and we’re open!

The East Aurora Co-op Market opened today with a ribbon-cutting at 11 a.m. (Too bad I didn’t make it–my doctor appointment ran late and I rushed in at 11:20. Boo. But Andrew made it, so at least one of us was there to represent!)

Andrew and I have been members of the co-op since we moved here in 2011, and it’s been a looooooong project that many people have worked very hard on for the last five years or so. For more information about the co-op, including it’s history and how to become a member (we always need more members!), go to their website at http://eastaurorafood.coop/.

The co-op is located on Main Street here in the village; this is the view from Main Street:

Side view (once you pull into the parking lot):

View of the store as if you were entering from the Main Street entrance; store in front of you and the prepared foods section is to the right of this photo:

The co-op carries the same things as a regular grocery store, such as salad dressings, condiments, baking supplies, fresh and frozen foods, as well as bulk bins for grains and even spices. While you won’t find Campbell’s soups, you’ll find Amy’s and other high-quality brands throughout the store. Annie’s dressings and crackers and macaroni and cheese, Newman’s Own cookies, Udi’s gluten-free bread and Barbara’s cereals are just a few of the common brands you’ll find at the co-op. Looking for your best value? Try Field Day, which is like the ‘store brand’ for co-ops. Great quality at great prices!

The produce section will feature as much local food as possible. With the co-op just having opened, it may take a little while to maximize local sources, but that is the goal. With summer finally here, it shouldn’t be long for the shelves to be full of local produce!

I love the interior design of the co-op, done by local artist Alix Martin. The walls are bright green and orange for energy, with soft blue skies and clouds to balance it all out. The wood floors are perfect for the ‘natural’ feel, and exposed beams and electrical give the store a modern vibe.

I’m excited! If you’re local, give the prepared foods department a try and sit out on the patio on a nice day. Pick up some of your favorites to bring home for later. Consider becoming a member today!

when in Buffalo…

…do as the Buffaloes do. Or, Buffalonians, rather.

And that would be to eat wings, of course.

It was a beautiful 81 degree day here yesterday and after a balmy walk with the dog, Mom, Josh and I met Andrew for lunch at the Bar Bill, a local watering hole and wing favorite. It gets pretty packed on weekend evenings (hey, it’s a small place), but summer lunches under the awning are just great.

Mom and I shared a beef on weck sandwich and we all enjoyed some of their wings. Josh is even more of a wuss than me when it comes to spice; I think he let a wing touch his lips and then announced he couldn’t go any further. (I will admit, my spice tolerance has gone WAY up since moving here–now I don’t have to ask the servers at Thai places to make my dishes milder–due to my wing consumption. I sure hope that’s the ONLY thing that’s gone up…)

After licking our fingers, I showed mom and Josh our new house–the owners were nice enough to let us come for a visit. I even did a little recon–finding out exact paint colors and eyeing sizes of things and such–and they’re even going to leave a couple pieces of furniture I’d had my eye on AND those cool house numbers Andrew and I had admired! SCORE (and what a blessing)! They are just the nicest people alive 🙂

We spent the afternoon in EA, walking the village. Mom popped into Vidler’s and was even able to find a couple things she needed (a single zipper pull, anyone?), as well as some things she “didn’t” (a pair of Birkenstocks from the place Andrew used to go as a kid). After refueling with some drinks from Taste, we headed home to await Andrew’s arrival after work.

We went back into the village a bit later to drop Andrew at a co-op meeting and I drove mom and Josh around a little to show them the high school and a little more of the village. After a quick visit at the Nye’s house, we popped into Fowler’s to see Abigail and so I could stock up on some chocolate (mostly as gifts, really) with my Groupon, before catching the 9 p.m. showing of the new Spiderman movie at the Aurora Theater. Andrew Garfield makes a great Spiderman–go check it out!

On the agenda today: Niagara Falls and Pasquale’s Pizza…what else?

i had an idea…

…and it was a yummy one!

A couple days ago, as I was packing Andrew’s lunch (yes, just one of the gazillion things I said I’d never do) all I had left in the bottom of the Julio’s chips bag was a bunch of crumbs.

And immediately, I thought of a mexican breakfast/egg dish kind of thing. Why? No idea.

I held onto the bag of crumbs and finally made my concoction this morning, sauteeing onion and red bell pepper with the eggs, and added leftover chorizo (score!), some salsa, avocado, green onion and monterey jack cheese. All this atop Julio’s seasoned chips. Just delightful.

I kept it light be serving just these on the side:

Strawberries and half an orange. Just delightful 🙂

Happy Wednesday afternoon! I’m making some King Arthur Flour’s Banana Chocolate Chip Squares (another blogger was nice enough to type up the recipe) to bring to the co-op‘s first annual meeting (!!!!) tomorrow night, and will be continuing The Hunger Games.

Oh, and do any of you like radishes? I admit I’m not a huge fan, but after writing my latest ‘Eat This’ column for the co-op’s blog, I think I might give them another try.

Does life get better than an afternoon of baking and reading, all after having had a great workout and painting my toes?