Availability and limits may vary by region, so you can contact your store for details. While supplies last. Most of our stores do not provide rain checks for sales like this.

All jokes aside, nothing says kitchen success than the simple joy of pulling a flavorful, juicy roasted chicken out of the oven. When it’s an organic chicken you’re cooking, there’s really something to celebrate!

In order to be certified organic, chicken farms must follow a strict set of guidelines and be inspected annually by a third-party certification body to ensure those standards are met. These standards include:

• The birds must be raised organically no later than two days after they hatch.
• They must be fed certified organic feed for their entire lives. Organic feed cannot contain animal by-products, antibiotics or genetically engineered grains and cannot be grown using persistent pesticides or chemical fertilizers.
• It is prohibited to give drugs, antibiotics and hormones to organic birds (please note: federal regulations prohibit the use of hormones in raising poultry).
• All birds must have outdoor access.

Plus, all of the chickens sold at Whole Foods Market are rated using the Global Animal Partnership’s 5-Step™ Animal Welfare Rating program!

Check out these mouth-watering recipes featuring chicken:

Remember, our sale is one day only, so don’t forget to stop by our continental US stores this Friday, February 17^th to pick up some organic whole chickens for $1.99 per pound!

Sweet potatoes are a sweet, starchy root vegetable we call a tuber. Although sharing the name, sweet potatoes are only distant cousins to the actual potato. Around the world, sweet potatoes are baked, sautéed, made into soups and desserts, fried, steamed, boiled and fermented.

Growing up, we loved sweet “patata” (pronounced quickly as pa-tate-a) covered in marshmallows and brown sugar for Thanksgiving and baked up into one of my grandmother’s sweet-“patata” pie recipes, of which she had more than a few. Here are a few updated ways to enjoy sweet potatoes:

• Bake and eat: Wash and pierce sweet potatoes with the tines of a fork. Place on a parchment-lined cookie sheet (for easy clean up) and bake at 375°F until fork tender, about an hour or so. The longer they bake the sweeter they become.
• Here’s a delicious recipe for Herb-Roasted Sweet Potato Skins and here is a recipe for Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Macadamia Nuts that I created in my kitchen in honor of my two favorite states: Louisiana and Hawaii.
• If you love pie, you’ll love this tropical Coconut-Gingersnap Sweet Potato Pie.
• We love colorful, tasty dishes. Sweet Potatoes with Collards and Aduki Beans is a healthy and good-looking recipe.
• Sweet potatoes can be used in many recipes that call for plain potatoes such as potato salad, Sweet Potato Pancakes, and Baked Sweet Potato Fries.
• Enjoy a side dish of roasted or steamed sweet potatoes with salmon, roast chicken or turkey, pork chops, or baked or grilled tempeh.
• Roast apples or pears with sweet potatoes for a hearty winter dish. Roasted Spiced Sweet Potatoes and Pears adds natural, warm, seasonal “aroma” to your home while baking!
• Mash sweet potatoes and add to cookies, muffins and quick breads. Use interchangeably in recipes calling for butternut squash or pumpkin. Try equal amounts of sweet potato in place of pumpkin in these Cornmeal Muffins and these Millet Muffins.
• Make traditional ethnic dishes with sweet potatoes. Here is a recipe for Turkey and Sweet Potato Curry.
• Consider adding sweet potatoes to soups or a favorite vegetable or meat stew. Here’s an idea for Split Pea-Sweet Potato Soup.

If you are wondering about sweet potato vs. yam, here’s the deal: The two are often confused but, in reality, they are hardly related. Yams are larger than sweet potatoes and are grown in Africa and Asia. Did you know a yam can grow up to 100 pounds? Probably not, because they are rarely seen in the US. Because sweet potatoes are often referred to as yams, it’s common and acceptable to use either name.

When shopping, always choose firm sweet potatoes with no soft, decaying spots. The skin should be smooth with no wrinkling. To keep them fresh, store in a cool dry location such as a pantry or cellar. Sweet potatoes don’t like humidity, so keep them out of the refrigerator. When stored properly, (around 50 to 60°F), they will last a month or so. If you plan to use within a week, keep them on the kitchen counter. Remember: Don’t wash until ready to use.

