News from the Lexington Cooperative Market

LexTalk

Inside: Your Co-op’s huge year, Holiday Favorites, and Waffle Brunch!

Nov/Dec 2015

Butter 10” tart pan with removable bottom.

In a small pan, toast almonds over med heat. Toss and stir until lightly toasted, ~5 min. Cool slightly. Combine almonds and 1/4 cup sugar in processor; grind nuts finely. Add flour, powdered sugar and salt, and process to mix well. Add butter and pulse until coarse meal forms. Add egg yolk and blend until the dough starts forming large lumps, just a few seconds. Press dough evenly onto the bottom and about 1/2” up the sides of prepared pan. Pierce bottom with fork. Cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate crust at least 1 hour, up to 1 day.

Preheat oven to 375° F. Bake crust uncovered until golden brown, about 20 min. Cool completely. This crust can be kept refrigerated, tightly wrapped, for up to a week before finishing the tart.

To serve, spread the tart crust with marmalade, then sprinkle with dried cranberries. Use a fine sieve to dust the powdered sugar over the cranberries.

Slice and serve within 24 hours.

Cranberry Orange Shortbread Tart1/2 cup slivered almonds1/4 cup sugar1 cup all-purpose flour1/4 cup powdered sugar1/4 teaspoon salt1/2 cup chilled butter, cut to 1/2”cubes1 large egg yolk1 cup orange marmalade1/2 cup dried cranberries, sweetened2 tablespoons powdered sugar

make your holidays bright!

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope that you have plans to gather with family and friends to celebrate our local harvest. Once again we have so much to be thankful for here at the Co-op.

Leadership Jennifer Nalbone leaves the Board this month after 9 years of service and 6 years as President. Jen has been a great boss to me personally and a dedicated and steadfast leader of this organization. She presided over the board that created the Co-op’s BIG Direction, approved our Elmwood Ave remodel and signed a lease for 1678 Hertel. Our Board is visionary, bold and completely committed to the values of our membership. We can all be grateful for their work to create positive change in our community.

Hard Work I am thrilled to report a new wage scale for our staff. Over the years, our BIG Direction has evolved and deepened through conversations with owners and the Board. We have realized that to fully build a thriving co-op economy AND access to local & sustainable food, we must balance the needs of our three primary

stakeholders: customers, farmers and staff. Our BIG Direction Balance Strategy is our intention to excel at balancing Fair Prices for Customers, Fair Wages for Staff and Fair Prices to Farmers. This will not be easy. I can’t think of any other

retailer who strives to do all three. Walmart is famous for charging low prices at the expense of their workers and suppliers. Trader Joe’s takes care of their workers and customers, but determinedly

hides their producers from the customers. At Lexington, we feel that we do an ok job at all three, and we want to do better. Our new wage scale, with a starting wage of $11.24 per hour, is our next step. It will make Lexington a pay leader in our industry. We’re proud to do that on your behalf. Next, we’ll be overhauling our pricing systems.

Delicious Food This was a particularly wonderful season of local fruits and vegetables. After the

hard winter of 2015, we were able to enjoy nice long seasons of Tony Weiss strawberries, Brad Draudt’s cauliflower, and Lyman Hill lettuces. Our store is so much more delicious and fun thanks to the work of these growers.

Trust This year I am so grateful for the trust that you place in your co-op. You trust us on a daily basis to make you soup, help cater your parties and stock your pantry. And the overwhelming success of our capital campaign demonstrates that you are willing to trust us with your hard-earned savings. The grassroots vibrancy of this co-op continues to inspire and amaze me, and is built on the trust that we have in each other and in this collective asset we have created and share.

Thank you all. To our farmers and producers. To our hardworking staff. To our dedicated board. And to our wonderful owners. This co-op is great because of what you put into it. Please come to the co-op and let us help you celebrate your holiday with good food on your table.Board Meeting Dates

December 7 January 4

Please email board@lexington.coop to attend.

Tim Bartlett, General Manager

So Much to be Thankful For

Warm Oktoberfest dinner with T-Meadow Farm sausage, sweet potato casserole, Bowman-Hill Farm kale, and thick slices of Lexi’s Kitchen chocolate stout cake kicked off this year’s annual meeting at Nardin Academy. Owners heard from the Board candidates and Dave Olson, NCG’s Co-op Development Manager, and posed for this momentous celebration photo of 2015!

Dave spoke on the health of food co-ops nationwide, the increasing competition in the natural foods industry, and how we stack up.

