The Latest News from Wheatsville

Chocolove Chocolate Chips:                    Melt, Dip, Bliss

Chocolove's Chocolate Almond Sea Salt Chocolate Bar is consistently the best selling chocolate bar at Wheatsville. Week after week, shoppers are drawn to the delicious combination of smooth and creamy chocolate with mixed in toasted almonds and salt crystals that seem perfectly placed to bring the flavor together. Well the chocolate masterminds at Chocolove have outdone themselves by treating their faithful audience to Chocolove Dark Chocolate Chips!

Urging you to "Share it with someone you love" these 52% cocoa content chocolate chips have the same silky texture as the chocolate bars. Since i too am a mastermind when it comes to chocolate (who do you think merchandises the chocolate bars next to the cash registers?) I realized upon my first taste of the new chocolate chips that they would probably be EXCELLENT for chocolate dipping. I only had a theory so i enlisted Christie Gonzales, Packaged Receiver at Wheatsville's South Lamar location and former professional chocolatier in North Carolina, to test the theory on cookies and fresh strawberries.

Christie's expert yet easy tips on how to make chocolate dipped delights:

1. Slowly melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave on low (1 minute, stir, 30 seconds, stir)
2. If dipping fresh strawberries, they will need time to fully dry after washing. If time is short, use a wet towel to gently wipe the strawberries being careful not to tear the skin.
3. Cookies, marshmallows, and dried fruit are all great foods to dip in chocolate, be creative
4. After dipping place on parchment paper then dry for at least an hour for to keep the chocolate from melting in your hands as soon as you touch them.
5. When everything is dry, remove from the parchment paper; they should pull off easily when dry.
6. For presentation, place the treats in muffin cups!
7. Strawberries are best eaten the day you make them. Dry snacks like cookies can stay good for a month as long as you cover them fully in chocolate and keep them in a cool dry place (refrigerators are too damp)

Dipping suggestions: Dandies Vegan Marshmallows, Back to Nature Peanut Butter Creme Cookies, Pretzel Crisps Classic Pretzels, Hail Merry Coconut Macaroons, fresh bananas, Kettle Potato Chips, crystallized ginger

Tell us your ideas in the comment section and let us know what you made!

New Local Greens: LEAF SAFARI

We’re excited to now carry delicious, fresh, nutrient-dense, sustainably grown salads and greens from Leaf Safari. They started, while in college, with a 9000 square foot operation growing only basil. They have grown to nearly four times in size at their current location in Manor, Texas.

You can find six different varieties on the shelves in the Wheatsville produce department. All the Leaf Safari greens we carry are harvested, with their roots still intact, within hours of placing the order. This means nothing but the freshest product in every box, as the lettuces and greens are still living. In June, I had a brief Q&A with the friendly folks at Leaf Safari:

Ralf: Could you describe your facilities and explain the growing process?
Leaf Safari: We have a 34,000 square foot hydroponic greenhouse facility that is Primus Certified, pesticide-free, and sustainable in Manor, Texas. Hydroponics is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions, in water without soil. Everything is grown in a greenhouse, no pesticides are used, and there is no harmful agricultural runoff or water waste. Crops are completely environmentally friendly and are able to be grown year round. We believe that hydroponics is the future of farming. This farming method uses 90% less water than traditional farming and reduces our farm’s carbon footprint.

Ralf: What is your favorite product you guys sell?
Leaf Safari: Our favorite products are the Living Baby Kale (mild, nutty flavor and tender yet crisp texture) and the Living Superfood (spicy and nutrient dense). Also, our picking and packing crew always ask to take home the baby lettuces!

Ralf: What is your favorite thing about Wheatsville?
Leaf Safari: The people working at the stores are consistently AWESOME! Wheatsville truly has a “local” neighborhood feel. We feel that we are contributing to our community in a positive way after shopping at Wheatsville.

Ralf: Any interesting facts about your business that you would like to share?
Leaf Safari: We use ladybugs as a natural pest control method. We release 18,000 ladybugs per month. When released it is a giant swarm that sometimes form clusters on our hands/arms like you see in a movie or on TV. Any other bug would creep me out, but not the ladybugs.

Texas Berry Season

With Spring rapidly approaching, I am getting really excited about my favorite season of the year, baseball season! But since that would make for a most peculiar produce article, I’ll go with the next best season of the year, Texas berry season of course! After struggling through our Texas winter, sweet fresh Texas berries help erase the memory of all those recent cold nights. I most often just rinse and eat them right out of the package. But berries lend themselves to a wide array of quick recipes and are always welcome as a sweet salad compliment to a tangy vinaigrette.

Texas strawberries arrive first and are always much anticipated. The season runs from late February into early May. We’ll be getting our strawberries from Poteet, Texas, the strawberry capital of the Texas. If you’ve never been to The Poteet Strawberry Festival, make this the year to do it. It will be held April 10 -12 and is a great time for the family and a great place to soak up some Texas history as well as enjoy some amazing strawberry delights. Poteet is just south of San Antonio about 2 hours from Austin.