Got a sweet tooth for sweet potatoes? What about a favorite recipe? Let me know!

• A little flavor goes a long way, so try using just a bit of piquant aged cheese for big flavor impact.
• Combining cheese with other ingredients mellows flavor, so when adding to a dish, try experimenting with new flavorful cheeses.
• Think of cheese as a condiment—try sprinkling just a bit of flavorful cheese such as feta, aged cheddar, Parmigiano Reggiano, blue cheese or other aged cheeses on salads and soups.
• Save rinds from hard cheeses like Parmigiano Reggiano and toss them into a pot of stock, soup or tomato sauce for a dose of rich flavor.
• Boost the flavors of fruits, vegetables, greens and grains by adding a little bit of cheese to finished dishes.

Bonus tips:

• All of our 365 Everyday Value^® cheeses, organic or not, are made from the highest quality ingredients and none of the cheeses we carry contain artificial colors, flavors or preservatives either.

• Our specialty team members will be glad to slice the exact amount of cheese you need. No extra cheese, no extra cost!

No one said rich mac and cheese, gooey quesadillas or a bowl of hot melted queso isn’t deliciously satisfying, but cheese can also be enjoyed without the guilt. We’ve picked a few dishes to show you just how easy it is to enjoy cheese in a healthier way.

Do you have a favorite way to spotlight the great flavor of cheese in a healthier way? We’d love to hear it.

Get a printable version of the recipe and get Karen’s tips on choosing a sauce when you go to the Thrive Facebook page.

What might you fill a lasagna roll with?

On a snowy winter afternoon, my mind wandered back to the summer of 2009, when my husband and I had the amazing opportunity of traveling to Tanzania. This trip inspired me to add Tanzanian flavors (like curry, mango and mint) to dishes at home. Tanzania, typically known for its game areas, tropical beaches and Mt. Kilimanjaro, has some captivating culinary marvels. From 17 varietals of bananas to plump juicy mangos, goat meat and plantains, I am fascinated by traditional East African cuisine.

I am excited to share these simple, yet invigorating flavors with my son. Listening to “African Playground,” the Putamayo Kids CD, got us in the mood to cook our Tanzanian delights. I invited my son to help me roll out the dough for the chapatti, unleavened flat bread that is an East African staple. And I paired the chapatti with a simple vegetarian curry dish.

Chapatti Recipe

Ingredients:

¼ cup finely sliced organic onion

2 cups flour

Pinch of salt

Hot water (about 1 cup)

Oil

Preparation:

Chop or grate the onion into very small pieces. Then, mix the onion, flour and salt with enough hot water to make smooth, elastic dough. I used about a cup. Coat the ball of dough with oil and roll flat on a floured surface until ½-inch think. Let the dough sit for at least 20 minutes.

Divide the dough into 4 equal parts and roll into a round flat pancake (about ¼-inch thick). Be sure to have extra flour on hand to prevent the rolling pin from sticking to the bread. This is the fun part! And if your kid is anything like mine, he’ll enjoy helping you roll the dough while getting covered with flour.

Now you can let your toddler play, while you do the cooking. Add enough oil to cover a griddle or frying pan, add one pancake and cook until the dough is set. This will take about 2 minutes. Then carefully lift the dough, add more oil to the pan and flip it, Cook until the dough is golden brown and bubbly (about 1 minute on this second side). Repeat this process until you’ve cooked four pieces of chapatti for the family.

Tanzanian-Inspired Vegetarian Curry

Ingredients:

1 large organic onion, chopped

1 organic green pepper, chopped

2 organic tomatoes, chopped

2 cans organic chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

¼ cup organic chicken broth

1 organic lime

1 TB organic tomato paste

1 tsp curry powder

Chopped mint

Preparation:

Chop the onion and pepper and sauté in a pan for 5-7 minutes. While that is cooking, chop the tomatoes and drain the cans of chickpeas. Once the onions and peppers are soft, add the tomato, chickpeas and chicken broth. Let these ingredients simmer for an additional 7-8 minutes. At this point, slice the lime and squeeze the juice into the pan. Add the tomato paste, curry powder and mint. Let all of the ingredients cook together on low heat for another 3 to 4 minutes and serve.

