Brew News - May 2009

Our second edition of Brew News!

1. New Breweries

2. New Beers

3. Drinkin’ in the Great Outdoors

4. Brewer’s Co-Op Update

5. This Month’s Sampling

6. Food Pairings/Cooking Ideas

1. New Breweries:

Rounding out our wonderful selection of local and regional beers, a couple more breweries are represented at our store:

-Goose Island Beer Co., Chicago, IL

-Sprecher Brewing Company, Glendale, WI

2. New Beers:

We’ve got an ever-growing selection of beer at Just Local Food! Since beer is a highly seasonal item, particular beers go exceptionally well with each one. Spring is here and summer is just around the corner. We’ve got some great new brews to lead the way for warmer weather:

-Goose Island Honker’s Ale, India Pale Ale, 312 Wheat

-Sprecher Special Amber, Black Bavarian, Abbey Triple (16 oz. bottles)

-Central Waters Glacial India Pale Ale, Satin Solstice Imperial Stout

-Bell's Oberon

3. Drinkin’ in the Great Outdoors:

For your outdoor enjoyment, we offer some beers in “recreation-friendly” containers. This means aluminum cans! Sometimes glass bottles just aren’t a good idea when camping, at the park, or out on the water.

We’ll soon be stocking Northwood’s Floppin’ Crappie in 6pk cans! We also currently offer Leinenkugel’s Original and Light in 12pk and 24pk cans.

4. Brewer’s Co-Op Update:

With the addition of a few more breweries to our impressive line-up, we now offer selections from 7 of the 9 breweries involved in the Midwest Hops and Barley Cooperative. When we say “Just Local” in reference to our beer, we mean it! Here’s a list of the breweries:

Central Waters Brewing, Goose Island Brewery, Lake Front Brewery, Sand Creek Brewing, South Shore Brewery, Sprecher Brewing, Tyranena Brewing

(take a look at this article from the Leader-Telegram for the full story)

5. This Month’s Sampling:

On Thursday May 21^st, stop by our store to try out the most local beer we can find! From right here in Eau Claire, Northwoods Brew Pub will bring down a selection of their handcrafted ales. With award-winning beers in their line-up, you will surely find one that suits you. Time still-to-be-announced (sometime in the mid-late afternoon).

6. Food Pairings/Cooking Ideas:

A lot of us don’t drink beer alone. We’re often surrounded by family, friends, and more often than not, food. Beyond the old standbys of Pizza & Beer and the ceremonial Bratwurst Beer Bath before grilling, here are some other ideas of what to do with your favorite beverage:

-India Pale Ale with Dates. Yes, fruit and beer! One night, I just happened to be drinking a nice an’ hoppy IPA and saw some Medjool Dates in my fridge. Lo and behold, they tasted GREAT together! Try this duo for an interesting snack or dessert.

-Stout with Whiskey and Chocolate. I tested this out with New Glarus’ Coffee Stout topped off with some Irish whiskey. Pair it with Equal Exchange’s Dark Chocolate (the darker the better!) to pull out the rich undertones in the beer. Try it with Castle Rock’s Organic Vanilla Ice Cream for a more sophisticated take on the classic Root Beer Float.

-When matching beer with food, the general rule of thumb is to match light beers with light foods and dark beers with hearty foods. When making chili or stew infused with beer, keep in mind that dark beers like Stouts and Porters can become bitter when heated up. Try a nice “standard” Ale to give your favorite recipe the wonderful essence of beer that you’re looking for.

If you have some favorite recipes and/or methods of cooking with beer, please let us know so we can all benefit from your culinary knowledge!

-- The Beer Dudes (Drew and Jordan)

tortilla chips UPDATE!

REJOICE!

I spoke with Doug Hilgendorf at Whole Grain Milling on Monday. Their yellow and blue tortilla chips are tentatively back in production, and we expect a truckload of yellows to arrive this Friday... yes, yes, YES!

the old news:
We are very sorry to report that Whole Grain Milling Company has temporarily discontinued their amazingly delicious tortilla chips As many of you know, Doug and Lin Hilgendorf (and family!) have been growing organic blue and yellow corn on their farm and having tortilla chips freshly made from that corn every few weeks. They have informed us that the chip factory they were having their chips made at is not currently making chips for them. This news was abrupt and is unexplained. We are all devastated by the news. Doug and Lin are working hard to find a solution, and to bring the chips back as soon as possible. Sadly, there is no replacement for these incredibly delicious and addictive bags of awesomeness. The grocery department is ordering a variety of tortilla chips from other companies in the meantime, but looks forwardto the day when we can once again sell WGM tortilla chips.

One Sun Pizza Closeout

Stock up on your favorite One Sun Pizzas! We are closing them out at 25% off the retail price. They will sell at $9.59 each. While supplies last.

We are sad to not carry these fantastic products anymore. They are great pizzas made with local ingredients, a majority of which they grew themselves.

In the near future look for a local gluten free pizza and possibly some sweet potato fries!

Restore recognition

Amigas y Amigos,

Restore is being featured in the April/May issue of SmallBiz by BusinessWeek and has been nominated for America's Most Promising Social Entrepreneur.

Restore is a great product we are proud of and in the earth day tradition we are reminded of new ways to reduce our impact on our natural environment (we throw away 4 million plastic bottles an hour).

Please visit and/or vote for Restore Products by clicking on this pop-up or the original story here.

(Voting ends Sunday, April 26th)

Thanks and hopefully someday we can see the refill station at our store as well!

the Just Local Food Cooperative

&

Laurie Brown Founder and CEO Restore Products Company

Big big meat sale!! UPDATE

In anticipation of grilling season, we are putting all of our big comfort-food meats on sale, to make room for an expanded line of brats and steaks and other meats that go with warmer weather. Get it while you can, because it’s going to be a while before we stock these again. (and, we’ll probably have a few more cool days and nights before summer that would be perfect for a nice hearty meal…)

Whole turkeys from Coon Creek Family Farm and Beaver Creek Ranch (20% off)
We’ve got 2 left in stock. Have you ever grilled a turkey? It is the way to go! Quarter it, brine it, cook over indirect fire for about 45 minutes, add some smoking chips, and you’ve got the best turkey you ever tasted.

