Seasonal Recipes for Labor Day Entertaining

AAA predicts that 33 million people will travel this Labor Day weekend, many to visit friends and family. So, it looks like a lot of us will be having guests! Here are some easy to prepare seasonal recipes that will not only impress your guests, but allow you to utilize any late summer garden veggies, fresh picked fruit and local produce.

Appetizers

Baked Zucchini Fries
Cucumber Dill Sandwiches
Seasonal Fruit Salad with Fresh Mint and Local Honey

Entrees and Side Dishes

Easy Indian Style Okra
Mediterranean Wraps
Pesto-Stuffed Tomatoes
Grilled Corn on the Cob with Lemon-Basil Butter
Grilled Peach and Shrimp Kabobs

Desserts

Quick and Easy Apple Tarts
Honey-Glazed Grilled Plums

Cocktails

Blackberry Mojito
Bloody Maria
Country Thyme

Healthy Home Market wishes you all a safe and enjoyable Labor Day Weekend! We will be open regular hours on Monday!

Support Local. We Do: KW Collards

As many of you know, we are big fans of KW Collards, how can we not be? They're delicious! We are also very fond of Patricia and Kizito Wademi, the husband and wife team behind these "Slammin' Good Greens," which are made here in Charlotte, NC! In 2006, Kizito found himself a newly divorced bachelor, once again cooking for himself every night. He created the KW Collards recipe not with the intention of selling them, just with the intention of eating them the way he liked them. Fast forward several years to Patricia's first taste and an idea begins to form when she declares "These are better than my mother's!" After rave reviews by everyone at their rehearsal dinner, Patricia and Kizito hatched a plan on their honeymoon to bring his greens to market! The surprising part for many when first tasting KW Collards is that they are vegan, but still packed full of flavor. For people who have grown up in the South, collards are typically cooked with pork. In Kenya, where Kizito is from, they are typically vegetarian and often served as a main dish over rice with cornbread and not just relegated to side dish status. KW Collards are one hundred percent free of any animal fat, byproducts, trans-fat, artificial ingredients and artificial preservatives! You can catch Kizito or Patricia sampling out these delicious greens at most all of our store events and other random afternoons. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter, we will let you know when they're here! And of course, we always have them available for purchase at all locations in pint and quart sized jars. But, don't let the size of the jar fool you! You will be surprised at the amount of collards packed into each one! check out the video below to see what other HHM customers and employees have to say about them!

Meatless Monday: Sundried Tomato Pesto Veggie Calzones

Ingredients

For Dough

1 cup 110 degree water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 package (1/4 oz.) yeast

Filling
Basil pesto
Sun dried tomato pesto
Black olives
Sliced shallot
Artichoke hearts
Fresh and sliced mozzarella cheese

Directions

For Dough
1. Combine and wait 10 minutes until foamy
2. Add to 2 - 1/2 cups flour, mix and knead for 5 minutes
3. Put in coated bowl, cover 1 hour
4. Knead 5 more minutes and cut in half

For Calzone
1. Roll out dough 14 - 16" wide.2. Add filling and fold, seal edges.
3. Crimp with fork.
4. Brush with egg before baking.
5. Cook at 500 degrees for 15 minutes.

Source: divinechef on youtube.com

Support Local. We Do: BROO Craft Beer Body & Hair Care



Brad Pearsall, Proprietor of BROO

Welcome to the first of our "Support Local. We Do." blog series! In the coming weeks, we will be introducing you to the local companies, practitioners and services that we work with. This week it is BROO Craft Beer Body and Hair Care out of Asheville, NC! And to be clear, at HHM, we define local as "within a 100 mile radius."
BROO is the brainchild of Brad and Sara Pearsall. When Sarah began switching the family over to a cleaner, more natural diet, household products were not far behind. But the family felt that the natural hair products that they were using were lack-luster. Consulting their mothers, they learned that using beer in one's hair was a very popular practice back in the 50's. Sarah began experimenting with local Asheville microbrews and was impressed with how "shiny, silky and flouncy" it made her hair. But the beer was cold and expensive. Brad and Sarah began to work on creating a beer-based, salon-grade, all natural shampoo. After a disastrous go at brewing their own beer, they decided to use Asheville's Highland Brewery St. Terese's Pale Ale. And after another fail at making their own shampoo, they decided to hire an expert! Two years and 50 rejected formulas later, they had their final product!
Today, BROO offers Craft Beer Shampoo and Conditioner, Citrus Pale Ale Shampoo and Conditioner, Citrus Pale Ale Body Wash and Oatmeal Porter Body Wash. HHM carries these products in all of our locations, with the exception of Hickory. We have had great feedback from customers and employees alike! But you don't have to just take our word for it! Here is a review posted by fellow local blogger Aleigh of Indigo+Canary! Just keep the local theme in mind when shopping! ;) For more information on BROO, check out their website!

