Ellie Wilson
MS, RDN,CDN, FAND
The world our children are growing up in is busy, noisy, distracted and overwhelming. Parents and caregivers work so hard to maximize their children’s activities, manage phone and computer usage, and reach for the best new ways to nurture balanced, happy, and healthy children and teens. The secret to making it all work may not be new at all – the humble family meal and eating more meals and snacks together has been shown to bring an abundance of benefits to families, one bite at a time!
Family Meals Deepen Relationships and Build Social Skills
Research has time and again shown that family meals have a unique and surprising power to support a range of holistic, positive skills and abilities that allow our children to become their best selves. Family meals literally make families stronger. Eating together fosters family closeness and togetherness, supports intellectual and early literacy skills, and develops language and social skills. In fact, a specific finding of a recent survey about family meals uncovered that over 75% of the families polled described family meals as an ideal setting to have and teach respectful interactions, a critical skill builder that requires this unique time and safe setting to discuss concerning topics and develop problem solving competence.
Family Meals Improve Mental and Physical Health
Eating more family meals together has huge benefits for health. Research shows that families that eat together more often enjoy more fruits and vegetables, have more healthful weight and other positive health behaviors, such as more physical activity and better sleep habits. All those elements facilitate better mental health across the lifespan – those smart habits carry over into adulthood and sustain good health through the inevitable ups and downs of life.
Family Meals Bring Fun to the Family Table!
It is not hard to make eating together a fun time that everyone looks forward to! Have a picnic indoors, play ISPY, have a “kid’s choice” meal each week, or have your teenagers pick the music to play in the background. Family meals can be a time to share family stories, talk about the favorite thing that happened that day, tell a silly joke, and build food skills through favorite family or culturally relevant dishes or holidays. When parents and caregivers “play” with their children, mealtime becomes a treasured time you can all look forward to!
How about our busy, noisy, distracted lives? It can be hard to get regular meals on the table!
We get it, and we are here to help! Every week, we share ideas for meals that can be made from the items on sale in the ad – we call them Value Meals, because we know time and budgets are stressed, and inspiration can be hard to muster at the end of a busy day. They don’t have to be perfectly healthy, or pretty, or complicated – the secret sauce is literally your time eating together, a practice that nourishes you all. Try to get one more meal together each week, and watch your children bloom!
#FamilyMealsMovement
Mia Teal
Marketing Coordinator, Paid Media
The Mutti Great Tomato Challenge arrived in Upstate New York this week, with four Market 32 stores in the Capital Region proudly hosting sampling events! What makes Mutti so special? Let’s find out below…
Who is Mutti?
Mutti was established in Italy in 1899 and their focus has always been quality. They are currently the number 1 selling tomato in Italy! The tomatoes used are 100% Italian tomatoes, and are always processed with even heat to ensure that nutrients are preserved.
Mutti’s mission statement is as follows:
Mutti’s mission as a company is to raise the tomato to its highest expression. This passion has driven us for 120 years. Even today we are still learning new things about this wonderful fruit and constantly improving every aspect of its production to make the best tomato products we possibly can.
What exactly is the Great Tomato Challenge?
Mutti began their Challenge in San Gennero, New York City in 2023. From there, they made their way across the country all the way to California, and have now traveled back to New York. Some of the major cities they have sampled in include Los Angeles, CA; Pheonix, AZ; Dallas, TX; Chicago, IL and many more.
You may notice the little red car above; this is the Mutti Cutti! If you are wondering if the Mutti Cutti travels with the team, the answer is yes! While the Mutti Cutti is driveable, you can probably imagine this would not do well on a major highway. The Mutti team travels with the car in a small trailer to ensure it gets from Point A to Point B in one piece.
If you have not tried Mutti…well… we suggest you run (don’t walk!) to your local Price Chopper and Market 32 today!
Learn more about Mutti here!
Pictures from our Mutti samplings!
