CCFC,CCFC, how I love thee...

Although the Co-op is my favorite place to support, I won't lie, I still shop at City Market....and Vitamin Cottage. Mostly I get things I can't get at the co-op. We originally started the co-op so we could have an alternative to City Market. We knew that we would be a supplement to City Market in the beginning while we were/are so small. If we can save you a trip to Glenwood, great! Our fresh, organic, local produce section is amazing, and reasonable. Often times I will go to the co-op first, get what I can, or at the least get my bulk,produce, eggs and cheese, then what I still need on my list I will go to City Market or Vitamin cottage for.

In the picture here is my 3 y/o J. with our basket of mostly local fresh food. We had just returned from a trip to the co-op, sans car, love that! In the basket you see local eggs, local spinach and lettuce, raw cheese, fresh carrots and I'm sure some snacky items underneath. As much as I want to be package free, hey, I'm not there quite yet. Keep your eyes peeled for a homemade chewy granola bar recipe in the future. My goal is to provide package free lunches for my school go-er next fall (as it was my goal to do this past fall, ahem, better luck this coming year). Perhaps we'll have a community challenge to do that!

Here is a fun, healthy and yummy summertime recipe for ya'll to try if you wish. You can get all of the ingredients at the co-op!

Raw nori rolls

Soak 1 and a half to 2 cups raw sunflower seeds overnight in a mason jar covered with water. The next morning/day strain and rinse and toss in blender or food processor. Add a clove of raw garlic, and a splash of tamari or salt. You can add an optional 1/4 red onion and fresh parsley or cilantro. Blend until it forms a thick paste. You can add water as needed for blending purposes.

Lay out some sushi nori (can be found at any health food store or Asian food store and can be found toasted or untoasted/raw). Spread some of the sunflower paste over the bottom half of the Nori (spread on the rough side). add some matchsticked carrots, cucumbers, asparagus, sliced avo, whatever veggies you want to the center of the pasted part of the nori.

Roll tightly from the bottom up (some people like to use a sushi mat),sealing the top with some water on your finger.

And voila!

Slice into bite sized pieces and serve with tamari and pickled ginger or enjoy just as they are! They're great served with a local salad or some seaweed salad with sesame or tahini dressing.