Vacation is over, so it’s time for the post-vacay, return-to-real-food, shopping spree at Whole Foods. Traveling an hour to the closest store is a great excuse to visit Pepper Place market, Trader Joes, and Lush. A girl’s gotta have some me time, you know. I did pull out an older shirt that now fits me!
My list of staples from Whole Foods has evolved over the year. With the growth of our local farmer’s market, I’m no longer filling my cart with produce. Most of it is more regional, not local. And a large portion of produce is not regional at all. Unless I see some greens from this area of the state or sweet potatoes and peaches from Chilton county, I usually move on to the rest of my list.
Tessemaes is still a big favorite in my house. I can do many things with chicken, vegetables, and a bottle of Tesses. That lemon chesapeake is great with shrimp, too.
Next on my list is a new company in Alabama called Harvest Roots. I first heard about them from Jonathan over at Tea Town Alabama. He had some of their kombucha on tap and it was an instant favorite. Harvest Roots is the first legal wild fermentory in Alabama. True story. Fermented foods are a crucial for healing the gut. So much research is pouring out lately about the gut-brain connection. With Celiac disease, I’m always mindful of taking steps to keep my gut lining happy and fermented foods like kombucha, sauerkraut, kimchi, etc are great sources of fermented foods. And they make a fabulous elderberry kombucha. I also found some these to try. I look forward to sharing some recipes using these.
When I turned the corner and saw this Wall of Magnificence, I think I squealed a little. I’ve been buying Steve’s Paleo Goods online for a few years now and I was so excited to see it in a store. Stephen always keeps a bag of granola in his lunchbox because “a handful goes a long way”. Protein, my dear. Protein. This store had a limited variety and the nice guy I talked to said they are pleased with the demand so more items should be coming this fall.
The other staples I stock up on include frozen vegetables (check the labels for grown in USA), bulk packages of chicken and beef, gluten-free cider, almond butter, coconut butter, Amazing Grass greens powder, coconut aminos, fish sauce, sunflower butter, olive oils, and the occasional huge jug of cold brew coffee. Today’s haul was not very big, but it was hefty in flavor and nutrition.
The next stop was the hot bar. Bacon-wrapped jalepeno cream cheese chicken things. WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE??? I added some collards, spicy chicken and a piece of fried plantain.
These are some favorites and I’m sure I’ll have another list once fall gets going and soup season arrives. Have a great week!