Blackberries and blueberries then round out the Texas berry season. Blackberries generally arrive first in May followed by blueberries in June. The blackberries we most often have for y’all are also from Poteet and are always delicate and delicious. They are my personal favorite berry and also have the shortest season here in Texas of just over a month. So snap them up when you see them because they don’t stay around for long. Blueberries hail from East Texas and bring with them another fun Texas festival, The Texas Blueberry Festival on June 13 in downtown Nacogdoches. This year marks the festival’s 25th anniversary celebrating the annual blueberry harvest. Stop by for a fun-filled day if your travels take you near Nacogdoches in June.

Though berry season doesn’t last long, jams or preserves are a fabulous way to make it last much longer, or at least as long as your willpower will allow you to resist that fresh jar of homemade preserves. I love to turn Texas blueberries into a Blueberry and Basil Jam. All you need are blueberries, sugar, basil, pectin, lemon juice and water. Try a quick internet search and you’ll find many quick and easy recipe variations. And if you are not into canning, just refrigerate your blueberry basil jam and use it within three weeks. It is fabulous! Happy Texas Berry Season!

Winter Greens Guide

Kale Curly, Lacinato, or Red

Attributes: Loads of vitamins A and C. Retains its general shape and texture when cooked. Does not “cook down” like other greens. Slightly bitter raw.
Uses: Sauté, wilt in soups, add to raw salads, steam.

Chard: Red, Rainbow, Swiss, Green

Attributes: Mild, pleasant flavor is good raw in salads. Resilient enough to be used in gratins. Don’t discard the stalks, they have great flavor and crunch!
Uses: Raw in salads, sauté, steam, gratins

Spinach

Attributes: Delicate, mild flavor. Packed with calcium, vitamins A and C.
Uses: Extremely versatile; mild flavor is not overpowering when incorporated into dishes. Raw in salads, sauté, in pasta. Delicate nature means little preparation and short cooking time.

Collard Greens

Attributes: Rich in fiber. A Southern cooking staple. Hearty, chewy texture and a stronger, cabbage-like taste.
Uses: Steam, sauté, braise with ham, bake with Gruyere in a gratin.

Dandelion Greens

Attributes: High in calcium, vitamins A, C, and K.
Uses: Steamed or sauté. Pairs well with rich flavors like bacon, potatoes, goat cheese.

Bok Choy

Attributes: Tender and mild flavored. Packed with Vitamin C.
Uses: A “go to” Asian green. Stir fry, eat raw in salads, raw in slaw.

Mustard Greens

Attributes: Southern cooking staple. Peppery flavor mellows out the longer you cook it. Remove the stalks when cooking.
Uses: Sauté, steam, braise. Often used in Southern and Indian cuisine. Adds a peppery bite to dishes.

Try out this fantastic recipe from Bon Appétit:

Collard Green & Radish Slaw with Crispy Shallots

Ingredients
2 small shallots, sliced into rings
6 TBS vegetable oil
kosher salt
1 bunch collard greens (about 10 oz.), center ribs and stems removed, thinly sliced crosswise
6 small radishes, trimmed, sliced
2 TBS white wine vinegar
freshly ground black pepper

Preparation (Total time: 20 minutes)
Cook shallots and oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until shallots are golden, 8–10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer shallots to a paper towel–lined plate; season with salt. Transfer oil to a small bowl and let cool.

Combine collard greens, radishes, and vinegar in a large bowl; season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with shallot oil and toss to coat. Top with crispy shallots.

Do Ahead: Crispy shallots can be made 2 hours ahead. Store shallots and oil separately at room temperature. Servings: 4

Fruit Compote

Did you know its National Ice Cream month? Former president Ronald Reagan declared July as the month, and called for the people of the United States to observe the month with “appropriate ceremonies and activities”. Thank you, President Reagan, as I like just about any reason/excuse to enjoy a bowl of ice cream.

Ice cream is delicious on its own, but if you’re looking to go the extra mile to fulfill your civic duties, a nice fruit topping from our produce department is the way to go. It can be as easy as slicing up some ripe Texas peaches or organic berries and calling it a day. Or, with just little extra work, you can elevate these already delicious fruit toppings by creating fruit compote (definition: fruit cooked in syrup). There are many recipes available online, with the basic technique being relatively the same: a couple of cups of fresh fruit, some sweetener (sugar, honey), maybe some lemon for a little acid, or vanilla extract for enhancing the flavor.

You combine the ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat until the fruit softens (about 12 minutes). Then you let it cool to room temperature and serve; it’s easy enough to make that you may have fun letting your kids help! Experiment with different ones until you find your favorite. Here are a couple of recipes from the web for you to try:

• Stone Fruit Compote
• Easy Blueberry Compote

Citrus Sunshine in Winter

Growing up in Michigan in the 70s was, among other things, ridiculously cold. I’ve definitely seen enough snow and ice to last a lifetime. But one thing I did always love was fresh citrus in the wintertime. It always felt like I was unwrapping a sunny gift from summer in the middle of cold dark winter. Thankfully, now that I’m living in Texas, my winters have gotten much warmer, and better yet, the citrus has gotten much better. My two favorites are the Cara Cara orange and the Texas Rio Red grapefruit.