Turkey broth from Coon Creek Family Farm (20% off)
Created by Alchemy for Coon Creek, using their organic turkeys. Perfect for soup, gravy, anywhere you need a really good broth.

Black angus beef roasts from Wheatfield Hill Organics (20% off)
These are just really good and super easy in the oven or crockpot, and the leftovers make wonderful sandwiches. Buy and make now, or stock your freezer at this great price.

(SOLD OUT) All-natural corned beef from Anderson Farms (20% off)
Anyone who has tasted this corned beef knows how yummy it is – one of the only corned beefs we’ve ever seen that doesn’t include nitrites or other stuff we’d like to avoid. Again, makes a great meal and lots of tasty leftovers.

(SOLD OUT) Pork loin roast from Anderson Farms (20% off)
These are beautiful lean roasts, perfect with fresh rosemary and garlic.

(SOLD OUT) Bison roast from Golden Hills Buffalo (20% off)
A nice lean roast that would be perfect braised in wine or tomatoes, with lots of onions, etc.

(SOLD OUT) Organic Valley lunch meat - in the freezer, priced as marked (25% off original price) This is your chance to stock up on organic lunch meat, when you just need a good quick sandwich.

Madison's own RP's Pasta

Some of you may remember a time when Just Local Food had RP's Fresh and Frozen pasta from Madison WI. Well, it's back!

Here is a blurb from their website:

"RP's Pasta products are made with the finest all-natural ingredients, an appreciation for Old World culinary traditions, and most importantly, a love for food.

From our Fresh Egg Fettuccine to our Pumpkin Tortelloni to our Potato Gnocchi and Pasta Sauces, Master Pasta Maker, Peter Robertson, holds quality and flavor to the highest regard in every batch.

That's the secret behind gourmet fresh pasta from RP's Pasta Company. RP's is a unique pasta maker, using a meticulous hand-rolled process producing the highest quality pasta for restaurants and grocery stores. It is the labor intensive hand-rolled process that is the only way to produce pasta with true "al'Dente" texture. Only the hand can determine when the pasta has been kneaded long enough and only then do we turn this fine pasta dough into RP's Fresh Pasta. In addition to traditional flat noodles, RP's offers an array of ravioli and tortellini.

In the Cooler Just Local Food is Carrying: Fresh Egg Fettuccine, Fresh Egg Angel Hair Pasta, Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce and Tomato Basil Sauce.

In the Freezer you will find: Sweet Potato Ravioli, Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli, Pesto Tortelloni, and Tri Color Cheese Raviolini.

Nature's Bakery

Just Local Food is proud to carry Nature's Bakery Frozen Veggie Burgers, Calzones and 3 varieties of granola; Apple Cinnamon, Peanut Butter and Six Grain.

Here is a bit from their website:

"Nature’s Bakery Cooperative is a vegetarian bakery located in Madison WI committed to using organic whole grains. We have been a worker’s collective since its founding in 1970.

The Vegetarian Burger is our classic, made with Brazil nut meal, carrots, onions, celery, organic brown rice, organic brown rice flour, almonds, wheat-free tamari, non-GMO soy oil, fresh parsley, herbs and spices. Our bakers especially enjoy them with barbecue sauce!

The Amazing Grain Burger is low in fat and sodium, and makes a great, healthy snack. We make this burger with organic brown rice, organic millet, carrots, onions, celery, organic brown rice flour, apple cider vinegar, wheat-free tamari, almonds, non-GMO soy oil, herbs and spices.

The Tofu Walnut Burger is our newest flavor, made with locally produced organic tofu from Simple Soyman in Milwaukee, WI. We also use mushrooms, celery, walnuts, organic oats, non-GMO soy oil, parsley, agar, garlic and spices in this savory burger. "

Brew News April 2009

Enjoy our first installment of Brew News.

1. The JLF Beer Dudes
2. Angry Minnow Brewery
3. Brewer's Co-op
4. Samplings
5. Furthermore Pint Glass Deal
6. Breweries JLF Works With

1. The JLF Beer Dudes -- You've probably seen Drew and myself (Jordan) down at the store. Combined we are the Beer Department at Just Local Food. If you have any suggestions, questions, or comments, let us know. We can be reached at drew@justlocalfood.com & jordan@justlocalfood.com.

2. Angry Minnow Brewery -- We are proud to start working with Jason Rasmussen, brewmaster, and the other folks at Angry Minnow Brewery in Hayward, WI. Our first shipment of River Pig Pale Ale and Honey Wheat this week. Enjoy them at 10% off for the month of April.

River Pig Pale Ale - This copper beer will deliver a blast of hops with every guzzle. We add hops at four stages during the brew including dry hopping, which leaves this pale with a floral aroma.
Honey Wheat - This golden brew is made with fresh pilsen malt, wheat, Gambrinnus honey malt, and 50 pounds of local honey.

3. Brewer's Co-op -- Midwestern farmers and craft beer brewers form a co-op. The objective of the co-op is to get brewers locally grown ingredients (hops, barley). We currently work with 5 of the 9 participating breweries: Central Waters, Lakefront, Sand Creek, South Shore, and Tyranena. Check out this leader telegram article for more info.

4. Samplings -- Drew and I are gearing up for monthly brewery samplings. Look forward to at least one sampling a month. Check the website frequently for updates.

5. Furthermore Pint Glass Deal -- If you buy a case (any 4 six packs) of Furthermore beer, we will give you a Furthermore Pint glass. That's the deal. On a separate but related note, Fatty Boombalatty should be ariving for the season soon.

6. Breweries JLF Works With -- We have stayed true to the local in Just Local Food with our beer selection. All of our beer is from Wisconsin with the exception of 3 breweries. Check out the list that follows.

Angry Minnow - Hayward, WI
Bell's - Galesburg, MI
Capital - Middleton, WI
Central Waters - Amherst, WI
Furthermore - Spring Green, WI
Grain Belt - New Ulm, MN
Lakefront - Milwaukee, WI
Leinenkugel's - Chippewa Falls & Milwaukee, WI
New Glarus - New Glarus, WI
Northwoods - Eau Claire, WI
Point - Stevens Point, WI
Rush River - River Falls, WI
Sand Creek - Black River Falls, WI
South Shore - Ashland, WI
Summit - St. Paul, MN
Tyranena - Lake Mills, WI
Viking - Dallas, WI

"Everybody has to believe in something.....I believe I'll have another drink."
- W.C. Fields

healthy girls demo

Demo this Saturday!