The verdict? To date, Lexington fares remarkably well. Our co-op has maintained steady growth in sales and ownership. This is thanks to our owners’ strong patronage and commitment to their store, and Lexington’s ability to adapt and grow to meet the needs of our community.

We’ll be doing even more celebrating at Owner Appreciation Days and Holiday Open House!

5

A thank you to outgoing Board President Jennifer Nalbone!

2015 Annual Meeting

NCG’s Dave Olson

OWNER APPRECIATION DAYS

holiday

December 10-12

don’t miss it

Country Honey

BreadH

ive

First Light

Farm

Dolci

Gelato

Keeping

Traditions

Pierogi

Do your big shop!

Do your ho l i day shop ! Enjoy local tastings and lots of friendly faces.

Big Direction Balance Strategy:

Roasted chestnuts & a hot cocoa bar!

Thursday, Friday, Saturday

Vis i t lex ington .coop for fu l l schedule .

The power of community!

Over 125 owners shared dinner and gathered to have their photo taken to commemorate this big year for Lexington!

812-7641

FreshTurkeysArrive beginning November 17 No need to preorder!

never frozen

Plainville Farms NY & Pennsylvania Plainville Organic NY & Pennsylvania Wendel’s Farm East Concord, NY Stonewood Farm Vermont

Spiral Hams

all natural

Pre-cooked and seasoned to perfection!

Vegetarian fed and 100% free of nitrates, antibiotics, hormones, preservatives and artificial ingredients.

All the fixin’s!

HOL IDAY FAVOR ITES at the co-op!

• Cranberry Pecan Cornbread Stuffing bestseller!

• Savory Holiday Stuffing

• Roasted Autumn Vegetables

• Maple Glazed Yams bestseller!

• Creamy Mashed Potatoes

• Oat Streusel Sweet Potato Casserole new this year! • Green Bean Casserole new this year! • Cranberry Citrus Relish

• Cranberry Sauce

• Natural Turkey Gravy & Herbed Gravy

Every week the Wendels’ truck pulls up to the Co-op to deliver fresh poultry; chicken throughout

the year, and fresh turkeys for the holidays. With them are two cute as heck Jack Russel Terriers; barking up a storm from the front cab of the truck. It’s a site to behold!

This year, Wendel’s is celebrating 70 years in business. Since 1945, they’ve been family owned and run. A message from the Wendel family:

To Our Loyal Customers; Our sincere thank you to you all for your business throughout the years. Thank you for making us a part of your holidays, traditions, and lives. Please know that our love and dedication has been put into providing you with a quality product.

Their commitment to family farming is evident every time that truck pulls up to our store to bring us the fresh local poultry we love to serve at our dinners.

Read the full story of the farm at lexington.coop/blog. Congratulations and thank you to the Wendel family!

Wendel’s Farm celebrates 70 years!

Lexi’s Holiday Menu

Brussels sprouts are a classic autumn vegetable. They get even sweeter after the frost, which makes them the perfect Thanksgiving green. Brussels are great shaved into a salad or sauteed, but the easiest, no-fail preparation is roasting.

Winter squash is a native WNY crop, and it’s plentiful and varied each fall! Mash ‘em, stuff ‘em, make a soup or gratin - no thanksgiving spread is complete without sweet, fantastic squash!

Garrett County

Classic Pumpkin

Local Dutch Apple

Local Cherry

Rich Pecan

P IE a l a L EX I ’ S

Flaky handmade all-butter crust loaded

with rich fillings and lots-o-love.

6” and 9” sizes

$799-$1599

Jamie LawrenceDirector of Marketing

Energy Cooperative of America, Inc.1408 Sweet Home Road, Suite 8

Amherst, New York 14228Tel: (716) 580-3506 • Fax (716) 932-7337

Toll Free: 1-800-422-1475Web: www.ecamerica.org E-mail: jlawrence@ecamerica.org

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the black sheep

WAFFLEBRUNCH!

‘Tis the season for long midday meals with friends and family. Fire up the waffle iron and make hosting easy for maximum socializing with fantastic eats! Get a classic sweet-or-savory waffle recipe at lexington.coop/blog.

Drain/rinse chickpeas, transfer to a food processor with garlic, onion, cumin, cayenne, herbs, 1 tsp of salt, pepper, baking soda, and lemon juice. Pulse until all is minced but not pureed. Add water and oil, blend until thoroughly mixed. Consistency can be left rough, or pureed for a smoother texture.Taste, adjust seasoning, add more salt/pepper/cayenne as needed.

