Wren's bargain guide, week beginning November 26th:

Sorry about tapping out on tonight's meeting, I'm still not well.

Fooducate covers a number of topics this week, including the new requirement for showing calorie counts in restaurants, what happens to the alcohol when you cook with wine, and whether a serving of bread is one slice or two?  Summer Tomato has a set of “9 Essential Steps to Avoiding Holiday Weight Gain”.  A new study shows that people who eat at home, rather than in restaurants, eat healthier overall and consumer fewer calories.

Happy people walk differently from sad people – and walking as though you're happy can actually make you happier!  The Well investigates, how many eggs can you eat and have it still be considered “good for you”?  And a new app, Calorific, shows – literally shows, with photographs – exactly how much of various foods adds up to 200 calories. 

Recipes!  At Simply Recipes I find a roasted kabocha squash soup, and a mulligatawny variant made with leftover turkey.  Simple Nourished Living offers a healthy crunchy tuna salad.  And Snack Girl has a 2-PointsPlus-per-cup cauliflower sauce that her son deemed “almost as good as macaroni and cheese”.

Tomorrow is National Bavarian Cream Pie Day;  the day after is National French Toast Day, and Monday is both National Pie Day and Eat a Red Apple Day.  Monday also ushers in December, National Eggnog Month, and the first week in December is entirely explicably National Cookie Cutter Week.

November 26th:  National Cake Day
November 27th:  National Bavarian Cream Pie Day
November 28th:  National French Toast Day
November 29th:  National Chocolates Day, Throw Out Your Leftovers Day
November 30th:  National Mousse Day
December 1st:  Eat a Red Apple Day, National Pie Day
December 2nd:  National Fritters Day
December 3rd:  National Ice Cream Box Day

And, since there are no grocery flyers this week, there it rests.  Have a happy Thanksgiving, all, and I hope to see you next week!

Wren's bargain guide, week beginning November 19th:

Sorry about missing last night's meeting, I don't want to give you all what I've got.  Sorry as well for the delay in posting:

Somehow I'd never thought of rice in terms of its arsenic content, but apparently – per Consumer Reports, by way of Fooducate – it's something to be concerned about.  McDonald's has announced that they won't be using a newly developed potato.  A list of six ways to make vegetables taste as good as French fries!  And would you eat a salad from a vending machine?

From Marion Nestle, I learn that the Brazilian Ministry of Health has just released its Dietary Guidelines (link is to the English version).  I've never seen such a rational approach to nutrition from a government agency:

1. Make natural or minimally processed foods the basis of your diet
2. Use oils, fats, salt, and sugar in small amounts when seasoning and cooking natural or minimally processed foods and to create culinary preparations
3. Limit consumption of processed foods
4. Avoid consumption of ultra-processed products
5. Eat regularly and carefully in appropriate environments and, whenever possible, in company
6. Shop in places that offer a variety of natural or minimally processed foods
7. Develop, exercise and share culinary skills
8. Plan your time to make food and eating important in your life
9. Out of home, prefer places that serve freshly made meals
10. Be wary of food advertising and marketing

Recipes!  Chow.com presents its Thanksgiving For Beginners menu, as well as a huge assortment of perhaps not quite traditional recipes if this year you feel like doing smoked turkey, turkey leg confit (simmer in a quart of duck fat), bacon-wrapped turkey, Buffalo roasted turkey with bleu cheese sauce, or, God help us, the infamous Thanksgiving cake.  Also a set of slow-cooker soups and a Romesco sauce that looks delicious.  Martha at Simple Nourished Living reaches into her slow-cooker and pulls out a low-calorie pumpkin cheesecake, chicken marsala, and a 3-PointsPlus broccoli cheese soup.  Simply Recipes has a basic not-too-pricey beef roast, tangy roasted root vegetables, a tasty and filling bean-and-ham soup, and homemade cranberry sauce.  And Snack Girl has her own cranberry sauce, part of her “Healthy Thanksgiving Roundup”, as well as a wholly unsuccessful attempt to improve on bagged stuffing.