Have you heard of Healthy Girls products, and phluffing for breast health? These products are created for loving your "girls" with 7 therapeutic essential oils, some of which have clinical studies to show that monoterpenes found in essential oils regress cancer cells. Relaxing in a bath with Healthy Girls Bath Salts is a way to add more minerals into your body with Dead Sea Salt, Himalayan Sea salt and, thera-grade Epsom Salts with 30% magnesium to aid the adrenal glands and promote relaxation. Read more about this great local product here.

We'll have a Healthy Girls Breast Oil and Bath Salts Demonstration on Saturday, April 4th from 10:15 to 2:15.

Infinitea loose leaf teas now at Just Local Food!

Hi Food Lovers!

We just stocked 6 new varieties of fair trade, organic, teas from INFINITEA tea house down the street from us, you can find them in 1oz. packages (able to brew up to 20 pots!!!)

come 'sample' or view, smell, experience the teas before you pick which one suits you best...

this month's varieties include,

Organic Amber Dragon - Oolong
Organic China Golden Yunnan - Black
Fire Ginseng - Herbal Tisane
Organic Dragon Well - Green
Organic Fair Trade Peppermint Rooibos
Organic White Peony - White

just cashews

We are absolutely thrilled to offer you this new farm-direct, fair trade product.

Just Cashews is committed to alleviating poverty, malnutrition and exploitation by creating a fair trade market for organic, fair trade, cashews and working to develop standards for fair trade cashew production throughout the world. By purchasing Just Cashews, you have a direct impact on the quality of life for peasant farmers and their families in Central America.

Read the full story on the cooperative in Honduras that our cashews come from right here.

And on to the food part:
Cashew nuts are actually the kidney-shaped seeds that adhere to the bottom of the cashew apple, the fruit of the cashew tree, which is native to the coastal areas of northeastern Brazil. While cashew apples are not appreciated in the United States, they are regarded as delicacies in Brazil and the Caribbean. Cashews are always sold shelled because the interior of the shells contains a caustic resin, known as cashew balm, which must be carefully removed before the nuts are fit for consumption. This caustic resin is actually used in industry to make varnishes and insecticides. Interested? Read more about cashew nutrition right here.

art in April

No foolin! Even though our store walls are filled mostly with coolers, freezers, bulk bins and more, (aka the colorful products of the many food artisans we work with), we've still made room for art. And let us rejoice for the beauty art brings to our world. In the month of April we've got our annual tribute to the bicycle, known as the common wheel. This year we'll have works from Mark Aumann, Lori Chilefone, Nick Dewar, Joe Maurer and Amy Zagar. Grab a cup of coffee and admire the view. And you still have a week or so to enjoy the beautiful international photographs of Mark Aumann.

pictured: sister katy's advice to huella

eggs

Caretakers of our local layers, Matt Buvala and Mary Kummer, have been bringing in great quality eggs for us all to enjoy for a few years. Early this winter, you probably remember when the chickens took a vacation from laying for awhile. They are now well rested and have had a great winter. With spring upon us, the chickens are running wild and we've got plenty of eggs for you! If you've hardboiled these fresh eggs in the past, you probably noticed they are usually hard to peel.

In anticipation of your easter hardboiling endeavors, we have stocked up on eggs a little early. The advantage is, that by letting the eggs sit refrigerated for another week or two (still within their shelf life!), the shell has a chance to disengage and make for a much easier peeling experience. Last night I hardboiled a full dozen of Matt's Eggs and the peels practically fell off. I don't know if the Easter bunny snuck in last night or the kids slipped them in their school bags, but they're gone already! So consider this your formal invitation to stop down and stock up.

Hardboiled egg-related bonus: Have you heard of the scotch egg? Basically a hard boiled or pickled egg, wrapped in sausage, rolled in some sort of breading and deep fried (or baked for the faint of heart). I'm making these this week, just local style, I'll let you know how they turn out...

Pictured: scotch egg from chotda

Cowsmo Potting Soil and Compost

Brace yourselves green thumbs!

COWSMO is back! The Foodlums have bagged the Co-op some wonderful 50 Lbs. bags of Potting Soil from Waumandee, WI and are expecting to also have similar bags of wonderful composted cow manure in weeks to come!

These bags of potting soil consist of peat, Cowsmo Compost, sand, perlite, meat and bone meal, kelp, rock phosphate & lime and are great for general purpose, for starting plants, for soil blocks or use in small containers.

Last year we and the foodlums received rave reviews from folks from all over the gardening and farming spectrum and are excited to continue to offer this great product!

For veggies, fruits some flowers and other things for your gardens, check out out post on our Seed Savers seed selection!

Local Spring Mix has Sprung

Eau Claire, WI (Super Local) Spring Mix is in!

Pam Herdrich has just started bringing us wonderful spring mix and will continue to do so every Monday and Thursday throughout this season.

Here's the rundown on the new greens... "We grow our greens hydroponically, in a peat and perlite mix. The greenhouse looks like a forest of short "trees" growing alternately a lettuce and a mesclun mix. Unfortunately, for this year, we are using commercial fertilizer, but hope to find and organic alternative for next year. We are not using any pesticides.

Here's what's in the mix: Mesclun mix: Arugula, Red Giant mustard, Bianca Riccia endive, Kyona Mizuna, red lettuces (generic). Lettuce mix : Sulu, Barbados, Antago, Blackhawk, Defender, Garrison and Annapolis leaf lettuces. (You're getting a mix of approximately half Mesculun and half lettuce mixes.)

The greens will be cut fresh in a cold (50's F) greenhouse, refrigerated immediately and delivered to you within 24 hours... It won't be traveling for two weeks to get to you, or harvested in hot weather."

We sell the best local and/or organic produce we can get - while these greens are not organic, they are far from conventional. They are more fresh (when were the California greens picked?) and have a higher degree of food safety because of the known origin... we think you will love it.

We need paper bags!

Hey there! If you have any extra paper grocery bags, please bring them in to us. It helps us keep costs down and of course keeps more trees in the earth recycling carbon dioxide into oxygen that we breathe. Thanks!!

New Local Gluten Free Frozen Bread!