Preheat a waffle iron. Brush generously with oil. Fill iron 2/3 full of batter. Cook until waffles are crisp and golden. Oil the iron before each batch.

3 1/2 cups chickpeas (two 15oz. cans)2 garlic cloves, chopped1 small onion, quartered1 tablespoon cuminScant tsp cayenne, or to taste1 cup chopped parsley or cilantro

3 tbsp water3 tbsp olive oil1½ tsp salt, more to taste½ tsp black pepper, more to taste½ teaspoon baking soda1 tbsp lemon juice

Wafalafels

To the batter: 1 tablespoon vanilla extract chocolate chips (optional)Top it!Brush the waffles with fresh coffee while warmStir mascarpone cheese with sweetener (honey, syrup, sugar) to taste. Spread thick on your waffleDrizzle waffle with chocolate sauce or melted chocolate.

Top it!A big scoop of tabbouli or israeli salad Chopped pickles, olivesTzatziki sauceDrizzle with tahini sauce (below). Be generous!

Tahini sauce: Stir together 1/2 cup tahini, 1/2 cup water, 1 crushed garlic clove, 1/2 tsp salt, more to taste.

To the batter: Fresh herbs! Rosemary, thyme, basil Black pepperTop it!One egg, cooked the way you like it!Smashed or sliced avocado.Add a layer of steamed greens or asparagus.Shake on your favorite spice mix or hot sauce, and dig in!

Falafal Waffles!

Champignon with Mushrooms

Buttery & earthy. Pair with cranberries & pistachios.Humbolt Fog Chevre Fresh goat’s milk cheese with a ribbon of edible ash throughout. Gorgeous and tasty!

Kerrygold Dubliner Pair this Irish cheddar with a warm mug of cider.

Belletoile Triple Cream Brie

Rich & decadent. Spread on baguette and top with brown sugar and walnuts!

Dalmatia Fig Spread Great with manchego and almond fig cake!

Grand Noir Blue Super soft blue cheese. Salty and rich, smear it on baguette and top with pear!

FESTIvE ENTERTAINING

4 oz cream cheese, softened1/2 tsp minced garlicPinch of salt3 oz blue cheese, crumbledZest of 1 orange1/3 cup dried cranberries, minced1/4 cup pecans, finely-chopped

In a food processor, blend cream cheese, garlic and salt until smooth. Transfer to a bowl, stir in blue cheese, zest and cranberries until evenly distributed.

Roll mixture into 1-inch balls. Roll each ball in chopped pecans and set on a parchment-lined pan or plate. Place in refrigerator to firm.

Blue Cheese Cranberry Bites

new!

Cranberry Chipotle Go ahead, make a turkey grilled cheese.

Wenslydale with Cranberry Creamy with a sweet tang on your tongue, beautiful on your table.

21st Amendment Fireside Chat

Rich, dark, English-style ale spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and brewed with cocoa nibs.

warming Holiday Brews Ballast Point

victory at Sea

A delicious balance of bitter and sweet, this Imperial Porter is infused with vanilla and coffee!

These seasonal beers were made for the caroling party.Grab a six pack and GO!

Cranberries. Add some zip!

the savorythe sweet

Pull together a holiday entertaining spread in a snap!

Waffle-misu!

807 Elmwood Ave, Buffalo, NY 14222716.886.COOP

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDBUFFALO NYPERMIT #801Open to Everyone

7 am - 11 pm daily

w w w . l e x i n g t o n . c o o p

$1, 500,000

$500,000

$250,000

$2 MILLION!

Let’s build a store together!

$1 MILLION!

The grassroots power of this co-op is simply astounding, inspiring, phenomenal. We your staff feel so proud and honored to work at such an amazing co-op.

Thank you and congratulations to all of us.

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”

Helen Keller

spreading

holiday cheerNine Pin Ginger Hard Cider Made from a blend of dessert apples infused with ginger and orange peel. Spicy, yet balanced.

BlackBird Dry organic Hard Cider This local cider has a dry wine-like profile of smoky and woody notes with a citrus finish. Perfect hostess gift!

Ommegang Gnomegang Blonde ale, clove and caramel aromas with yeasty fruitiness, and lingering sweetness.

Get to the top of every guest list and gift list!

WE did it! Capital Campaign success!

Warm & cozy Lexington Co-op T-Shirts!

100% cotton long sleeved tees in always stylish black. Printed locally with environmentally friendly inks!

Dark Chocolate Sea Salt & Turbinado Sugar AlmondsCrunchy turbinado & sea salt encased in rich dark chocolate around a perfectly toasted almond. Best teacher’s gift ever!