Looking to eat at home more oppsoed to dining out? It’s time to enjoy the comfort of delicious, homemade sandwiches made right in your kitchen! This week’s menu features Sausage, Egg, & Cheese Bagels along with restaurant-style chicken sandwiches. Let’s take a deep dive on what we are serving…
Sausage, Egg, & Cheese Bagels
1 pack Market 32 Breakfast Sausage
1 pack Thomas Bagels
PICS Large White Eggs (BIG sale on 18 ct. PICS Large White Eggs this week!)
1 pack PICS Sliced Cheese
Restaurant-Style Chicken Sandwiches
1 lb. (or 4 cutlets) Market 32 Gourmet Panko Breaded Chicken Cutlets
1 pack PICS Hamburger Buns
1 pack PICS Sliced Cheese
Vlasic Pickle Chips
Wise Potato Chips
Shop for Restaurant-Style Chicken Sandwiches!
Restaurant-Style Sauce:
Our chicken sandwich is not complete without the sauce!
What you’ll need:
1/4 Cup PICS Honey
2 Tablespoons PICS Yellow Mustard
1/4 Cup PICS BBQ Sauce
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
1/2 Cup PICS Mayo
Whisk all the ingredients together, refrigerate, and there you have it!
Recipe from Family Fresh Meals
Written by our friends at Green Mountain Energy
Taking a trip? You booked the tickets, bought a new outfit and told your friends. You packed sunscreen, your IDs, and some extra cash. There’s one more thing to do: make sure your home stays green and energy efficient while you’re gone.
The pros at Green Mountain Energy have shared a few tips to help maintain your eco-friendly home, live a more sustainable lifestyle and keep costs low when you’re away.
Before we dive in: Get a head start on living greener by choosing a 100% clean energy plan from Green Mountain Energy. Plus, you’ll earn 10,000 AdvantEdge Rewards points ($100 value) after 2 months of service and 1,000 points ($10 value) every 6 months for as long as you keep your plan!
You checked your destination, but what about at home? Is it going to be blazing hot or a little cloudy while you’re out? Decide the highest temperature you’re comfortable with so it won’t be stuffy when you get home — about a 5° difference usually does the trick. And don’t forget to close the blinds and pull the shades. All that extra light can heat up your place when you’re not there.
The best way to lower your impact on the planet and save on energy costs is to not use energy at all. You don’t need to unplug your oven, but many electronics use “phantom energy.” They quietly use power even as they sit idle. TVs, air fresheners, alarm clocks — every little bit makes a difference. Even a small appliance like a printer passively uses electricity while it’s plugged in. Try using surge protectors or power strips to make turning everything on and off a breeze.
Smart technology apps and electrical timers can come in handy when you’re away. If you’re worried about your plants getting proper hydration, or if there’s a pet keeping watch at home (or napping all day), create presets to keep them cool during the day and cozy at night. Check out smart thermostats and pre-programmed lights, too. As a safety precaution, you can also set a timer to turn on a few lights when you’re out, so it looks like someone’s at home.
Many of us clean out our refrigerators before we leave town. According to our cool friend science, refrigerators are more efficient when there are more items on the shelf, since cold items help keep other items cold. You can save a little on your bill and help the planet by letting your appliances work for you. If you have liquids or water that’ll keep until you get back home, feel free to leave them on the shelves so your fridge won’t have to work as hard while you’re gone.
This is a more advanced tip, since most of us don’t touch the water heater unless there’s a problem with it. It’s a huge appliance that uses a lot of energy to keep hot water ready for washing dishes and showering. But since you won’t need hot water while you’re gone, why not adjust the water heater for energy efficiency? Many water heater models have a vacation mode, but you can also turn it down manually. Once you return, make sure to follow the Energy.gov recommendations for powering up your water heater when you get home.
Everyone’s lifestyle is different, so no energy tip will be one-size-fits-all. Do what works best for your home, so you can kick back, relax and enjoy your vacation, all while knowing your home is on an energy-efficient staycation.
Safe travels!
