Weekend Whomper Munchies

Since I've been out of town for a week, I needed more than a few things today!!



A few important shortcuts:

FT = fair trade
O = organic
FTO = fair trade and organic
L = local
LO = local and organic
C = had a coupon
S = on sale!

BREAD:
1 loaf Rudi's 100% whole wheat bread (C)

BULK:
a little over half a pound of Twin Cities blend FTO Peace Coffee

FROZEN:
8 count "totally vanilla" Tofutti Cuties
SnoPac O whole strawberries (S)
1 Amy's non-dairy burrito (C)
O coconut fruit popsicles
16 ounces Purely Decadent Cookie Avalanche

HERBS & SPICES:
about a tablespoon of whole O fennel seed

PACKAGED GROCERY:
Cascadian Farms O Honey Nut O's (C)
Cinnamon Puffins (C, S)
15 ounces Eden O chickpeas
15 ounces Eden O cannellini beans
Endangered Species FTO raspberry-dark chocolate bar (C)
Sorrel Ridge strawberry all-fruit spread
Celestial Seasonings peppermint tea (the 40-count box!)
Mori-Nu O firm tofu
O pumpkin puree
O Lite coconut milk
4-count 7th Generation TP (C)

PERSONAL CARE:
Avalon O Lavender shower gel (C)

PRODUCE:
LO romaine head
1 LO cucumber
2 O bananas
1 O avocado
1 O mango
1 O lemon
1 O lime
1 O bartlett pear (S)
1 O nectarine
1 O white peach (S)
LO button mushrooms
LO "torpedo" red onions
1 LO yellow onion
1 LO red bell pepper
2 O small russett potatoes
1 O yam (S)
1 bunch LO red radishes
1 package O strawberries
1/4 O watermelon
LO baby spinach bag
LO grape tomatoes clamshell box
LO sage
LO thyme

REFRIGERATED GROCERY:
12 ounces Tofutti better than sour cream (S)
8 ounces 3-grain tempeh
10 ounces Follow Your Heart vegan cheddar
14 ounces House O firm tofu
64 ounces enriched RiceDream
4 WholeSoy yogurts (peach, apricot mango, lemon, and mixed berry)

Marathon Munchies (shoes hidden, too!)

I have a tale of marathon munchies this weekend -- with accompanying photos! Christine and I ran errands together today, and here's what we did:

1. I tried to sell some coats at Everyday People -- they didn't want to buy any of them, because they weren't "vintage-looking enough." Boo on them.
2. We both donated bags of clothes (and some kitchen stuff and the coats, of course) to the Goodwill.
3. We went to the post office so I could mail a package (had to return a camera piece I ordered that I didn't end up needing.)
4. We went to Patina so Christine could pick up a birthday present for her friend Karla. I almost bought another purse. Christine helped me put it back. :) Thanks, Christine.
5. We had lunch at Urban Harvest. They have wonderful sandwiches, and I can actually eat vegan there! My lunch:

A hummus, avocado, lettuce, tomato, red pepper, red onion, cucumber, and sprout sandwich on 8-grain bread with salt and vinegar potato chips, and a big glass of water. I didn't eat my pickle, because it was wobbly and looked smushed and a little funny. This was a tragedy, because I LOVE pickles. But the sandwich was excellent, as always!
6. We went to Target and I picked up a few travel essentials for the trip later this week.
7. We popped in Famous Footwear, because I've been searching for a new pair of black heels. I found some! They are on the left:

Also included in this picture are the orange and cream Chucks and the brown flats by Soda that I bought a few weeks ago. Gotta love new shoes. Sneaky, sneaky kitty.
8. We went to Home Depot so I could have a copy of my new front door key cut for my favorite cat-sitter. Thanks in advance, Tony!
9. We finally made it to the Wedge, and here's what I bought:



BULK:
roasted, salted mixed nuts (travel snacks)
half a pound of organic and Fair Trade Twin Cities Blend Peace Coffee

FROZEN:
whole wheat and trans-fat-free pie shells (a pack of 2)

PACKAGED GROCERY:
Fantastic Foods falafel mix (had a coupon)
six organic fruit leather (travel snacks)
1 box firm organic Mori-Nu silken tofu
8 ounce bottle Annie's organic balsamic vinaigrette (had a coupon)
15 ounces organic pumpkin puree
1 chocolate brownie Clif bar (travel snacks AND had a coupon)
2 Clif Nectar bars (travel snacks AND had a coupon)
2 Cherry Pie LaraBars (travel snacks)
1 bottle Nantucket Nectars apple juice
1 4-pack of Seventh Generation TP (had a coupon)