I am happy to report that my family sat down and enjoyed a Tanzanian-inspired meal on a cold Michigan Saturday. My son loved dipping the chapatti bread into the curry. The bread is soft and chewy in the middle, so I pulled the chapatti into small pieces for him and he ate it up fast. It brought my husband and I back to the warm climate in the African bush, surrounded by wild animals and some of the friendliest, most fascinating people that I have ever met. We topped the night off with sliced mangos and bananas for dessert.

What exotic food adventures do you like to share with your family?

Carrot Cake Pancakes	Ricotta-Strawberry Pancakes
Whole Wheat German Pancake with Pears	Fruity Flapjacks
PB & J Pancakes	Oatmeal-Apple Pancakes
Fluffy Cottage Cheese Pancakes	Zucchini Pancakes

Got more room on your griddle? Try these five flapjacks.

Double Chocolate Pancakes

Cinnamon Pancakes with Blueberry Compote

Apple Walnut Pancakes

Honey-Sweetened Buttermilk Pancakes

Extraordinary Blueberry Pancakes

I’m off to flip a batch! What are your favorite pancake toppings and add-ins?

We’re pretty excited about the newest products in our stores and think you will be too. Rest assured, we’ve vetted them down to the last crumb! Add them to your shopping list, then tell us and other shoppers what you think by rating and reviewing them on our product pages.

Here’s what’s hitting the shelves in February.

Late July Organic Multigrain Snack Chips

Satisfy that snack attack with these lightly salted, crunchy whole-grain chips from a family-owned company. Sea Salt at the Seashore contains seven whole grains and seeds and How Sweet Potato It Is contains 18 grams of whole grains per serving. Plus, they’re organic, so you can appease your appetite and your values.

Laurel Hill Pretzel Chips

These thin, light and crispy oven-baked pretzels have a great shape and are the perfect size for dipping. The satisfyingly delicious flavors include Honey Multigrain, Sea Salt and Everything.

Lifeway Lowfat Mango Kefir

This creamy and delicious mango drink delivers 12 live and active cultures (the good bacteria) to support digestive health. It’s a yogurt-like smoothie that the whole family will enjoy on-the-go or at the table. Plus it’s lactose free!

Saffron Road Macaroni & Cheese

Made with a blend of Wisconsin cheeses, this classic dish has the added bonus of Jerusalem artichoke pasta. It’s also Halal certified and vegetarian. Now that’s comfort food.

Saffron Road Three Cheese Lasagna

This Halal-certified and vegetarian lasagna is made with eggplant and zucchini. The Italian cheeses and a ratatouille sauce make for a bold flavor. Warning: a second serving is a sure thing!

Saffron Road Manchurian Dumplings

This flavorful Indo-Chinese fusion dish features veggie dumplings with a kick of ginger and red chile sauce. Because it’s Halal certified and vegan, everyone at your table can enjoy.

Saffron Road Thai Basil Chili with Tofu

Served with aromatic basmati rice, this dish of veggies and tofu with a zesty blend of Thai seasonings makes for a fuss-free and tasty weeknight meal. It’s Halal certified and vegan too.

Stonyfield YoKids Organic Blueberry/Lemonade Squeezers

A kid favorite, these handy, squeezable, portable tubes are perfect for school lunches and snacks on-the-go. The new delicious blueberry/lemonade flavor delivers six live, active cultures for digestive support making it one snack that you won’t feel guilty about sneaking into your lunch too.

Udi’s Gluten Free Pizza

Created by a team of expert bakers, these new arrivals have a thin, crispy and (drum roll please) gluten-free crust! The savory sauce is made with vine-ripened tomatoes, garlic and olive oil making this a winning combination. Choose from Margherita, Pepperoni or Three Cheese.

Wallaby Organic Greek Lowfat Yogurt

Authentic, rich and creamy, this Greek-style yogurt is made with organic milk from small farms. At 12 grams of protein per serving, you’ll happily make it part of your daily morning meal. Available in Blueberry, Cherry, Honey, Strawberry and Plain.