We now carry a local frozen gluten free bread. Our Daily Foods is located in Wisconsin Rapids and owned by a brother and sister team, Paul Dorn and Mary Beth Richardson. The company was started as a result of Paul being diagnosed with Celiac disease and his frustration with finding a bread he could make a sandwich with. After experimenting with many recipes they came up with Paul's White Sandwich Bread. This bread has received overwhelming support from many Celiac groups around Wisconsin.

Paul's White Sandwich Bread
"Gluten free bread you can make a sandwich with. Our bread is packaged as frozen bread dough in a foil pan ready to bake." It comes in a full loaf size and a half loaf size. Soon to come is Pumpernickel Bread and Rye-not Brown Bread (gluten and dairy free).

Delivery Service Coming to an End

After a near five year run, our delivery service is coming to an end. We at Just Local Food believe this to be a very positive move. It frees us up to perform even better service at our thriving corner store, at 1117 S Farwell St. This decision was delayed for many years and finally came to a head with the great success of our new location. Since the beginning we have been striving to become a full service grocery store and we inch closer every day.

We sincerely thank everyone that participated in our Delivery Service over the years. It helped us to grow into the store we are today.

Any questions can be directed to Jordan at jordan@justlocalfood.com or 552-3366.

New in Meat: Ham, Lamb, Andouille, Brisket, and Pork Roasts

For your Easter season feasting, we are offering a sign-up list for hams and legs-of-lamb. Please stop by soon and sign up to reserve your:

• Ham (signup by March 8) – Beeler bone-in hams, whole, half, or spiral-sliced.
• Leg of lamb (signup by April 3) – bone-in and boneless legs from Lambalot Acres.

Andouille – Crescent Meat, from Cadott, just brought us these deliciously big and spicy pork sausages. We’ve had many requests for Andouille, and this is as local as it gets. We hope you like it as much as we do!

We’ve also got beautiful pork loin roasts from Anderson Farms, along with their naturally cured brisket (corned beef), kielbasa, and hot dogs (the in-store samples were a big hit last week).

From Wheatfield Hill, we have a beef brisket and several nice roasts, any of which would be great for making your own corned beef (recipe in our store) or a delicious braised pot roast.

Seed Savers Exchange @ JLF

We've got seeds! below is a listing of what's on our shelves for this spring...

We're reconnecting with Cowsmo Compost and the Foodlums for their amazing (50 lbs. bags) of potting soil and composted cow manure. we'll also have worm tea from dragsmith farms and an assortment of recommendations from last year's home grown produce.

check back with us for a listing of and contacts for area community gardens!

Seed Savers Exchange @ JLF
3094 N Winn Rd - Decorah, IA 52101
Ph 563.382.5990 - Fax 563.382.6511
http://www.seedsavers.org/

Bean, Purple Pod Pole OG
Lettuce, SSE Lettuce Mixture
Pepper, Beaver Dam
Sunberry OG
Gourd Mixture
Lettuce, Forellenschuss
Gourd, Warted Mixture
Tomato, Wisconsin 55 OG
Tomato, Amish Paste
Cucumber, Bushy OG
Pea, Tom Thumb
Bean, Empress
Soybean, Shirofumi
Carrot, Dragon
Cucumber, Japanese Clmbng
Eggplant, Listada de Gandia
Melon, Charantais
Pepper, Fatali
Squash, Pattison Panache, Jaune Et Verte OG
Prickly Caterpillar
Tomato, Siberian OG
Herb, English/True Lavender
Sunflower, Mixture Spcs/Fms
Squash, Black Beauty Zucchini OG
Squash, Marina di Chioggia
Pepper, King of the North
Squash, Golden Zucchini
Arugula, Apollo
Corn, Mandan Bride OG
Eggplant, Lao Purple Stripe
Gourd, Chinese Mini OG
Bean, Calypso OG
Spinach, Monnopa OG
Tomato, Earliana OG
Onion, Long Red Florence
Sunflower, Mongolian Giant
Pepper, Bull Nose Bell
Soybean, Fiskeby OG
Tomato, Sheboygan OG
Bean, Pencil Pod Gldn Wax
Corn, Smoke Signals OG
Bean, Hidatsa Shield OG
Lettuce, Merveille Quartre
Squash, Amish Pie
Squash, Table Queen
Squash, Waltham Butternut OG
Herb, Genovese Basil OG
Herb, Mrs. Burn's Lemon
Herb, Lettuce Leaf Basil OG
Herb, Cilantro
Herb, Grandma Einck's Dill
Herb, Giant from Italy Parsley
Prairie, Purple Coneflower
Runner Bean, Painted Lady
Eggplant, Diamond
Beet, Chioggia
Beet, Cylindra
Broccoli, Calabrese
Broccoli, DeCicco
Broccoli, Romanesco
Cabbage, Copenhagen Mkt
Cabbage, Early Jersey Wkfld
Cabbage, Mammoth Red
Cabbage, Premium Late Flat
Carrot, Scarlet Nantes
Carrot, St. Valery
Cucumber, Early Fortune OG
Corn, Golden Bantam OG
Corn, Stowell's Evergreen OG
Lettuce, Rubin
Lettuce, Speckled OG
Onion, Australian Brown
Melon, Amish OG
Pea, Green Arrow
Squash, Golden Hubbard
Chard, Rhubarb OG
Radish, Early Scarlet Globe
Radish, French Breakfast
Tomato, Moonglow OG
Watermelon, Sweet Siberian
Chard, Five Color Silverbeet OG
Herb, Lemon Balm
Lima Bean, Henderson Bush
Lima Bean, Sieva
Beet, Bull's Blood
Cauliflower, Early Snowball
Cauliflower, Purple Cape
Cucumber, Double Yield OG
Eggplant, Pingtung Long
Huckleberry, Garden OG
Kale, Lacinato OG
Kale, Red Russian OG
Lettuce, Red Romaine OG
Lettuce, Slobolt OG
Lettuce, Yugoslavian Red
Spinach, America OG
Tomato, Beam's Yellow Pear
Tomato, Crnkovic Yugoslavian
Tomato, Stupice
Watermelon, Cream Saskatchewan
Herb, Bee Balm
Herb, Thyme
Herb, St. John's Wort
Corn, Tom Thumb Popcorn OG
Bean, Climbing French
Beet, Detroit Dark Red
Ground Cherry, Aunt Molly's OG
Brussel Sprout, Long Island
Corn, Mixed Colors Broom
Pea, Amish Snap
Prairie, Downy Sunflower
Melon, Oka
Pepper, Fish
Squash, Cornfield Pumpkin
Herb, Stevia

Soups, Sandwiches, and Salads...OH MY!