PERSONAL CARE:
Merry Hempsters vegan peppermint lip balm
Tom's of Maine lemongrass soap (had a buy 3 Tom's coupon)
2 Tom's of Maine peppermint shaving cream
Nature's Gate original herbal shampoo
2 Preserve toothbrushes
Alba dry skin lotion (had a coupon)
Burt's Bees garden tomato toner
Burt's Bees garden tomato complexion bar soap

PRODUCE:
2 organic, local cucumbers
1 organic avocado
1 organic mango
1 organic black plum
1 organic yellow peach
10 organic, local button mushrooms
1 organic, local red onion
1 organic, local heirloom tomato
1 package organic romaine hearts
1 package organic baby carrots
1 box organic, local red grape tomatoes
a quarter organic watermelon

REFRIGERATED GROCERY:
1 package organic 8-grain tempeh
HolyLand whole wheat pita bread (made with organic flour)

Planned cooking projects for this week:

tofu pumpkin pie
tempeh bacon, lettuce, tomato, and avocado sandwiches
a Greek-type pasta salad with loads of yummy veggies and chickpeas
falafel or barbecued tofu (or both!)

Off to see Cloud Cult play tonight, and later, The Hopefuls! I will take the camera and hopefully take some pictures.

Weekend Munchies -- Late Sunday Edition

My shopping this week was more of a "quick run to the store for special low-maintenance dinner and also gently toss a few random produce items into the basket" edition. Hence, MWM, the Late Sunday Edition. Spoils:

a hunk of vegan walnut apple crisp from the deli (SOOOOOO tasty)
one Matthew's vegan burrito
two Cherry Pie LaraBars
two organic, fair-trade bananas
one organic yellow peach
half an organic canteloupe

And with this week's edition, a funny story:

I went to the store with my friend Afton (hi Afton!) and she used my member number, which is totally kosher at my co-op. When she got her reciept, we chuckled that I saved her a whole eleven cents. Our cashier joked, "yes, but I gave her 30 cents!" (i.e., her change.) We laughed some more; I said, "well Afton, you should be happy to know that you are worth eleven cents to me." Again, all three of us laughed. As my cashier rang up my groceries, he asked me, "do you happen to be vegan, by chance?" I replied, "well, very nearly. I eat cheese on occasion, and only when provoked." We exchanged the "I know what you mean" roll of the eyes. He commented that he's had to pretty much stop eating out since he went vegan, and then we talked about how difficult it is to find vegan options at restaurants, etc. I paid for my groceries, he gave me my change and told us both to enjoy our evenings, and we were off to the parking lot.