Which of these new products will you try?

Not only are all of the myriad forms of chocolate indescribably decadent and aromatic, the darker versions are also good for us! Here’s what I mean:

• Dark chocolate is packed with high-quality polyphenol antioxidants that may promote overall cardiovascular health.
• Cocoa beans include flavonoids (like those found in tea and red wine), which support healthy cholesterol levels and act as antioxidants.
• Chocolate delivers stearic acid, a unique fatty acid thought to be neutral for cholesterol levels.

Here’s a peek at the many glorious forms of chocolate:

• Cocoa Powder is the result when cocoa solids are removed from the chocolate liquor, pressed into a cake and then ground into a fine powder. We use cocoa powder in our recipe for warming Mexican Hot Cocoa.
• Unsweetened Chocolate is also known as baking chocolate, and it’s about 55% cocoa butter and 45% cocoa solids; the tempting aroma is hard to resist, but one bite makes for a bitter lesson – pure chocolate without anything added is NOT sweet at all. Baking Chocolate is the first ingredient in this perfect-for-your-Valentine Bittersweet Chocolate Tart with Raspberries.
• Bittersweet Chocolate contains at least 35% chocolate liquor. The higher the percentage, the darker and more bitter the chocolate. Bittersweet Chocolate Chips are wonderful in cookies like these Chunky Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Fleur de Sel. But if you are looking for a truly romantic bittersweet chocolate experience, look no further than this Flourless Chocolate Cake with Dark Chocolate Glaze.
• Dark or Semi-Sweet Chocolate (my favorite) usually contains 15% to 35% chocolate liquor. It is mildly sweet and somewhat bitter. Here is a great recipe for Chocolate Dipped Marcona Almond Biscotti and here is an amazing Dark Chocolate and Coconut Dessert Sauce.
• Milk Chocolate is likely the favorite of most Americans.  Some of the chocolate liquor is replaced with milk and/or milk solids to make sweet, mild, smooth chocolate. You will love this recipe for Milk Chocolate Panna Cotta with Blood Oranges.

To keep chocolate fresh, wrap it tightly, preferably in its original wrapping, and store it in a dry place at about 65°F to 70°F. Since it easily absorbs odors, be sure to store it away from any strong-smelling items.  Properly stored, most chocolate will keep for more than a year, and dark chocolate will keep even longer.

Remember that cocoa butter melts at just below 98.6° F, the body’s average temperature. This is exactly why the best place to melt chocolate is directly in your mouth! But since that’s not practical or acceptable for chocolate recipes, you’ll want to avoid scorching by gently melting at 115°F or less.  You can do this in two ways:

1. Double Boiler Method: Put chopped chocolate into a double boiler or heatproof mixing bowl set over a pot of barely simmering water and stirring gently until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth. (Make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the boiling water or the chocolate may burn.)
2. Microwave Method: Heat chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl at half power, stopping to stir gently every 30 seconds, until completely melted and smooth.

As the chocolate melts, be sure to watch for signs that it may be “seizing” or turning grainy. This happens when moisture, such as a splash of water or a bit of steam, gets into the chocolate after it’s already begun to melt. Some recipes call for melting chocolate along with liquid such as milk. That’s okay, as long as the liquid is added at the beginning.

If you’ve been wondering about white chocolate, it does resembles chocolate and certainly smells like it, but because it’s made of cocoa butter, milk solids, sugar and vanilla and does not contain chocolate liquor, it’s not really chocolate at all.

For more information, here’s our Guide to Chocolate.

Are you celebrating this Valentine’s Day with a chocolate romance? Got a favorite way to indulge with chocolate? Let me know!

If you follow our blog you know we’ve already shared some Superb Recipes for Game Day as well as some recipes and tips to have a Healthy Game Day and even our produce expert’s “Best Ever” Guacamole. But if you don’t want to be stuck in the kitchen when that great commercial (ahem) play happens, try some of these high-scoring snacks. Like all the products we sell in our stores, they bench the artificial preservatives, flavors and colors. Take a look:

365 Everyday Value® Green Garbanzo Beans

• Green garbanzos (a.k.a. chick peas) that are freshly harvested, then quickly and carefully blanched and frozen
• An excellent source of folic acid and a good source of iron
• A sweeter flavor than traditional garbanzos with the same satisfying, nutty texture
• Use them for making dips, spreads, salads, stuffing, stir-fries and stews. For game day, try them in Green Garbanzo Guacamole or Green Garbanzo Hummus.