Just Local Food is proud to announce a new endeavor with Alchemy Family Farm!

Owner/Chef, Bradley 'Dean' Parent has done it again. Adding to his repertoire of ready to eat tapenades (aegean), spreads (hummus, mushroom herb, smoked salmon), and cold salads (apple-beet, curried yam & walnut); look forward to Soups, Sandwiches, and Green Salads.

The initial menu looks fantastic and will be delivered this afternoon. Lots of local and organic ingredients and compostable/biodegradable containers. The menu will rotate, so stop in often to see what's new.

Sandwiches
"Il Rustica"(dairy)-A vegetarian selection featuring roasted eggplant, roasted red bell pepper gorgonzola cheese, sliced red onion, pepperoncini, and kalamata olive. Served with a caramelized onion aioli on baguette bread.
$6.99

Greek Chicken (meat/dairy)-House roasted Coon Creek Family Farm organic chicken is served with feta cheese, sliced tomato, red onion, kalamata olive tapenade, and cucumber. Served on ciabatta bread.
$7.49

Salads
Tex-Mex Salad (meat/dairy) - A mix of black beans, tri color peppers, corn, pico de gallo salsa, ancho chili roasted Coon Creek Family Farm organic chicken, and pepper jack cheese. Served on a bed of organic romaine lettuce with a smoked tomato vinaigrette.
$7.49

Asian Noodle Salad (vegan)- A selection of organic lettuces topped with udon noodles, orange sections, toasted almonds, celery, snow peas, and scallions. Served with a hoisin vinaigrette.
$6.99

Soups
Tomato-Basil Bisque (dairy)
$7.99

North African Lentil (vegan)
$7.99

New Mexican style Posole (meat)
$8.99

produce

Here's the quick buzz in produce:

Citrus season is still on with great cara cara (red navel) oranges, plenty of firm kumquots, bright blood oranges and a variety of tangerines. Check out the honey tangerines later this weekend. Also from down south we've got some great looking zucchini and bright delicious rainbow chard. A variety of local Blackberry hills potatoes are still available in bulk. Still a good supply of pears and apples. Plenty of garnet and jewel yams, nice and firm. Special purchase of scallions and cilantro. Nice looking red and green bell peppers, prices way down from last month. A new box of lemons is in and our last two local Harmony Valley soup mixes of the season are on the shelf (other local roots still available - try!). All items listed are certified organic.

And Seed Savers Exchange just notified me that our heirloom seeds should be in next week. That's over 100 varieties of heirloom and organic seeds that will be in store soon! Local potting soil, compost and other early gardening supplies will come as well!

New Products

New in Packaged grocery:

Amish Naturals egg noodles
Erewhon Gluten Free Brown Rice Cereal
Organic India Tulsi Pomegranate tea
Garbanzo bean flour (dedicated to the "bean lady")
Strawberry Kefir, Vanilla Kefir, Plain Kefir
Environkidz crispy rice berry bars
Triple berry cereal bars
Cute little tins of baking powder
K-toos gluten free sandwich cookies (making a reappearance)
Lundberg organic cinnamon toast rice cakes (also making a reappearance)
Late July cheese sandwich crackers in a box  (we also carry the snack size bags)

In the freezer:
Palermo's "hearth italia" organic pizzas made in Wisconsin

From the Malt Beverage department:
Two varieties from Northwoods Brewpub from right here in Eau Claire:
-Lil' Bandit Brown Ale (silver metal winner at the Great American Beer Festival)
-Floppin' Crappie English Mild Ale

Will have more Furthermore beers in again by next week:
-Makeweight (only three cases!)
-Proper
-Three Feet Deep
(-possibly Fatty Boombalaty)

Three new ones from Viking:
-Mørketid (The Norwegian name for midwinter polar darkness), a German Schwartz beer
(black beer) - seasonal
-Invader Doppel Bock - seasonal
-Mjød, a Honey Brackett; the 1st brewed in the US. It is like a Mead - a honey wine
with malt.  available in 22oz. bottles

Try some Beer Thursday the 26th

Bummer!
Canceled due to inclement weather.
Will be rescheduled soon.

If you are under the age of 21, please disregard this message!

Jessie, the beer ambassador from Tyranena Brewery in Lake Mills Wisconsin will be at Just Local Food Thursday February 26 from 4 to 6pm. Have a taste, learn about the brewery and the varieties they offer, and take home some discounted bottles.

Bread and Coffee Reviews

Say,

Some amazing bread we sell was highlighted in last week's Leader Telegram.

Take a peek at Audrey Fessler's and Jeff Vahlbusch's Diners' Notebook!

And hey - the fresh coffee at Just Local was featured in the Spectator this week. Take a peek:

Coffee crawl - Showcase

nuts!

Can you believe how widespread this salmonella contaminated peanut butter recall is? CRAZY!

We've been staying on top of it at the store. As you can imagine, we've been mostly unaffected by the recall. Our peanut butters come from our fellow worker-owned cooperative, East Wind in Missouri (read their recall statement). Pictured right is an East Wind community member "tubbing" some nut butter. Their full line of peanut butter is totally safe and unaffected by the recall. We also have a few jars of Kettle peanut butter, also unaffected.

We have some peanut butter sandwich crackers from Late July, they source their peanuts here and have safe product.

In fact, the only product we've had to pull is the Nutz over Chooclate Luna Bar. Please contact Clif directly if you have one of these products dated 28OCT08 to 31DEC09 at home. See their recall webpage, read the company statement and letter from their owners.

Valentine’s Day is this weekend!

Valentine’s Day is coming up soon. Why go out when you can have a romantic dinner at home? We’ve got (almost) all the goods for a memorable evening. How about a couple of steaks, oven-roasted potatoes, and some beautiful broccoli or a micro-green salad with blue cheese, walnuts, and oranges? Add some tunes in the background, two candles and a nice bottle of red wine, and you’ve got a groovy evening started. Maybe a roast chicken or Cornish game hen, rice pilaf, squash and a white wine is more your style.