Haleigh Eustis
Intern, Digital Marketing
Happy Valentine’s Day! Whether you’re celebrating with a loved one, taking on Galentine’s Day in style, or enjoying a night on your own, there’s nothing better than a delicious (and easy) dinner to make your day perfect! Of course, no dinner is complete without a drink and dessert. We have compiled the perfect Valentine’s Day meal utilizing Market 32’s extensive list of delicious meals, drinks and desserts!
Bourbon-Cherry Smash. Start your dinner off with a festive drink! This Bourbon-Cherry Smash is the perfect combo of fruity and sweet plus a bit of spiciness from the bourbon. This drink turns a beautiful shade of red that is wonderfully on-theme for Valentine’s Day. Delicious and quick to make, a Cherry Smash is the perfect choice to start your festive meal off strong!
Sweet & Spicy Salmon with Grilled Pineapple and Poblano Salsa. A delicious main course to impress anyone with your spectacular cooking skills! This robust meal is full of savory salmon accompanied with the tangy and acidic sweetness from grilled pineapple and fresh tang of poblano salsa. If you’re not a salmon lover, feel free to swap salmon for chicken.
Herb-Roasted Fingerling Potatoes. No main course is complete without a side dish. Fingerling potatoes are the perfect side for our Sweet and Spicy Salmon. Bursting with an array of dynamic herbs and savory garlic, fingerling potatoes will always be an easy and quick go-to dish for any occasion!
Red Velvet Brownies with Cookies & Cream Frosting. Finish your Valentine’s Day meal with a sugary treat, of course! Chewy brownies are a classic dessert for an obvious reason. Easy to make and delicious to eat, they are the perfect holiday choice. These brownies are wonderfully festive as they are a deep ruby red color, topped with decadent frosting making each bite sugary and marvelously rich.
Enjoy Valentine’s Day with an easy meal plan that is as festive as it is tasty! Shop all your Valentine’s Day groceries, flowers, cards and chocolates at Price Chopper/Market 32!
Haleigh Eustis
Floral Intern
Chanukah is a holiday that lasts for eight days in which people celebrate with traditions, foods, games, and family. Even though flowers aren’t technically a staple to this holiday, they certainly could be! If you’re planning on having a family gathering after lighting the menorah, but you want decorations that are fitting for the time of year, I’ve got you covered. Let’s make a Chanukah themed bouquet! .
What you will need:
- One small vase (this will be your inner layer)
- One medium sized vase (This will be your outer layer. Make sure your outer layer is taller than your inner layer and that there is wiggle room when you place the small vase into the medium vase.)
- One bunch of baby’s breath
- One bunch of white roses
- One bunch of blue crazy daisies
- Greenery (optional)
- Chocolate coins or “gelts”
- Blue ribbon (optional)
How to make this bouquet:
Take your inner layer (which is a small vase) and assemble your bouquet. If you’ve never made an arrangement before, don’t fear, I can help!
- Every arrangement has specific flowers that you can utilize to create the most attractive bundle of flowers. The arrangement is going to focus on your focal flower(s) which is—typically—the most beautiful, or eye-catching flower. In this case, your focal flower will be the rose. Normally, we use between one to three focal flowers and build from there.
- After we have our focal flowers, we start utilizing our focal fillers (which in this case will be the blue daisies!)
- Once you’ve created an arrangement of focal and focal fillers, we can start adding regular fillers. For this arrangement I’ve chosen baby’s breath and greenery. Filler flowers are used to fill in odd or awkward gaps. It’s easy to get taken away by fillers, so use them sparingly!
- And voila! You’ve created a beautiful arrangement, and it wasn’t even hard, was it? Let’s continue!
- Once you’ve created your arrangement, place your inner layer into your outer layer. After you’ve assembled shell for your flowers, this is where the fun comes in!
- Take your chocolate coins and place them in the gap between the inner and outer layer (this is the importance of having wiggle room)! When you place the coins in the space, they will stand upright. Repeat this until all the space is filled and you’re going to end up with an eye-catching arrangement that is beautiful on its own or . . . you can adorn the arrangement with a ribbon!
