Dark Days Challenge #8

This meal resulted from my recent trip to Whole Foods where I found the sausages and potatoes. It’s my local organic version of bangers and mash! These are Bilinski’s organic chicken sausages. It was actually one of the very few local meat products I could find there and while it is on the outer range of my local zone being 140 miles away, I figured I may as well try it anyway. There was a little sign next to it in the refrigerated section with a picture of the father-daughter team that produce this product in upstate New York, which, seemed endearing. The sausages turned out to be delicious, flavorful, and so well seasoned that I didn’t have to do anything except heat them up. ALSO: they were only 90 calories each! I’m not big on counting calories, but in my head I always think sausage = fat so that was a nice surprise. For sides I made mashed fingerling potatoes with the skins from a farm in Kent, CT (bought at Whole Foods) and julienne carrots from my garden. Then for desert – Siggi’s Skyr.

Siggi’s Skyr

There’s a story behind this one….

A few years ago when I was living in NYC one of my good friends was telling me about her friend Siggi who was trying to make his own yogurt. Siggi hails from Iceland, land of skyr. I thought ‘Cool, but where can you make yogurt in NYC?’  Well apparently Siggi found a way and is now the proud papa behind this thick, custardy super-yogurt. I was always interested in trying it since I’m a huge yogurt fan, but it somehow escaped me until recently. If I recall he actually brought some to our wedding for us to try, but it didn’t keep after the long, hot train ride. So you can imagine my delight when I saw it proudly displayed in the dairy section on my recent trip to Whole Foods. When I got home and tried it I was not disappointed. Creamy, tart, and rich with organic flavor. I’m in love. As I was enjoying the skyr I started investigating his website. Siggi’s Skyr is sweetened with natural agave syrup instead of by artificial means, it’s low-fat, high protein (16g of protein and only 120 calories) and made with milk from local farms with grass fed cows (no rBGH). Also, the containers it comes in use 40-50% less plastic than typical yogurt cups and are, of course, recyclable. Basically, it’s super good and super healthy. Try it!

Today I Lost My Whole Foods Virginity

Oddly enough, I have never been to a Whole Foods store before. I’ve lived in shopping distance from one for a long while, but I guess I just always assumed it was what I call “fake organic” or industrial organic and that everything in the store came from far off places instead of being local. Now there is one in Milford, which is on my way home from work. So tonight I thought I’d check it out. Actually, my main mission was to find some organic whole wheat flour for my ravioli making session this weekend. I entered the store a bit cynical of what I might find. As I walked around the produce section glancing at a plethora of fruit from Central America and vegetables from California I though I had confirmed my preconceived stereotype. I do, however, love that everything was labeled with its origin. I wish every market did this. Just as I was giving up on finding any product that lived up to my standards of local organic I stumbled across some fingerling  potatoes from Kent CT. Then there was lettuce and spinach from Long Island on the opposite wall. Hooray! I’m hoping that during the summer they stock more produce from Connecticut farms. My other purchases included Siggi’s Skyr, local organic chicken sausages, and I of course got some organic whole wheat flour. Overall a successful trip. Then upon leaving the Whole Foods parking lot within the first half mile I drove I passed a Boston Market, Subway, Krispy Kreme, Taco Bell, McDonald’s, Dunkin’ Donuts, Burger King, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Panera, Hometown Buffet, Arby’s, and Starbucks. That makes one healthy choice and 13 unhealthy (and might I add cheaper) options. Food for thought.