Or have some good friends over for a beer tasting, salad, tortellini with tomato sauce, and an assortment of Ben & Jerry’s, and just make fun of the whole V-day. We’ve got you covered…

supplier quotes about our store

With high fuel prices and an uncertain economy, there is no better time to support area businesses and local farmers. Just Local Food has always used this philosophy and it makes good sense. Today more than ever, consumers want to know and enjoy knowing where there food comes from and once again Just Local Food makes this possible. Their staff is very knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. Their presence in the community is greatly appreciated by the many people who visit the farmers market and their service to our local consumers is a valuable asset which will only continue to increase in value as time goes by. I appreciate the economic and environmental impact they are making in our area and want to Thank them for making a positive difference. Steve Pechacek Next Generation Organic Dairy

Just a few short years ago Aaron contacted Beaver Creek Ranch to enquire if we would sell him some meat products. He further stated his idea of direct delivery was relatively new but he was willing to work towards its success. He went on to say that a “store” would be a long term goal. Beaver Creek made its first delivery in one small box; now two or more moves later Just Local Food has not only proven its success but the working relationship that Beaver Creek has had with Just Local Food continues to grow as well. Congratulations to Just Local Food, success to the staff and the community! Doug & Kathy Anderson Beaver Creek Ranch

We think Just Local Food is awesome. Just Local Food has been a very supportive customer of our coffee. We really appreciate Just Local Foodsmission of selling both healthy and local foods in the Eau Claire area. The home delivery model of Just Local Food is very innovative and a great way to reach a larger customer base. We really value Just Local Food as a customer. We know they will do great in a larger storefront. Jody Slocum Farmer to Farmer

We at Coon Creek Family Farm consider it an honor and a priviledge to work with the fine folks at Just Local Food. Their committment to local food is a great asset to the entire Chippewa Valley. We greatly appreciate all they do! Vince and Julie Maro

When we started up 4 years ago, Just Local Food had been a great help in getting our name out there. Just Local Food is the smallest retail location we supply but they have outsold all of the other locations. Virgil Gingerbread Jersey Cheese

Just Local Food has polished up the old slogan “purveyor of fine foods” and it given new meaning. We are pleased to have played a small part. Helen Wheatfield Hill Organics

Just Local Food is a great place to stop at and shop. They have a big selection of fresh and natural food and products. It is a great outlet for us to sell our products at. The owner/employees are always very friendly and helpful when you are there. It's a great store and we are very pleased to be a part of it. Doug Sjostrom Honey Hill Apiary.

Sno Pac Foods has been doing business with Just Local Food for over 4 years distributing our organic frozen vegetables. They are a great account for us. They are friendly, easy to work with and they provide a great service to their customers by providing local and organic products to their customers at affordable prices. We wish them well. Peter Gengler, Sno Pac Foods, Inc. Caledonia, MN

“Just Local Food is the Juggernaut of beer sales” Chris Furthermore Beer

“Just Local Food is the highest seller of Viking Beer in my region” beer rep

saturday sample and farmer showcase

Coming up this Saturday January 24 we'll be serving up white bison chili starting around 11am. Please stop by to meet our bison supplier of many years, the Filla family of Golden Hills. Their animals live in the beautiful valleys south of Osseo. They are one of the only certified organic bison producers in our area. We carry a variety of meat cuts cuts including the ever popular ground bison.

kombucha

We've got the first two varieties of Kombucha in the store for you. We are still looking for alternate suppliers and finding ways to get quality kombucha at fair prices. In our refrigerated section we have GT's Original and Citrus varieties. These are added to other tea options in the cooler, including sweet leaf teas and guayaki yerba mate.

Kombucha: The kombucha culture, sometimes mistakenly referred to as a mushroom, is a symbiotic colony of yeast and bacteria (the friendly type). Kombucha Tea is made by combining the culture, with a mixture of black tea, and sugar. The ingredients are allowed to "ferment", usually from 7-10 days. The resulting beverage contains dozens of elements, many of which are known to promote healing for a variety of conditions. Traditionally, Kombucha use has spread (for over 2000 years) by the passing of Kombucha Cultures from family to family, and friend to friend.

Just Local Food has been working with a local entrepreneur looking to bottle locally made kombucha - stay tuned for that! Until then, please enjoy the commercial varieties we now have available if you're not making it yourself.

bulk coffee

Sales of our bulk coffee have been good. And that's good for you, because it means our bins have fresh beans in them. And fresh coffee tastes better.

Farmer to Farmer French roast continues to be our best seller, although medium is giving it a run for the money. These are both guatemalan beans brough tto us via Farmer to Farmer, a locally based non-profit organization that works directly with the communities around Lake Atitlan.
Bike Fuel and WHYS radio blend are our selections from Just Coffee. What is Bike Fuel? Our new improved blend combines the chocolaty smoothness of our light Bolivian coffee from AIPEP, with the smoky richness of our Super Dark from Chiapas, Mexico. An electrifying blend sure to get your motor running. This coffee is organic, shade grown, and always 100% fair trade.

And did we mention we'd be overjoyed to grind your coffee for you? Just ask and we'll fire up the antique grinder behind the counter a make a ruckus on your behalf. For your convenience we do have new and used coffee bags, and we welcome you to bring your own container for your bulk purchase.

We also have a wide variety of packaged whole bean fresh roasted coffee, now located an aisle away from the bulk.

produce

Now that football is pretty much over, it's OK for you packer fans to try out some viking purple potatoes. Organically grown in Wisconsin by Blackberry Hills. We also have their red skinned sangria and yellow nicolai potatoes. We also have plenty of Harmony Valley Soup Mix in 3# bags - inside each one: Carrots, parsnips, turnips, rutabaga, celeriac or sunchokes. Don't forget local mississippi greens grown by Gail up in Barron! (give a little shout to send some sunshine their way!) These are the healthiest most nutritious thing you can get - a mixture of over ten varieties of leafy greens and herbs. Fresh rosemary too.

Minneola tangelos. Giant pomelos. Yellow "cheddar" cauliflower. Fresh deep green leafy chard. Three kinds of organic apples. Sunburst and satsumas are almost out. Plenty more citrus yet to come this season!