The Cara Cara orange is hands down the best orange I’ve ever had. It was discovered at Hacienda Cara Cara in Venezuela in 1976. It was a natural mutation the occurred on a Washington navel orange tree. It quickly made its way to Florida and then found a growing home in California. It is sweeter than the average orange and the flesh has a beautiful almost red color. Sweet, juicy and low acid make this the perfect orange for a quick snack. If you’ve never tried one, I highly recommend you find out what you’ve been missing. You’ll be glad you did.

My other favorite is the Texas Rio Red Grapefruit. Local and organic are two of my favorite qualities in a produce item and this grapefruit has both of those things going for it. It was developed in the Rio Grande Valley at the Texas A&M Citrus Center and is grown at G & S Groves in McAllen, Texas. Most importantly, it is absolutely delicious. It is a bit larger than a standard commercial grapefruit, is super juicy, has a deep red flesh, and has just enough sweetness to balance out the underlying tartness. As a grapefruit eating kiddo in Michigan, I’d always scoop a little sugar on my grapefruit. With the Rio Red however, sugar is not needed at all. I section them and eat them like an over-sized orange. They are, like all things from Texas, awesome.

So swing on by your friendly neighborhood Wheatsville Produce department and try one of these wonderful winter citrus selections. They’ll brighten up your day and unleash a little summer sun into our chilly winter air. Stay warm out there!

Pork on the Grill

While pork is one of the most recent additions to the world of cultivated meats, it has become a staple in world cuisine. Cultures all over the world have varying preparations of hams and bacon. Pork ribs are what most people are thinking of when you say the word ribs. Whole pigs cooked under ground are a part of celebrating family and friends all over the world.

Pork is mild enough to take on almost any flavor you would like to add, but can carry it's own with the simplicity of salt and pepper. Grilling is almost always made better on the bone. The Pork T-Bone, one part Tenderloin and two parts strip steak, is a great place to start. Let your steaks get to room temperature to ensure even cooking and liberally salt and pepper.

Pork is a great medium for marrying different flavors to create more exciting profiles like spicy and sweet, savory and sweet, coffee and orange juice, savory and fruit and I think you get the picture. Honey and mustard based marinades are great on pork. Get some of our fresh in season peaches and grill them along side your pork chops or make delicious chutneys and compotes to sauce your pork chops.

Using dried chili's in your marinades is a great way to add heat and some of the more subtle floral flavors in the chili's. A sweet component will bring these flavors out even more. This would be a great way to use the fresh turmeric in the produce department. A marinade of a modest chunk of turmeric (an inch, inch and a half)  and ginger with a few cloves of garlic, the juice of an orange, the scrapings of 3 or so tamarinds (fresh pods are in the produce department or the paste is on isle two)  and a few pinches of salt with enough oil to make a rich liquid is a fantastic mixture of sour and sweet and earthy. Use some of the marinade to reduce for a sauce when it comes time to put those chops on a plate. Pork is a pretty forgiving meat to try out your own creations and the grill is the best way to bring them to fruition.

Farm Visit to Flower Farmer Scott!

Lila the Wonder Pup Supervises All Flower Picking

Wandering up to visit Flower Farmer Scott in Cedar Creek, it looks like any other small country house, with half-started and half-finished projects laying around, some resource pile here and there. If it weren't for the tibetan prayer flags on the porch, I might have driven right by! But as I wandered down the hill towards the back of the property, Scott's flower field came into view.... The area under cultivation isn't large, about a half an acre, but standing amongst the hip-high larkspur and snapdragons, there is an expansive feeling that encapsulates you in the majesty of these flowers as various pollinators flutter about.

Scott Harris has been farming off an on for the last twenty-five years, and for the past three he's been Flower Farmer Scott. It's easy to see why he choose flower farming. Most of the flower trade is filled with nasty chemicals, and involves shipping flowers hundreds of miles, but on a flood plane field in Central Texas, Scott can grow these beautiful flowers that look great for weeks without using chemical inputs. In fact, his soil building process isn't even labor intensive. Several of the varieties Scott grows are perennials that go dormant in the winter. Where he grows annuals, he simply tills them under in the fall and starts a cover crop to be tilled in again after the last frost.

The Dianthus has all been picked.

Flower Farmer Scott can be found Saturday mornings at the SFC Downtown Farmer's Market and Sundays at the Mueller Farmer's Market. And of course, you can find his lovely bouquets of dianthus, larkspur, and english status at Wheatsville everyday from 7:30 am to 11pm.

Before I left, Scott showed me his secret to long-lasting bouquets: put a tablespoon of white vinegar per gallon of water in the vase! It helps prevent bacteria and mold growth.

Just for fun, here's a photo of Scott's living room after a day of picking flowers:

From all of us at Wheatsville, and our friend Flower Farmer Scott, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!