EVOL. Flatbreads and Pizzas

• Give each guest their own personal pizza or flatbread or cut them up and serve as entertaining party bites
• Like all EVOL. products, these are made with fresh ingredients, including meats and cheese from animals raised without antibiotics and added growth hormones (rBST)
• Flatbread flavors: BBQ Chicken & Mozzarella, Italian Sausage & Caramelized Onion, Goat Cheese, Pesto & Portabella and Grilled Chicken & Roasted Veggies
• Pizza flavors: Chicken, Spinach & Ricotta, Meatballs & Mozzarella, Four Cheese & Basil

EVOL. Bowls

• Made with beef from Niman Ranch and chicken from Petaluma Poultry
• Vegetarian, low sodium and low fat options
• Choose from Bean & Cheese Enchilada, Chicken Enchilada, Fire Grilled Steak and Teriyaki Chicken

EVOL. Classic Burritos, Mini Burritos and Premium Burritos and Wraps

• Fresh ingredients all rolled up in a traditionally made tortilla or tasty wrap
• Cheese from the milk of cows not treated with rBST
• Free-range chicken and beef from cattle raised without antibiotics and added growth hormones
• Make a party tray with a little something for everyone by choosing from their wide selection of flavors

Garden of Eatin’ Corn Tortilla Chips

• Non-GMO Project verified and made with organic whole kernel corn
• Pick up the 16-oz “party-size” bag
• Varieties include Yellow, Blue, Red Hot Blues and Blue with No Salt Added

Kettle Brand Potato Chips

• Chips with a bold flavors and a hearty crunch
• Gluten free
• A wide selection of unique flavors including Jalapeño, Honey Dijon, Krinkle Cut Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper and Krinkle Cut Buffalo Bleu

If the gridiron snack attack gets a little too aggressive, these products featuring beneficial probiotics might be the players you need on your defensive team:

Lifeway BioKefir

• A 3.5-oz shot of BioKefir has more than 20 billion units of live and active probiotic activity – twice the amount in other regular Kefir and similar yogurt varieties!
• Each gluten-free variety is specifically designed to support digestion, immunity or heart health
• Sold in four-packs and available in Vanilla, Pomegranate/Blueberry, Blackberry and Cherry flavors

Lifeway Probugs

• Organic, whole milk kefir (a yogurt-style beverage) for kids
• Full of protein and calcium with 10 live and active cultures (the good bacteria) to support digestive health
• Kid-friendly flavors: Strawnana Split, Sublime Slim Lime, Goo Berry Pie and Orange Creamy Crawler in fun, no-spill, no-mess, squishy pouches perfect for small hands

Stonyfield Organic Oikos

• Authentic Greek yogurt recipe makes for a rich flavor and creamy texture with 0% fat
• Fresh, organic milk comes from family farms and organic fruits are hand-picked and prepared the same day
• Five live active cultures: S. thermophilus, L. bulgaricus, L. acidophilus, Bifidus, and L. casei
• You could even use this for a dip! Eight-Layer Mediterranean Dip anyone?

So what’re you eating on game day? Is there a star snack in your food lineup? Oh, and really, who’s playing?

Here’s the game-winning plan:

• Fill your roster with budget-friendly recipes like our Slow Cooker White Chili and Creamy Spinach Dip. Our Warm Broccoli Cheese Dip makes an irresistible dip with pita chips and crudités.
• Download coupons before you hit the store.
• Fill your basket with current Sure Deals like salsa, pita chips and wine.
• Look for 365 Everyday Value® products to stretch your dollar without sacrificing quality.
• Shop the bulk aisles to get your fill of nuts, dried fruits and other nibbles. Buy as much or as little as you need.

Game on! How will you celebrate without a big spend?