Kids' Perspectives on Being Green

"We should recycle because if it gets too trashy, the world might die." - Sonia, age 6

"It is important to be green because if we don't the animals like the polar bear will become extinct because their homes are melting." - Olivia, age 7

" Being green means to care for your community and not litter, use less energy, and stop cutting down trees!!!" - Jeremy, age 8

"If you chop down trees we won't have air to breathe." - Dylan, age 6

"Throwing trash away - it kills the fish." - Nick, age 5

" If people don't be green, Earth's atmosphere will evaporate." - Ari, age 7

"It's important to be green because it makes the earth healthy and it's better for people too." - Morgan, age 8

"Being green means to recycle and don't use your car too much." - Hannah, age 7

"Being green means to not use your car when you need to go somewhere close to you and also shut off lights when you are done with them." - Taylor, age 7

"When you're being green, if you're close to a place, you can ride your bike instead of a car." - Lindsey, age 8

"It is important to be green because then we can stop global warming." - Paul, age 7

"It is important to be green so the earth can go on." - Jack, age 8

"Being green means you do stuff to help the environment. For example, recycle, don't waste paper, turn off lights." - Anjali, age 8

Help Us Collect Books for Children in Need!

Healthy Home Market is proud to announce our participation in the "Books and Pages: Give Kids a Future" book drive. Promising Pages and Classroom Central have set a goal of collecting 200,000 books in the next few weeks and you can help! We have a collection bin at our South End location and will be accepting gently used or new books through May 22. There are tens of thousands of kids in our community growing up with few, if any, books at home. Studies performed by the United States Department of Education show that if a child enters school with out being exposed to books, he or she will be behind in cognitive abilities and self-esteem, and three to fours times more likely to drop out of high school! So, come on community, please help us to collect as many children's books as possible so that we can give these kids a fighting chance!

Meatless Monday: Portabello Mushroom Stroganoff

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3/4 pound portobello mushrooms, sliced
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
3/4 to 1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp. of vegetarian worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. soy sauce
1/2 cup red or white wine
8 ounces dried egg noodles

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add egg noodles, and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat, drain, and set aside.
2. At the same time, melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring until softened. Turn the heat up to medium-high, and add sliced mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms are limp and browned. Remove to a bowl, and set aside.
3. In the same skillet, stir in vegetable broth, worcestershire, soy sauce and wine, being sure to stir in any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, and cook until the mixture has reduced by 1/3. Reduce heat to low, and return the mushrooms, onion and garlic to the skillet.
4. Remove the pan from the heat, stir together the sour cream and flour; then blend into the mushrooms. Return the skillet to the burner, and continue cooking over low heat, just until the sauce thickens. Stir in the parsley, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve over cooked egg noodles.

DIY: Naturally Dyed Easter Eggs

Dying Easter eggs is a beloved tradition in many families, but it can also be a toxic tradition. Artificial colors have been linked to allergic reactions, tumors, cancer and ADHD among other things. Luckily, nature has given us many beautiful colors that are perfectly safe to smell, touch and eat! And obviously a better choice for our environment. Here is a good method to follow for making colorful, natural eggs, followed by a handy dye chart from about.com.

1.Place the eggs in a single layer in a pan. Add water until the eggs are covered.
2.Add approximately one teaspoon of vinegar.
3.Add the natural dye. Use more dye material for more eggs or for a more intense color.
4.Bring water to a boil.
5.Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
6.If you are pleased with the color, remove the eggs from the liquid.
7.If you want more intensely colored eggs, temporarily remove the eggs from the liquid. Strain the dye through a coffee filter (unless you want speckled eggs). Cover the eggs with the filtered dye and let them remain in the refrigerator overnight.
8.Naturally-colored eggs will not be glossy, but if you want a shiny appearance you can rub a bit of cooking oil onto the eggs once they are dry.

Color	Ingredients
Lavender	Small Quantity of Purple Grape Juice Violet Blossoms plus 2 tsp Lemon Juice Red Zinger Tea
Violet Blue	Violet Blossoms Small Quantity of Red Onions Skins (boiled) Hibiscus Tea Red Wine
Blue	Canned Blueberries Red Cabbage Leaves (boiled) Purple Grape Juice
Green	Spinach Leaves (boiled) Liquid Chlorophyll
Greenish Yellow	Yellow Delicious Apple Peels (boiled)
Yellow	Orange or Lemon Peels (boiled) Carrot Tops (boiled) Celery Seed (boiled) Ground Cumin (boiled) Ground Turmeric (boiled) Chamomile Tea Green Tea
Golden Brown	Dill Seeds
Brown	Strong Coffee Instant Coffee Black Walnut Shells (boiled) Black Tea
Orange	Yellow Onion Skins (boiled) Cooked Carrots Chili Powder Paprika
Pink	Beets Cranberries or Juice Raspberries Red Grape Juice Juice from Pickled Beets
Red	Lots of Red Onions Skins (boiled) Canned Cherries with Juice Pomegranate Juice Raspberries

Earth Day, All Day! April 22, South End

Although we believe that Earth Day should be everyday, we always try to do something special here at HHM to celebrate! The first Earth Day in 1969 was a large success with 20 million people participating across the United States. Today it is celebrated by over a billion people around the world with hundreds of thousands of schools, businesses and environmental groups involved. This year, South End will host a casual Earth Day celebration throughout the day on April 22 with product, food and vitamin samples throughout the store, plus KW Collards will be in the house! We will have demonstrations between 12 pm and 6 pm of Applied Kinesiology for Healing with John Winstead, Acudetox with Marini, The Avalon Effect with Carol Calvert, Tai Chi with Maeya Carr and Kung Fit with Sherman Tse. Charlotte Energy Solutions will be on hand with all kinds of energy saving products including Segways.  Penelope from SkyeTurtle Designs jewelry will have a table set up with 10% off all proceeds being donated to environmental causes and Green Market Girl will be on hand with her sustainable, handmade wood Eco Cuffs. Plus, Barbara's Canine Catering will be giving away natural treats for our animal friends, NuttyBrown will have cloth diapers and there will be a special performance by Hipps BellyDance! And to top it all off, we will host an ongoing Organic Gardening Class in our Community Room. This promises to be a fun and educational event for the whole family! We look forward to celebrating with all of our beloved customers and our community!