- And there you have it, a beautiful and easy Chanukah arrangement that is sure to impress with its beauty and uniqueness!
Shop all of your Chanukah and Holiday needs at Price Chopper/Market 32!
Ellie Wilson
MS, RDN, CDN
Manager, Lifestyles and Wellness
BOO! Here it comes again, the official (unofficial) holiday of Halloween! There is no doubt, it is beloved by children and adults alike. The costumes, decorations and freaky/fun tricks and treats are wickedly delightful for those who participate before colder weather changes activity opportunities. To ensure it is fun for everyone, set expectations – your goblins and ghouls should know the food safety rules ahead of time to set the stage for happy smiles versus scowls and howls. Here are some ‘tricks” for caregivers hoping for a howling good time!
- Eat before treat – some great Halloween treat ideas to set the stage are right here (with spooky music!) on Price Chopper YouTube and Pinterest boards. That will make it easier to create the plan that parents/guardians must check items before eating. We have treats for adults too – pumpkin everything and fall favorites to fuel your fun is right here!
- Children should be taught – only to accept treats that are commercially wrapped. Throw away anything that is torn, has pinholes, or looks unusual in any way. Fresh fruit, if accepted, should be carefully checked and washed before eating.
- If your child has a food allergy, you already know that treats are tricky. Verify Epi-pens are not expired and are readily available. Always check the labels of each item. Some homes may have a teal-colored pumpkin to signal they have some treats without some allergens, but adults must still check the individual items before eating. The same goes for gluten free candy – The Celiac Disease Foundation has published their 2023 Gluten Free Halloween Candy list – you can download and print the pdf here.
- Ages and stages – some candies are choking hazards for smaller children. Gum, hard candies, peanuts and even small toys could be a concern. Check treats are appropriate and stay present while they are enjoyed.
- Managing added sugars at Halloween doesn’t have to be tricky! How much and how often should be part of the plan and discussed ahead of time to keep the howls to a minimum. A national poll shows 78% of parents plan for about two pieces of candy per day. That helps children learn candy can be part of eating well. In 2017, the Partnership for a Healthier America and the National Confectioners Association partnered to help with portion control and front-of-pack labeling, resulting in over 90% of candy and chocolates labeled to help your goblins and ghouls enjoy treats. Learn more at here.
- Enjoy the Halloween season – Top 10 ways to celebrate Halloween!
- Flashlights, candy, party supplies and more are all at our stores waiting for you to create a “monster” good time. Happy Halloween!
BWAH HA HA HAAAAA!!!!!!!
Written by our friends at Green Mountain Energy
Do you love summer farmers’ markets but wish you could use those flavors for a Thanksgiving cobbler? Wish you could reduce the waste from store-bought canned goods? Did your backyard garden give you way more produce than your household can possibly eat before it turns? It’s time to get canning!
Canning isn’t just for your grandparents anymore, but they were certainly onto something—it’s the greenest way to take your pantry to the next level. Home-canned food offers plenty of benefits, like:
– Seasonal produce year-round. Fresh fruits and vegetables found at the height of their season at your local farmers’ market in the summer can make a tasty appearance on your table any time of year.
-Knowing what’s in your food. Since the only thing in your canned food is what you put into it, it’s a good way to avoid artificial additives.
-Room for creativity. You can try out new recipes for jams, soups, salsas and more.
-Eco-friendliness. Canning cuts down on food waste, reduces emissions from transporting food, and minimizes single-use plastics.
-Saving time. Too rushed to make dinner from scratch? Reach for that yummy homemade soup or pasta sauce you canned in advance.
Before you get started, make sure you have the basics on hand:
This is just an overview of the canning process. Check out more detailed information from the National Center for Home Food Preservation. We hope you have a great time getting creative and cutting down on food waste with this time-honored activity!
More ways to live sustainably:
Canning is an excellent (and tasty) way to cut back on food waste and plastic use, but your green efforts don’t have to stop there! Since you’re on a roll, see our other simple tips for cultivating an Earth-friendly lifestyle on our blog here.