When we got to the car, Afton says, "he was flirting with you and you totally missed it!" Now, I'm just not sure about that one -- people are usually that friendly at the co-op, especially vegan to vegan conversations. Perhaps I really missed the boat on that one . . . ?? Who knows.

~~~~~~~~~~

Earlier today, Afton and I wandered around the Uptown Art fair, and I got some really cool free stuff! I didn't actually buy any art, but there were two really awesome booths -- Stonyfield Farms Organic had a huge display about the benefits of organic farming, and then the "Organic and Natural Experience (ONE) Tour" had a booth with tons and tons of free samples, and free coupon books! I got coupons for the following:

Alba Bath & Body
Annie's pastas/crackers
Annies dressings/marinades
Avalon Organics Bath & Body
Cascadian Farm Organic
Clif Bar
Clif Mojo
Clif Nectar
Dr. Bronner's & Sun Dog's Magic
Earthbound Farm Organic
Fantastic Foods
Garden of Eatin' Tortilla Chips
Kashi
MaraNatha nut butters
Muir Glen Organic tomato products
Nature's Path products
Organic Valley soy milk
Pacific Natural Foods
R.W. Knudsen juice
Santa Cruz Organic juice
Seventh Generation
Stonyfield Farm yogurt
Utne (Understanding the Next Evolution) magazine (I also got a free issue -- I'll let you know how it is)

Watch for the ONE tour in your neck of the woods, so you can score these goodies, too!

munchies, soup, tempeh, dip!

Although it's 100 degrees this weekend, I managed to get quite a bit done this morning and afternoon. I walked to the library to return books, to Target to pick up some essentials, and to the Wedge to pick up a few groceries. My granny cart probably saw five miles today! Since it's so blazin' hot, I tried bringing a small cooler with me for cold/frozen stuff, and it worked wonderfully! My ice cream was still frozen when I got home! Here's what I bought:



BAKERY
1 loaf Great Harvest Bread Co. spelt bread

BULK:
half a pound of Twin Cities blend Peace Coffee (Fair Trade and Organic)
a small bag of sulfured dried apricots

FROZEN
package Tofutti Cuties peanut butter flavor
package vegan 8-grain and sesame waffles
box of strawberry fruit-bar type popsicles
16 ounces Turtle Trails soy ice cream
16 ounces Vanilla Swiss Almond soy ice cream

PACKAGED GROCERY
1 box Kashi Heart to Heart cereal
1 box Post Grape Nuts cereal
6 ounces Bragg's Liquid Aminos
3 quart-boxes of Rice Dream Enriched
small bottle Nantucket Nectars apple juice

PRODUCE
1 head organic romaine
2 organic danjou pears
1 organic peach
3 organic, local tomatoes

REFRIGERATED GROCERY
8 ounce package 3-grain tempeh
16 ounces Vegenaise

And when I returned home, I braved the heat and accomplished a couple of cooking projects:

~ First, I finally sucked it up and tested my roasted red pepper soup for the cookbook. It's very, very tasty, but the roasted red pepper taste is not as strong as I thought it was going to be. I'm going to let it sit in the fridge overnight, and try it again tomorrow -- perhaps I will feel differently then!

~ Then, I made Isa's tempeh bacon from VwaV! This is also quite good. I could not find liquid smoke at the co-op, so I added four dashes of Tobasco and two dashes of ground cumin to the marinade for some added smokiness. I made a killer sandwich on spelt bread with the tempeh, Vegenaise, romaine, tomato, and mashed avocado. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm!!! My first tempeh attempt was a huge success!

~ Last, I retested my pumpkin dip for the cookbook, using slightly different ingredients. It was really runny when I finished blending it, but a trip in the fridge thicked it nicely. I'll have to cut up an apple tonight and test it out!

I am spending the rest of my weekend house-sitting, which is fantastic! Free air conditioning!!!

Friday Night Munchies

Christine and I forewent the art show in favor of grocery shopping. A sad Friday night choice, we realized, but we both were starting to feel a little like Old Mother Hubbard!
This list looks enormous, but note I saved $22.14 between coupons, member specials, and a bag refund! Go me!
In other news, I'm trying to cut back a little bit on soy, and was excited to find a rice-soy blend milk in the soymilk aisle. I'll let you know how it tastes! I'm also trying a little bit to explore new grains, thus, the spelt bread.
Happy Friday!

BAKERY
1 loaf Great Harvest Bread Co. spelt bread

FROZEN
10 ounces organic frozen peaches
16 ounces Purely Decadent Cookie Avalanche
32 ounces Soy Delicious Strawberry

GENERAL MERCHANDISE
2 packages of replacement blades for my Recycline razors

PACKAGED GROCERY
