avoid having to throw out food that spoiled because you’ve purchased too much and can’t use it.  I agree that if you freeze things and never use them that you might as well just be throwing things away.    But, I see no value in depleting the larder when you still have money to buy.  So, you only shop every other week? Will you really buy only $100 worth of groceries every two weeks?  Or will it turn into $200?  If you follow this plan for six months, I’m guessing you won’t have a full freezer anymore or anything to fall back on if hard times really do come down.

I think the key is to not waste food.  I almost can’t believe that it’s me saying that.  I can’t tell you how much rotten produce I’ve thrown out over the years.  But, recently I’ve started to be more careful.  I really do want to spend less.  Given endless resources, I could easily spend $200 a week on food.  Line up the $16 a pound scallops and $21 a pound beef tenderloin for me, please.  Do I want those $4.75 a pound skinny French green beans?  Hell, yes.  Unfortunately, these are lean times and I realize I can do without that kind of thing every week.  What I am trying to do now is use primarily what I have and replace the essentials as I go. 

I sit down on Saturday morning and make a grocery list.  Since I’m trying to rotate the stock in my freezer, I focus on creating dishes that use the meats that have been in the freezer the longest.  I try to find recipes that include the produce that I still have from last week’s run to Central Market.  I like to make a big pot of stew or soup that I can take to work for lunches.  I find that by not eating out at lunch every day that I’m saving about $200 a month on that alone. 

I don’t think I’ll participate in the egullet experiment.  I want to go shopping every weekend.  I’ll just spend a little less.   I already use what I have in my freezer and pantry.  And if I don’t use it, it’ll keep.  I may be a little depressed about these depression-like times.  But, I’m not going to let it stop me from enjoying myself and grocery shopping is one of my favorite things to do.

More on Whole Foods Lakewood

If you’re interested in some juicy tidbits about the store opening and what to expect, you’ve got to listen to this podcast at the Advocate blog.  Now I really can’t wait and I was crazy about the idea before!

Been?

Anyone been to the new Broken Egg place in Casa Linda?  How about the Cafe at Central Market?  I keep forgetting it’s there!

Kreatopita

I read Food Czar’s recent Greek food reviews and got into the mood to make Phyllo Pie with Meat and Rice, aka Kreatopita.  I have only made this once before and I have to say that I forgot how labor intensive it is.  Here’s where I am after about an hour and half…

The big bowl is a mixture of lamb, beef, onions, garlic, tomato paste, allspice, rice, broth, lemon juice, scallions, mint, parsley, salt and pepper.  Now, I’m letting the meat mixture come to room temp before I add the cheese and eggs.  I’m mixing feta and Parmesan into lightly beaten eggs and then mixing that into the meat.  Then, of course, comes the fillo, phyllo, filo!

At the bottom of the pan are eight layers of butter and filo sheets.  They are arranged so that they come up the sides of the pan in alternating layers.  Then half the meat goes in.  Press flat as opposed to spreading or you might tear the dough.  Add two more sheets of fillo on top of the meat (no butter) and then add the rest of the meat.  Then you start topping it…

Add a layer of fillo, brush with butter and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan.  Repeat with six more layers.  Have a sip of wine if all this makes you nervous.  It does me!    That’s the fillo under that cloth.  It dries out very quickly.  So, it’s super annoying to keep covering it and uncovering it with plastic wrap and a damp cloth.  But, you have to do it.  Another good reason to have a glass of wine.

Score the top into serving size pieces.  As you can see, for a family of two, this dish is actually way too large.  This happens pretty often around here.  I guess I should invite someone over for a late lunch.  This is it all ready to go into the oven for 50 minutes at 375.  And here’s our finished product…

Isn’t that pretty?  Admittedly, the inside doesn’t look as pretty as the toasty outside.  You really can’t expect that much from baked beef, lamb and rice.  It sure tastes good though!  Total time from beginning cooking to finished eating – 5 hours!

Whole Foods in Lakewood

This is really a dream come true for me.  I’m counting the days until their March 2nd opening like it’s Christmas.  I live within walking distance of the Albertson’s in Casa Linda.  I could also count the times I went there last year on one hand.  I did go once this year to pick up some meat specials.  They are pretty good about that.  But, in general, I avoid it like the plague.  For some reason, almost every time I leave that store I’m mad.  Either they didn’t have enough check out lines open or the checker was loud and rude.  You can never find someone to help you.  It’s always something.  So, I stopped going.  I’ll drive a few miles to go to Central Market or the Tom Thumb on Mockingbird. 

March 2nd, though, I can stop on my way home and pick up anything I need.  I pass by the old Minyard’s spot on my way to downtown and back every day.   Aaaahhh.  All sparkling and new, Whole Foods is really going to change the way I shop.  Right now, I go grocery shopping one day a week.  I never go after work because it’ll add so much time to when I get home it’ll be too late to cook.  I buy everything on the weekend.  If we really get in a tight spot for something, then Hub will go to the store during the day.  Now, he’ll probably be going to Whole Foods because he can see it from his office window. 

I’m so excited.  Is there some kind of opening ceremony I can attend?  I’m damn near giddy!

You know what’s good?

Whenever we go to Jack’s, Keller’s, Cactus Jack’s, Jakk’s, Jake’s or whatever it’s called this week, I almost always get the same thing.  It’s a double decker ham and cheese.  Picture this…  take a grilled cheese sandwich.  Lay a big, thick piece of grilled ham steak on top of that.  Top the meat with shredded lettuce and sliced tomatoes.  Top that off with the third piece of bread, slathered with mayo.  Damn, that’s good.

Too Funny!

I know I’m immature.  But, I laughed out loud at a few of these!  Check out this site…

http://thisiswhyyourefat.com/

This is almost inspiring me to come up with something really awful.  A few of those dishes are definitely “State Fair of Texas” treats.