Meatless Monday: Cajun Chili Cups

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons thyme
½ teaspoon cayenne hot sauce
1 bay leaf
2 15 ounce cans diced tomatoes
1 pound Andouille style tofu sausage, sliced
10 ounce box frozen cut okra, defrosted
2 15 ounce cans kidney or adzuki beans, drained
Salt, to taste
18 eggroll wrappers, cut down to 5 square inches
Greek yogurt, for garnish

Directions

1. Place the oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onions, celery and green pepper to the stockpot and sauté for 5-7 minutes, or until the veggies have softened considerably and are on the edge of browning. Add garlic and cook 2-3 minutes more.
2. Toss in the diced tomatoes and season with the chili powder, cumin, thyme, hot sauce and the bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a boil and add the sausage, red beans and okra.
3. Adjust seasoning to taste and reduce heat to low. Simmer for at least 45 minutes, preferably longer. The longer the chili simmers the better the flavors will meld.
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a muffin tin with a light coating of nonstick cooking spray or oil. Trim the eggroll wrappers so that they will fit inside the muffin tines. Spray or brush the eggroll wrappers with another light coating of olive or canola oil.
5. Place the eggroll wrappers in the muffin tins, pleating the wrappers up the sides of the greased tins so it forms a bowl. Place any extra wonton piece on a baking sheet to make dipping crisps with the leftover strips.
6. Bake the wonton wrapper cups and crisps for 8-10 minutes, or until the cups are crisp and browned. Serve the chili into the wrapper cups. Garnish with dollops of Greek yogurt and extra hot sauce, if desired. Enjoy, using the extra crisps for dipping.

Source: meatlessmonday.org

Support Local. We Do.

As many of you know, we have recently rolled out our "Support Local" campaign! As a part of this campaign, we have introduced new, locally made t-shirts, buttons and canvas bags, a new logo designed by local artist and employee Ngoc Le, new commercials and new print ads featuring employees and the owners! At HHM we have been locally owned and operated since 1979. We began as a bulk supply store called the Home Economist and over the years have evolved and expanded with our customer base. Changing our name to Healthy Home Market was a decision we made because we felt it to be more representative of our present incarnation, but we are still the same family owned business and we are proud to now offer five locations in the Charlotte area to serve you! At HHM we proudly support other local business, farmers and practitioners as much as possible, as well as local schools, charities and initiatives, including Parker Autism Foundation, A Child's Place, Promising Pages, Speak Up, U.C.A.R.E., Commonwealth Animal Hospital, Sow Much Good, Refuge House of God, R.O.C.K. Raising Our Celiac Kids, Ms. Cynthia's Summer Camp, Holistic Nail Care Services, Chantilly Montessori, Charlotte Dietetic Association and Flashes of Hope, Charlotte Chapter, among others. In the coming weeks, we will begin introducing you to the many locally owned businesses, farmers and practitioners that we partner with and their products/services. We hope that you will embrace the "Support Local" spirit as much as we do! Here are some quick facts and benefits of buying local:

- A 10% shift in market share from chains to locals could result in: Nearly $140 million in new economic activity, over 1600 new jobs, and providing over $50 million in new wages.
- For every $100 spent at a locally owned business, $73 remains in the local economy, and $27 leaves. - For every $100 spent at a non-locally owned business, $43 remains in the local economy, and $57 leaves.
- When you shop locally owned businesses, your money is recirculated over and over and creates up to 75% more tax revenue to your community and state.
- For every two jobs national retailers bring to a community, three jobs are lost as a result of local businesses closing down.
- Locally owned businesses build strong neighborhoods by sustaining communities, linking neighbors, and by contributing more to local causes.
- A multitude of small businesses, each selecting products based, not on a national sales plan, but on their own interests and the needs of their local customers, guarantees a much broader range of product choices.
- By choosing to support locally owned businesses, you help maintain a community's diversity and distinctive flavor.

Check out our newest "Support Local" commercial!

Meatless Monday: Vegan Summer Squash Casserole

Ingredients

3-4 Medium yellow squashes (sliced)

1 onion (sliced)
8 oz. of mushrooms
2-3 tbsps. of Earth Balance
1/4 cup of cheddar-style vegan cheese
1 tsp. of Italian seasoning
Breadcrumbs to thicken

Directions

1. Preheat the oven at 350°
2. Saute the onions for a few minutes, add mushrooms and saute a little longer. Add the squash and saute all until the squash is soft.
3. Remove from heat and add Earth Balance, vegan cheese, Italian seasoning and breadcrumbs.
4. Top with more vegan cheese or cracker crumbs if desired.
5. Transfer to a baking dish, unless using cast iron and bake for 20 minutes in the oven.

Source: veg4health.blogspot.com

Summertime and the Grilling is Easy!

HHM South End is grilling out this Saturday! Join us for grilled natural meats or vegetarian options, plus free beer tasting! 1pm-4pm!

Meatless Monday: Snap Pea Salad

This salad is chock full of in-season produce!

Ingredients

5 ounces jicama
5 ounces summer squash
3 radishes
1/2 lime
Salt, to taste
6 baby carrots, peeled and cut into slices
2 peaches, cut into small cubes
1 pound snap peas
1-2 teaspoons dill
1 tablespoon cilantro
Sesame seeds, to taste

Directions

To make the salad:
1. Using a mandolin or vegetable peeler, slice the jicama and squash into very thin ribbons. Stack the ribbons of each vegetable on top of one another and cut with a knife to create matchsticks. Cut the radish into matchsticks using a knife.
2. Place the jicama, squash and radish matchsticks together in a large sized bowl. Squirt with the half lime and season with salt to taste. Add the sliced baby carrots, peaches, snap peas, dill and cilantro. Toss to ensure all ingredients are evenly distributed.

To make the lime ginger dressing:
1. Whisk the olive oil, vinegar, lime juice, ginger and hot sauce together in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

To complete the Snap Pea Salad:
1. Toss the salad with half the lime ginger dressing and toss to ensure the salad is evenly coated. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Divide into 4 portions, add more dressing if desired, sprinkle with sesame seeds and enjoy!

Source: meatlessmonday.com