32 ounces Eden organic Rice-Soy blend beverage (I'm so excited to try this!)
14 ounces quartered artichoke hearts
12 pack LaCroix Cran-Raspberry sparkling water
15 ounces organic garbanzo beans
32 ounces Oregon not-so-sweet chai
16 ounces SunButter
2 Cherry Pie LaraBars
2 Chocolate Coconut Chew LaraBars
4-count Seventh Generation TP
1 roll Seventh Generation brown paper towels
150 ounces Seventh Generation laundry detergent (the "take to work bottle")
50 ounces Seventh Generation laundry detergent (the "keep at home bottle")
40 ounces Seventh Generation lavender liquid fabric softener (also to take to work)
1 package Seventh Generation drawstring kitchen bags

PRODUCE
1 head organic broccoli
1 organic cucumber
1 organic avocado
half a pound of organic ranier cherries
2 organic yellow peaches
1 ear organic sweet corn
1 head organic purple garlic
8or so organic white button mushrooms
2 organic white onions
1 organic green bell pepper
1 pint local raspberries
1 pint local organic blueberries

REFRIGERATED GROCERY
14 ounces organic firm tofu
half gallon Organic Valley OJ plus calcium
four WholeSoy yogurts (peach, cherry, lemon, and apricot-mango)

Visit Harmonia for more info on Midweek (Weekend) Munchies.

Weekend Munchies

Today's shopping . . .
(Why do I always need so much food?)

BAKERY
1 loaf Wedge Bakery multigrain bread

BULK
just under two pounds of organic French green lentils
just under two pounds of organic durum semolina
half a pound of organic unbleached all-purpose flour (for roux-making)
just over a pound of organic rolled oats
a pound of semisweet chocolate chips

FROZEN
Tofutti Cuties Wildberry flavor
Soy Delicious "Cookie Avalanche"
10 ounces organic mixed blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries
10 ounces organic blueberries
10 ounces organic peaches
16 ounces organic filo dough

PACKAGED GROCERY
1 bar "Endangered Species" tiger chocolate (dark w/espresso beans)
1 bar "Green and Black's" dark chocolate
14 ounces artichoke heart quarters
1 jar organic EastWinds peanut butter
15 ounces organic pumpkin puree
2 14.5 ounce cans Muir Glen organic no-salt added diced tomatoes
14 ounces organic lite coconut milk
1 bottle Seventh Generation dish soap

PERSONAL CARE
3 Tom's of Maine lemongrass soap
2 boxes NatraCare organic cotton tampons
1 bar Burt's Bees garden tomato face soap

PRODUCE
2 organic Granny Smith apples
1 organic champagne mango
1 organic "Sprite" melon
2 organic lemons
1 conventional lime
2 organic Danjou pears
2 organic yellow peaches
a teeny piece of organic ginger
a small bunch of organic basil
about six organic, local button mushrooms
2 small organic yams
4 organic red peppers
1 bag local, organic baby spinach
1 package organic dill
1 package organic rosemary

REFRIGERATED GROCERY
8 ounces Tofutti better than cream cheese (it's trans-fat free in my neck of the woods!)
10 ounces Follow Your Heart vegan mozzarella
Organic Valley soymilk
24 ounces plain WholeSoy yogurt

*** Planned "Party of One" Testing With All Of This Good Stuff ***

Peanut Butter Dip
Pumpkin Dip
Roasted Red Pepper Soup
Snickerdoodles
Pizza
Bananarama (a smoothie)
Purple People Eater (a smoothie)
Pumpkin Pie (a smoothie)
Green Superhero (a smoothie)
Stick it to Me (a smoothie)
Minted Mac & Peas
Chickpea Pocket Pies
Zucchini Bread

Visit Harmonia for more info on Midweek (Weekend) Munchies.

Weekend Munchies

Here's the deal: I usually do my shopping on the weekend (either Friday night or Saturday morning, typically,) and write up my Midweek Munchies post when I get home, then save it and wait to post it until the following Wednesday. I've decided I'm not very good at waiting, thus, I am being a rebel and will be posting "Weekend Munchies" from now on!

Plus this way, you get to see a preview of all of my goodies before hearing about cooking projects. Yes, there will be cooking projects this weekend. Many, many cooking projects. I will post recipes when I can!

FROZEN
10 ounce bag SnoPac organic edamame

PACKAGED GROCERY
Garden of Eatin' Sesame Blues chips
6 ounces organic brown rice puffs
8 ounces Ka-Me rice noodles (the skinny kind you soak in boiling water)
half a gram of saffron threads
4-pack Seventh Generation TP
12 ounce package spring roll wrappers
17.5 ounce package potato gnocchi

PERSONAL CARE
Tom's of Maine mint shaving cream
5-pack Preserve razor blades

PRODUCE
1 organic cucumber
1 organic Haas avocado
3 organic lemons
1 organic lime
3 organic valencia oranges
.33 pounds organic bing cherries
2 organic white peaches
1 head organic purple garlic
2 organic fennel bulbs (with fronds)
1 bunch organic cilantro
1 bunch organic parsley
.34 pounds organic cremini mushrooms
1 organic red onion