A Seed rack for your gardens is on order and soon to come...

This week's featured supplier is Blackberry Hills . This family farm has been bringing late season potatoes and onions for us all to enjoy. Thanks, Hermann's, for the wonderful food!

Blackberry Hills Farm
Blackberry Community Farm is located in Otter Creek Township, Dunn County, Wisconsin. Our family farm is a 30-acre homestead surrounded by woods. It consists of: a mixed orchard; flower, herb and vegetable gardens; honeybee yard; berry patches; beautiful rolling hills; and woods with abundant wildlife. 2009 will be our 19th season doing organic farming and the 14th season of CSA farming.

yellow chips

We are now back in fruitful supply of Whole Grain Milling Co. organic yellow corn chips. We apologize for any symptoms of withdrawal you may have experienced during our outage of these delicious chips, our best selling grocery product. If you haven't tried these tortilla chips, please treat yourself to a bag next time you're in the store, or add a bag (or three) to your home delivery order. In addition to being outright delicious, they are also perfectly nutritious. WGM Yellow chips are made from specially chosen organic yellow corn grown carefully on the Hilgendorf's farm in Southern Minnesota. Made fresh on a regular basis and brought directly to us, we're proud to sell thousands of bags of these chips every year!

Other favorites in stock: Beaver Creek Ranch spinach cured bacon. Farmer to Farmer french roast. Cultural Revolution yogurts. Viking Brewery JuleOl. Watkins Oberli Grade A Maple Syrup quarts.

Now Taking Resumes!

Hola Amigas y Amigos!

I'm happy to announce that we’re looking for enthusiastic individuals with interest and experience in the following ways:

~in store and market customer service shifts
~various departmental and committee work
~business management and co-ownership
~weekend and evening help

Part-time positions may grow into a full-time opportunity. After a 90 day training period, workers may be invited to become worker/owners.

If interested, please submit a resume ASAP! (we'll be taking applications until February 1st)

Please include on your resume:
~Work Experience
~Interests in particular store departments
~Collective/Cooperative / Group involvement
~General availability including number of hours per week and times available (i.e. week days, weekends, day or evening)

Please email, drop off, or mail your resume to:

Just Local Food Cooperative
1117 South Farwell Street
Eau Claire, Wisconsin 54701
715.552.3366

happy new year!

Hey there.

The first few months in our new location have been pretty great. Of course, nothing like this ever happens without problems and we've had our share of those as well. While everything in the store isn't as we'd like it (will it ever?) we're very pleased with the increased traffic and sales. Our suppliers are getting used to increased orders (some of them have doubled the amount of product they are bringing us!) and workers are getting used to increased work. Through the stress of it all, we are looking forward to getting more settled in the new year. Thanks for sticking with us.

Beaver Creek Ranch

We've been working with Doug and Kathy Anderson from Beaver Creek Ranch since our days over on Gibson Street in 2006. Their ranch is outside of Grantsburg, WI, dangerously close to Minnesota. They farm a variety of animals along with truckloads of certified organic grains. Because they work directly with retail stores, they don't pay the extra cost of certifying each of their animals, saving a little bit of money and helping to keep the costs down. And because we work together in a trusting relationship, we're able to pass on their great products to you at fair prices.

And speaking of prices, we've dropped the price of the Turkey tenderloins this month down to $6.49 for a 1 pound package. The turkey tenderloin is the tender inner part of the turkey breast, delicious white meat. Also on sale are big pork tenderloins.

For your holiday feast we have a few whole frozen turkeys - you have just enough time to thaw and brine them!

Other products from BCR we're proud to carry:

• chorizo sausage - using a recipe from the wife of the warden at San Quentin (where Doug was a prison guard in a previous life!)
• apple brats - pork and sometimes turkey
  
• hot dogs (we've been selling these like crazy, some folks have been bold enough to call them "the best hot dog I've ever had" and only $4.79 a package, too!
  
• chicken breast - one of our top sellers
• ground chicken and ground turkey - versatile basic ingredient for a variety of meals
  
• breakfast sausage links - mmmmmmm
• bacon specially cured in a spinach brine - absolutely delicious and free from chemical additives
• italian sausage great for pasta, pizza and grillin'

Thanks so much, Doug and Kathy, for providing our store and community with such great food with which to nourish our bodies and souls!

Holiday Hours

Hello friends,

this year's holiday hours are as follows:

Winter Solstice (Sunday, December 21st) OPEN NORMAL HOURS 8am-9pm!

Christmas Eve (Wednesday, December 24th) 8-2pm

Christmas Day (Thursday, December 25th) CLOSED

New Years Day (Thursday, January 1st) CLOSED

Beeler's Ham, Nueske's Bacon, and Anderson Farm's Corned Beef

Beeler's Pure Pork

According to Beeler's website, "the Beeler pork tradition started in 1846 when our great-great Grandpa Fred immigrated from Germany to the gently rolling hills of Madison County, Iowa."

"As with all Beeler pork, HELUKA® pork is natural, meaning Beeler pigs are raised without any antibiotics or growth promotants whatsoever, and are never fed animal by-products. Their diets consist of all vegetarian ingredients: corn, soybean meal, vitamins, and minerals."

At Just Local Food, we've had many requests for natural hams, and they are very hard to find locally. A customer recommended Beeler's ham, so we decided to give it a try. We'll have half hams available for Christmas, and several of the quarter hams and steaks. We hope you enjoy this new product for us, which you will find in our refrigerated section.


Nueske's Applewood Smoked Bacon
Wittenberg, WI

Anyone who's tasted or even smelled this bacon knows how good it is (our customers in the store last Saturday know what I mean). Nueske's is especially lean, since most of the fat is rendered during its 24 hours in the smokehouse over an open fire of applewood logs. This bacon is famous nationally, and has been written up in The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, and Saveur Magazine. I do need to mention that sodium nitrite is used in the brining process; this is the only meat product we carry that contains it.


Corned Beef on New Year's Day

We have Anderson Farm's natural corned beef brisket, which is uncured and smoked. It can be difficult to find a local, natural corned beef, but this is it. Whenever we've had Lynn Anderson in the store for tastings, the corned beef is a big hit. So, if you're in the mood for a delicious corned beef and cabbage dinner, come and get it.

we need paper bags

Hey there ! If you have any extra paper grocery bags, please bring them in to us. It helps us keep costs down and of course keeps more trees in the earth recycling carbon dioxide into oxygen that we breathe. Thanks!!