Our favorite way to live greener is also one of the easiest: choosing to use clean electricity in your home. We’ve partnered with Market 32 to make going green even more rewarding, featuring 100% renewable energy plans that let you save at the checkout line. Learn more here.
Haleigh Eustis
Floral Intern
Happy August! Even though summer is slowly starting to wrap up, weddings are still going strong this month. Planning a wedding can be stressful, especially not knowing how to decorate in a “trendy” way. There’s such a push to have unique wedding decor, but inspiration to decorate and collect out of the box ideas can be difficult! What if I told you that creating wedding décor that is out of the ordinary is far easier than you may think?
Floating candles are a novel way to have add an elegant flare to your wedding; they are eye-catching but reserved. Though floating candles are beautiful, they can tend to feel boring depending on the theme and selection of decor you may have. That being said, there is a very simple way to fix this issue!
Let’s Make Floral Floating Candles!
What You Need:
- Flowers! Make sure the flowers you use won’t immediately brown when submerged into water (avoid African violets!)
- Flowers I recommend: Roses, Water Lilies, Orchids and Daises.
- Glass vase (The size is completely up to you, but make sure it is as tall as your flower and there’s extra room on the top for the candle.)
- Flower frog (Check out the link below for the Flower frog. These are used to keep bouquets upright in the vase!)
- Accent gems or rocks (See link below!)
- Floating candles (See link below!)
- Hot glue gun
Let’s Begin!
Step One: Take your flower frog and flowers. I recommend using a maximum of four flowers (all differing in height) for this or else the vase may be too crowded. Using the stems of the flower, place them in the flower frog until you find a look that you like! If you need help using a floral frog, click here for a great video to help you out.
Step Two: Once you have created your bouquet, place a dollop of hot glue on the bottom of your flower frog and place it into the bottom of the vase. Let this cool completely before you continue the rest of your DIY.
Step Three: Once your bouquet is in the vase, take your rocks or accent gems and very carefully place them on the bottom of the vase. You’ll want to completely cover up your flower frog when this is over!
Step Four: Once your flower frog has been covered you will want to take water (room temp or cold water is preferred) and submerge the entire flower. Make sure your vase is tall enough to submerge the entire flower while leaving room for your floating candle!
Step Five: Once you’ve filled your vase with water, take your candle and place it on top of the water. Make sure you have a few back up candles. If they get wet, they won’t light up again! Now, you can light your candle and admire your beautiful floral floating candle!
With unique decoration ideas wedding season doesn’t have to be a hassle! Buy all your floral needs at Price Chopper/ Market 32 Floral Department!
Mia Teal
Marketing Coordinator, Paid Media
It’s June – do you know what that means? It is National Dairy Month! We are celebrating all the creamy goodness of dairy this month, ranging from milk, cheese, ice cream, and everything in between! At Price Chopper and Market 32, we have a surplus of dairy products to offer, including our new PICS pint ice cream! Be sure to check them out at the end of this article.
National Dairy Month was originally just “National Milk Month” as a way to encourage people to drink more milk. However, this eventually became “National Dairy Month” by the National Dairy Council as a way to promote the benefits that dairy products provide to us. We have so many recipes on our website for all our dairy lovers! Let’s take a look at a few…
Double Chocolate Chunk Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches: Nothing beats an ice cream sandwich on a warm summer day! Be sure to check out our PICS ice cream for a wide variety of flavors.
Baked Buffalo Cheese Sticks: The best appetizer right at your fingertips!
Caramel Milkshake: This four-ingredient shake is sure to be a fan favorite!
Pepperoni & Mushroom Pizza: In a hurry? No need to worry! This pizza is easy to make and perfect for celebrating National Dairy Month!
Lucky Charms Frozen Yogurt Pie: Looking for something fun to make for your July 4th celebration? This frozen yogurt pie is flavorful and festive. Beware: This will go fast!
Philly Cheesesteak Dip: Take your homemade dip to the next level with this Philly Cheesesteak Dip!