2 organic white onions
1 bunch organic green onions
1 organic green bell pepper
2 shallots (I think they are organic, but the receipt just says "shallots")
4 organic gold beets
sevenish local hothouse tomatoes
1-pound bag organic carrots
1 bag mung bean sprouts
1 pound box organic strawberries
1 bag prewashed local organic baby spinach
1 package organic thai basil
1 package organic oregano
1 package organic peppermint
1 package organic tarragon
1 package organic thyme

REFRIGERATED GROCERY
12 ounce package wonton skins
Organic Valley OJ plus calcium
four WholeSoy yogurts (raspberry, lemon, blueberry, and apricot-mango)


*** Planned Cooking Projects With All Of This Good Stuff ***

Edamame Dumplings (Cooking Light)
Spring Rolls (vegcooking.com) with peanut dipping sauce (made-up based on VegCooking recipe)
Miso Soup (Party of One in progress)
Vegetarian Paella (Cooking Light)
Roasted Beet Salad with Tarragon Vinaigrette (Cooking Light)
Lemon-Orange Fennel Salad (Cooking Light)
English Tea Scones (Party of One in progress)
Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies (Party of One in progress)
Granola (Party of One in progress)
Guacamole (Party of One in progress)
more cold-press coffee

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And, other exciting projects I will be working on over the next four days:

1. I have decided to go through and chop up the gazillion food periodicals I have stashed in my desk (mostly, three year's worth of Cooking Light and Eating Well mags, as well as a few random VTs and RealSimples thrown in,) gluestick the recipes I actually think I might make to sheets of 3-hole drilled paper, and file them in a binder. Each recipe will get its own page, so there will be plenty of space for notetaking and whatnot. I started the chopping up process earlier this week, and started the gluesticking part today. I did not buy enough 3-hole drilled paper, and I think I'm going to have to buy two more binders by the time I'm done. (I've used up 100 sheets already.) Sheesh! However, I hope this new system will actually inspire me to use these new recipes! So far, it's working!

2. I will (hopefully) dig through my storage closet and storage locker, and pull out everything I plan on taking to Michelle's friend Trudy's house for her summer rummage sale, and load it all into bags into my truck. Once I trek out to Trudy's house and unload all of this stuff, I can begin the car-selling process. Wahoo!

3. I also have itty-bitty, odds-and-ends type projects hanging about, a mountain of dishes (as always,) and a bit of light cleaning to do. While this weekend won't necessarily be relaxing, I'm looking forward to getting a ton done!

Midweek Munchies

I went to the store without a list this past weekend . . . thus, a weird concoction of randomness!

BULK
a tenth of a pound of vegan "gummy cubs" (I'd been craving candy for some odd reason!)

PACKAGED GROCERY
one box of Annie's organic shells and aged WI Cheddar (shared with Christine for lunch)
a four-pack of Izze sparkling grapefruit juice

PRODUCE
1 organic avocado
2 organic white peaches
1 organic black plum
a few sprigs of organic basil
one organic orange bell pepper
1 small organic yam
half an organic canteloupe
1 bag prewashed organic local baby spinach

REFRIGERATED GROCERY
1 Wildwood raspberry soy yogurt
1 Wholesoy raspberry soy yogurt (I'm doing a side-by-side taste test)

AND, I finally joined the co-op last weekend!

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Midweek Munchies

I get so excited when the local produce starts to hit the co-op . . . !!!

BAKERY
six Wedge bakery burger buns
loaf of Great Harvest Bread Co. multigrain bread

BULK
just under a pound of Peace Coffee Sumatra City (fair trade and organic)
3/4 of a pound of organic brown flaxseed

FROZEN
16 ounces cut okra

HERBS & SPICES
a couple tablespoons of ground organic ginger

PACKAGED GROCERY
Garden of Eatin' sesame blues chips
15 ounces canned organic black-eyed peas
15 ounces Muir Glen organic no-salt added tomato sauce

PRODUCE
1 small bunch organic celery
1 organic cucumber
2 organic bananas
1 organic red grapefruit
1 head organic purple garlic
1 bunch organic kale (local, too!)
1 bunch organic cilantro
8 organic white button mushrooms (local, too!)
2 organic white onions
1 small bunch organic green onions (local, too!)
2 organic green bell peppers
1 clamshell box local cherry tomatoes
1 clamshell box local strawberries

REFRIGERATED GROCERY
14 ounces House organic firm tofu
half-gallon Organic Valley plain soy milk
4-pack Holy Land whole wheat pita bread

Visit Harmonia for more info on Midweek Munchies.