New in Frozen

During our move the frozen department went through quite an expansion. We still carry the products we used to like Sno Pac organic frozen vegetables (with new midwest soup mix!), Cascadian Farm juice concentrate, One Sun pizzas, Gourmet Parlor Organic frozen pizzas, Marie's bread and some Ian's organic products like chicken nuggets, french toast sticks and fish sticks.

New to our department I'd like to introduce Happle Gourmet Food Kringles out of Iowa. Here is what they have to say about their Kringles:"Old world skill and care has made Kringle an international favorite. Kringle is a traditional Danish pastry shaped into a ring and filled with a fruit or nut filling. Kringle do not contain any dairy ingredients and are Vegan. They make a delightful breakfast, snack or dessert. They are available in almond and apple."

You will also see the return of Food For Life gluten free breads. We have brown rice and millet bread. We are still carrying the sprouted english muffins as well.

We have added some Amy's quick meals. We have the veggie pot pie, several burritos, indian palak paneer meal and the cheese enchilada meal. Another new and exciting item is Turri's frozen pasta. We are carrying three cheese tortellini, ravioli and gnocchi. This is a conventional product from Michigan. Here is an excerpt from their website: "Anthony and Angeline Turri founded Turri's Italian Foods in 1949 in Detroit. They started by making pasta products for local restaurants and grocery stores. All of their products were based on old family recipes and soon the name Turri became synonymous with quality. As the customer base grew, so did the number of Turri family members who were pressed into service. Instead of playing sports after school, the Turri children Tony, Bernie, Tom, and Mary were making, packing and delivering ravioli. This family tradition has continued through the years so that today the fourth generation of Turri's is making pasta."

Finally we have added a line of conventional pizzas from Milwaukee at great prices. Palermo's Pizza. We carry cheese, supreme, combo and roasted pepper and goat cheese. Here is the Palermo's philosophy: "We will settle for nothing less than the very best. This unyielding standard of quality and excellence are just a few of the values that have been passed down to the current generation by our founder, Gaspare "Papa Palermo" Fallucca. We also strive to be a good corporate citizen as well as an environmentally sensitive company. Over the years, Palermo's has donated both money and pizzas to numerous charitable organizations to aid them in caring for those that they serve, as well a seeking opportunities to reduce our impact on the environment by recycling and conserving energy wherever possible."

Please Ponder the Persimmon

We have organic persimmons in our produce department, and they are a real treat. I wasn’t very familiar with them, but bought one out of curiosity. After some reading, I learned that they are at there best when mushy, and are NOT ready to eat until that point. I’m on my 4th one this week, and the photo shows how beautiful it is when sliced. All you need to do is cut one open, take a spoon and scoop out the yummy inside for your own personal treat, and get happy about how delicious and different and beautiful it is. You can cook with them too – I posted a recipe for Apple Spice Bread (substitute persimmon) in the store, and here are a few links for you. So, if you’re new to the persimmon, or haven’t had a good one in a while, I encourage you to come in and try them.

You may also find that “persimmon” is a fun word to use, such as “Percy, please pass the persimmon, pronto.”

Portuguese Kale and Chorizo Soup

This is hearty and warming soup for lunch or dinner, and makes enough for several meals or lots of leftovers. I was inspired by the “dino” kale and giant leeks in our produce cooler, and thought chorizo would be perfect for the wintery weather. All ingredients are from the store. This recipe was adapted from one by Emeril Lagasse in the book Becoming a Chef.

1 large leek
2 cloves garlic
5 stalks celery
2 zucchini
3 bunches kale
5 large red potatoes
1 cup green split peas (optional)
1 pound chorizo
2 quarts tomatoes (or 28-oz. can)
2 quarts chicken, turkey, or veggie stock or water
Salt
3 bay leaf
¼ t. thyme
Red pepper flakes
Black pepper
Pecorino Romano cheese

Carefully rinse leek, chop, sauté in olive oil in a large stockpot. Add chopped celery, a good pinch of kosher or sea salt, then the chopped garlic, and continue cooking carefully. Brown the chorizo in a separate pan, crumbling to desired size, and add cooked meat to stockpot (leaving the oil behind). Add the tomatoes with their juice and stir, and add the stock or water. Add another pinch of salt if you think it needs it. Add the bay leaf, thyme, and a good sprinkle of red pepper flakes. [Add the green peas, if using, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook about an hour or two until those darn peas are soft enough. They are a nice addition, but seem to take forever to cook!]

Thoroughly rinse the kale, then stem and chop it and add to the pot. Cube the potatoes and add, and check the liquid level; add more liquid if necessary. Bring the pot back to a boil, then reducing to a simmer. Cover and cook at least until the potatoes and kale are tender, adding the chopped zucchini to the pot along the way (zucchini doesn’t take long to cook).

This is the kind of soup that tastes good the first day, but gets much better the next day, when the flavors have more time to blend. Taste and adjust salt, and serve with a fresh grind of black pepper and maybe a good shaving of Romano cheese.

The ULTIMATE Turkey Sandwich?

A memorable sandwich starts with really good bread, and in my opinion, there is nothing better than a loaf from Marie’s Original Bakery (from Marie's, or from our freezer case). Next comes the main ingredient for which the sandwich is named, in this case, turkey, leftover from your Thanksgiving feast. Or, if you finished off your leftovers, you could always cook up some turkey tenderloin, always available in our meat department. A little cheese might be called for, such as a Crystal Ball Farm cheddar (smooth and on the mild side), Vern’s aged cheddar (sharp!), or whatever your favorite is. I like Dijon mustard, just enough for some flavor without overpowering everything. Now, to make it really tasty, put it on a griddle or pan with a little olive oil or butter to get the bread nice and crispy. After the cheese is melted and the bread is golden brown, the sandwich is ready to go. Unless, you choose to indulge yourself with some avocado slices, Becky’s Olive Salsa (this is unbelievably good on a sandwich!), or perhaps go Reuben-esque with some sauerkraut/Powerkraut…
Here’s to making a sandwich you can get excited about!