Meatless Monday: Totally Awesome Tacos

Ingredients

1/2 cup onion, chopped
Olive oil, as needed
1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15 ounce) can light kidney beans
3/4 cup water
1 (1 1/4 ounce) packet vegan taco seasoning
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
10 taco shells

Directions

1. Saute onion in olive oil until brown. Add green bell pepper, garlic, and salt. Saute 3-5 minutes more.
2. Add in beans, water and taco seasoning.
3. Let simmer until reduced, stirring occasionally. While stirring, smash up the beans as much as you like (you can use a potato masher to get them fairly smooth).
4. Stir in nutritional yeast. Place into taco shells.
Favorite toppings: avocado, tomato, lettuce, and vegan sour cream. Also, makes an awesome chip dip or layered bean dip. Enjoy!
Serves: 2-4, Preparation time: 15 minutes

Source: vegweb.com

What's in Season in the Carolinas Right Now?

These days, consumers can find any fruit or vegetable that they desire year round at the local grocery store, however, eating items in season is much better for our bodies and our environment. By buying in season produce, we can buy locally which puts revenue back in our local economy, supports local farmers and keeps produce from racking up a huge carbon footprint. Nutritionally, in season/local produce is miles and days, or even weeks, fresher, allowing it to retain much more of it's nutritional value. And to top it off, seasonal items are more affordable and just plain taste better! One of the benefits of shopping at a smaller local store, like Healthy Home Market, is that our local food doesn't first have to go to a warehouse where it sits and waits to be shipped off to numerous locations. We have cultivated great relationships with our farmers and have our own truck to pick up orders. Often, the fruits or veggies that we offer were picked at 6 am and are available in the store at 8 am. Not many chains can say that! In the coming months, look for an abundance of local, seasonal choices in our produce departments!

So, some of you may just be wondering, "What exactly is in season in our area right now?" Well, let's take a look!

Cilantro - year round		Swiss Chard - March-December
Beets - year round		Collard Greens - March-December
Leeks - year round		Kale - March-December
Lettuce - year round		Broccoli - April-May
Spinach - year round		Garlic Scapes - April-May
Onions - year round		Strawberries - April-June
Sweet Potatoes - year round		Blueberries - May-July
Parsley - year round		Zucchini - May-September
Oregano - year round		Summer Squash - May-November
Thyme - year round		Basil - May-November
Mint - year round		Cantaloupe - June-July
Sage - year round		Okra - June-July
Nettles - March-April		Watermelon - June-August
New Potatoes - March-April		Cucumbers - June-August
Cherries - March-June		Eggplant - June-August
Asparagus - March-June		Peaches - June-September
Scallions - March-November		Nectarines - June-September
Radishes - March-November		Green Beans - June-September

Meatless Monday: Open Face Caprese Sandwich

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon minced garlic
8 slices (about 1/2 in. thick) crusty Italian bread
3 medium ripe tomatoes, sliced
1 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced thinly
16 medium basil leaves
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper


Directions

1. Prepare a grill for medium heat (350° to 450°). Combine 1 tbsp. oil and the garlic and brush onto 1 side of bread.
2. Lay bread oiled side down on grill and cook until slightly toasted, about 2 minutes. Turn bread over, lay tomato slices on bread to fit, overlapping if needed, then lay cheese slices over tomatoes. Cover grill and cook until cheese starts to melt, about 4 minutes.
3. Transfer sandwiches to a platter. Put 2 basil leaves over each sandwich and drizzle with remaining 1 tbsp. oil and the vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Grand Opening - New Hickory Location, Saturday!

Pictured on the right side of the building, still in the works,
our new location has a great old timey general store feel! 

As previously announced, our Hickory location has moved from Union Square Emporium in downtown Hickory to it's own storefront just around the corner at 221 First Ave. NW, across from the historic Carolina Theater. Our employees worked very hard getting the store up and running and we would like to invite you all to join us at the Grand Opening celebration this Saturday, April 9 from 1 pm until 5 pm! We will have free food and beverage samples, gift basket giveaways, representatives on hand from Nordic Naturals, Nature's Plus, Amazing Grass and more demonstrating products and handing out samples, plus our friend Jeff Brown will be there setting the mood. We are very proud of our new location and hope you will enjoy it as much as we do! If you don't already, please "Like" Healthy Home Market Express - Hickory to stay up to date on special events, news and sales for this store. For more information about this new location, please visit our website. See you all Saturday!

Meatless Monday: Roasted Beet and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese

Ingredients

•3 large golden beets (about 1 1/2 pounds)
•3 tbsp olive oil
•4 oz baby arugula leaves, washed (about 2 large handfuls)
•1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans
•1/4 cup rice vinegar
•2 tbsp sherry vinegar
•2 oz goat cheese
•salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Wash the beets and coat with 1 tbsp of the oil. Wrap in several layers of foil and bake for 1 hour or until tender. Let cool to room temp or refrigerate. This may be done in advance.
3. With a knife, scrap off the beet skin, and cut in 1-inch cubes. Add to a mixing bowl, and add the rest of the ingredients, except the goat cheese. Toss well to combine, and divide on to 4 plates. Crumble over the cheese, and serve.