November 19th:  National Carbonated Beverage with Caffeine Day
November 20th:  National Peanut Butter Fudge Day, Beaujolais Nouveau Day
November 21st:  National Gingerbread Day, National Stuffing Day
November 22nd:  National Cashew Day
November 23rd:  National Espresso Day, Eat A Cranberry Day
November 24th:  National Sardines Day
November 25th:  National Parfait Day
November 26th:  National Cake Day


Albertson's:

    Beef chuck, crossrib, eye/bottom round, sirloin tip roasts, boneless, $8.99/lb, buy 1 get 1 free
    Beef standing rib roast, whole, bone in, $6.99/lb
    Beef New York strip holiday roast, bone in, “hand trimmed and tied”, $5.99/lb
    Beef London broil roast, boneless, $4.49/lb
    Beef brisket, boneless, whole in bag, $3.49/lb
    Beef NY strip steaks, bone in, $5.99/lb
    93/7 ground beef, $4.79/lb
    Pork loin chops, center cut boneless, $3.99/lb
    Pork loin roast, boneless, $2.99/lb
    Cook's spiral cut ham, bone in, $1.97/lb
    Cook's unsliced ham, bone in, shank portion, $1.67/lb
    Hormel Cure 81 half hams, boneless, $3.99/lb
    Boneless skinless chicken breast, $1.77/lb
    Honeysuckle White frozen turkeys, 79¢/lb (with $25 purchase)
    Catfish or Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $6.99/lb
    Challenge butter, 2/$5
    Albertson's eggs, AA large, 18 ct, $1.88
    Tillamook cheeses, 8 oz shreds or shingle, $2.48
    Deli:    Signature rotisseries turkey breast, $6.99/lb
        Dietz & Watson mesquite, Santa Fe, or “Gourmet Lite” turkey, $8.99/lb
        Dietz & Watson honey, classic, or “Gourmet Lite” ham, $8.99/lb
        Dietz & Watson Provolone or Muenster cheeses, $6.99/lb
    Del Monte veggies, 11-15 oz cans, 2/$1
    PictSweet frozen veggies, 10-12 oz bags, 77¢
    Fuji or Red Delicious apples, 99¢/lb
    Navel oranges, 99¢/lb
    “Cuties” clementines, 3 lb bags, $3.99
    Vine tomatoes, $1.99/lb
    Broccoli OR cauliflower, 99¢/lb
    Russet potatoes, 10 lb bag, 77¢
    Green Giant fresh green beans, 12 oz bags, 2/$5
    Yams or sweet potatoes, 99¢/lb
    Winter squashes, “assorted varieties”, 99¢/lb
    Green bell peppers, 69¢ ea


Bashas':

    Beef tenderloin, whole in bag, $7.99/lb “cut & wrapped free”
    Beef NY steak, bone in, value pack, $4.99/lb
    Beef crossrib/bottom round/sirloin tip roasts, buy 1 get 1 free
    Ground beef chuck, fat content not listed, value pack, $3.49/lb
    Cook's unsliced ham, bone in, shank portion, $1.19/lb (butt portion 40¢/lb higher)
    Cook's OR Hormel spiral sliced ham, $2.49/lb
    Hormel Cure 81 boneless ham, half or whole, quarter brown sugar, or sliced, $4.99/lb
    Hillshire Farms spiral sliced ham, bone in, $2.99/lb
    Whole roasting chickens, $1.29/lb
    Sanderson Farms boneless skinless chicken breast, $2.99/lb
    Norbest turkeys, tom or hen, 10-24 lb, 79¢/lb with $25 purchase
    Jennie-O fresh turkeys, tom or hen, $1.79/lb
    Butterball fresh turkeys, tom or hen, $1.99/lb
    King salmon fillets, wild caught, $12.99/lb
    Halibut, 3 oz portions, $3 ea
    Fresh oysters, 8 oz jars, $3.99
    Challenge butter, $3.29
    Tillamook cheeses, 8 oz chunk or shreds, 2/$6
    Kraft Cracker Barrel cheeses, 8 oz chunk, $2.99
    Gold Medal flour, 5 lb, 2/$4
    Food Club flour, 5 lb, $1.88
    Del Monte veggies, 13-15 oz cans, 5/$3
    Flav-R-Pac frozen veg, 12-16 oz bags, 77¢
    Birds Eye or C&W frozen veg, 12-16 oz bags, 5/$10
    Apples, Fuji, Gala, Granny Smith, 99¢/lb
    Navel oranges, 99¢/lb
    Green or red seedless grapes, $1.99/lb
    Fresh green beans, 87¢/lb
    Red or orange yams, 87¢/lb
    Sweet onions, 87¢/lb
    Green/red/gold bell peppers, 77¢ ea
    Organic winter squashes, acorn/butternut/spaghetti, 99¢/lb


Fry's:

    Beef NY strip roast, whole, bone in, $4.97
    Beef ribeyes, bone in, whole in bag, $7.99/lb, “sliced & wrapped free”
    85/15 ground beef, $3.99/lb (3 lb chub)
    Pork loin chops, center cut bone in, family pack, $3.99/lb
    Kroger spiral sliced ham, bone in, $1.99/lb
    Cook's ham, bone in, shank portion, $1.29/lb (butt portion 20¢/lb higher)
    Kroger frozen turkeys, 10-20 lb, 79¢/lb with $25 purchase
    Foster Farms fresh turkeys, 10-24 lb, $1.49/lb
    Private Selection frozen turkeys, 10-24 lb, 99¢/lb
    Private Selection frozen turkey breast, bone in, $1.69/lb
    Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $5.99/lb
    Pacific oysters, 8 oz jar, $3.99
    Kroger butter, 2/$5
    Kroger cheeses, 6-8 oz chunk/shreds/shingle, $1.97
    Kroger veggies, 14-15 oz cans, 2/$1
    Libby's pumpkin, 15 oz cans, 3/$5
    Simple Truth organic veggies, 14-15 oz cans, 4/$5
    Simple Truth organic quinoa, 1 lb bags, $6.99
    Kroger frozen veggies, 10-12 oz bags, 67¢
    Clementines, 3 lb bag, $2.77
    Apples:  Gala, Fuji, Granny Smith, Red/Golden Delicious, 99¢/lb
    Gala apples, 5 lb bag, $3.99
    Navel oranges, 99¢/lb
    Bartlett pears, 99¢/lb
    Ocean Spray cranberries, 12 oz bags, 2/$5
    Whole pineapples, $2.99 ea
    Red or gold yams or sweet potatoes, 99¢/lb
    Asparagus, $3.99/lb


Safeway:

    Beef ribeye roast, bone in, $9.99/lb
    Beef top loin roast, boneless, $7.99/lb
    Beef round tip roast, boneless, $5.99/lb
    Beef chuck roast, boneless, $5.99/lb
    Beef top sirloin steaks, boneless, $6.99/lb
    Half pork loin, boneless, whole in bag, $3.99/lb
    Safeway smoked half ham, rump or shank, $1.89/lb
    Safeway Select half ham, boneless, $3.99/lb
    Hormel Cure 81 half ham, boneless, $4.99/lb
    Safeway spiral sliced half ham, bone in, $2.99/lb
    Open Nature semi-boneless lamb leg, $6.99/lb
    Honeysuckle OR Safeway Farms frozen turkeys, 10-24 lb, 79¢/lb with $25 purchase
        or FREE with $100 purchase
    Butterball frozen turkeys, 10-28 lb, 99¢/lb with $25 purchase
    Butterball fresh turkeys, 10-24 lb, $1.99/lb
    Jennie-O fresh turkeys, 8-24 lb, $1.49/lb
    Honeysuckle frozen turkey breast, $1.99/lb
    Sockeye salmon fillets, wild caught, $11.99/lb
    Tilapia fillets, farm raised, $6.99/lb
    Fresh Pacific oysters, medium, 10 oz jar, $5.99
    Lucerne butter, $3.99
    Lucerne cheeses, 2 lb chunk or shreds, $7.99
    Lucerne cheeses, 6-8 oz shingle pack, $2.99
    Safeway Kitchens veggies, 14-15 oz cans, 3/$2
    Bush's variety (non-baked) beans, 15-16 oz cans, 10-$10
    Snow's clams, 6 oz cans, $2.49
    Bertolli olive oil, 17 oz bottles, $6.99
    Progress Light soups (with the WW logo), 18-19 oz cans, 3/$4
    Safeway Kitchens variety breads, 24 oz long loaves, $1.99
    C&W frozen veggies, 12-16 oz bags, 3/$6
    Green Giant “Steamers”, 7-12 oz frozen boxes, 3/$5
    Safeway Kitchens frozen veggies, 24-32 oz bags, 2/$5
    Halos clementines, 5 lb box, $4.99
    Seedless grapes, green/red/black, $2.99/lb
    Pomegranates, $2.99 ea
    Safeway Farms fresh cranberries, 12 oz bags, $2.99
    Granny Smith apples, $1.99/lb
    Organic Granny Smith or Gala apples, $1.99/lb
    Organic D'Anjou pears, $1.99/lb
    Navel oranges, $1.49/lb
    Vine tomatoes, $2.99/lb
    Red yams, 69¢/lb
    Safeway Farms green beans, 12 oz bags, 2/$3
    Organic winter squashes, “selected varieties”, 99¢/lb


Sprouts:

    Beef standing rib roast, “Presidential cut”, $9.99/lb
    85/15 ground beef, value pack, $3.99/lb
    Pork or chicken sausage, all varieties, bulk $2.99/lb, links $3.99/lb
    Pork loin roast, boneless, $3.99/lb
    Spiral sliced ham, bone in, $2.99/lb
    Leg of lamb OR ground lamb, $6.99/lb
    Boneless skinless chicken breast, value pack, $1.77/lb
    Fresh turkey breast, whole or half, $2.99/lb
    Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $6.99/lb
    Alaskan cod fillets, wild caught, $7.99/lb
    Atlantic salmon, farm raised, 6 oz portions, $4.99
    Black mussels OR littleneck clams, live, $3.99/lb
    HoneyCrisp apples, 98¢/lb
    Organic apples, Gala, Fuji, Granny Smith, $1.48/lb
    Whole pineapples, $1.98
    Fresh cranberries, 12 oz bags, $1.98
    Texas Rio Star grapefruits, 48¢ ea
    Halos clementines, 2 lb bags, 2/$5
    Seedless grapes, green/red/black, $1.98/lb
    Grape tomatoes, dry pint, $1.98
    “Sunset Yelo” eeny pear-shaped tomatoes, 10 oz bags, $1.98
    Asparagus, $1.48/lb
    “Red Garnet” or “Jewel” yams, 48¢/lb
    Cucumbers OR celery, 48¢ ea
    Earthbound Farms organic bag salads, 5 oz, $1.98
    Organic winter squashes, acorn/butternut/spaghetti, 98¢/lb
    Organic green beans, 1 lb bag, $2.98

Wren's bargain guide, week beginning November 12th:

Fooducate looks at the “expiration date” on a food package:  what is it, and does it really mean that after that date the food's no longer safe to eat?  And why does your bologna sometimes go funky or your milk chunky well before that date?

What is “Just Mayo”?  Not mayonnaise, at least according to some arguments:  it's Hampton Creek's new condiment made from oil, vinegar, and “pea protein”, but no eggs.  The FDA says that to be sold as mayonnaise, a product has to have eggs in it – but this isn't being sold as “mayonnaise”, but as “mayo”.  Does that make a difference?  How about the big outline of an egg on the label?

A study out of Brown University suggests that out of all the ways of dealing with food cravings, the most useful may be thinking about the “long-term negative impact” of eating unhealthy foods.  Mark's Daily Apple looks at ways of making exercise successful.  And eating reheated leftover pasta is actually better for you than eating it right away! 

Recipes!  Chow.com has a lightened pumpkin chiffon pie, and a whole stack of “Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes”.  Some are, shall we say, more traditional than others.  (That Thanksgiving baba ghanoush!)  Also some winter greens that might be worth checking into.  Smitten Kitchen has a pickled cabbage salad;  Simply Recipes piles on foil-baked salmon, roasted Brussels sprouts, cranberry salsa, and unstuffed inverted turkey.  Martha at Simple Nourished Living offers apple bran muffins, an apple-raspberry-cranberry sauce, and a slow-cooker pumpkin crumb cake.    And Snack Girl has bagels, slow-cooker turkey breast, and butternut squash soup in eeny pumpkin bowls. 

Today is National Pizza With Everything Day (Except Anchovies).  Friday is both National Pickle Day (PointsPlus-free) and National Guacamole Day (sadly not).  And Monday is both Homemade Bread Day and National Baklava Day.  I once made baklava myself.  Even with purchased phyllo dough it is incredibly labor-intensive, occupies the kitchen for most of a day, and produces terrifying quantities. 


November 12th:  National Pizza With Everything Day (Except Anchovies)
November 13th:  National Indian Pudding Day
November 14th:  National Guacamole Day
November 15th:  Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day, National Raisin Bran Day
November 16th:  National Fast Food Day
November 17th:  National Baklava Day, National Homemade Bread Day
November 18th:  National Vichyssoise Day
November 19th:  Carbonated Beverage with Caffeine Day



Albertson's:

    Spend $100 and get a free turkey under 16 lbs;  spend $150, get one up to 24 lbs.

    Beef chuck, crossrib, eye/bottom round, sirloin tip roasts, boneless, $8.99/lb, buy 1 get 1 free
    Beef New York roast, bone in, $5.97/lb
    Beef petite sirloin steaks, boneless, $11.99/lb, buy 1 get 1 free
    85/15 ground beef, $3.79/lb
    Pork loin chops, center cut boneless, $7.99/lb, buy 1 get 2 free
    Assorted pork chops, bone in, $1.99/lb
    Pork sirloin roast, bone in, $1.99/lb
    Hormel “Cure 81” spiral ham, bone in, $3.49/lb
    Boneless skinless chicken breast, $2.77/lb
    Sanderson Farms whole frying chickens, $1.69/lb
    Jennie-O 93/7 ground turkey, 20 oz pkg, $4.79
    Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $7.99/lb
    Albertson's milk, gallons, $1.97
    Deli:    Signature Buffalo chicken, $6.99/lb
        Signature honey, pepper, or “golden roasted” turkey, $6.99/lb
        Signature rotisserie turkey breast, $6.99/lb
        Dietz & Watson eye round, peppered or herbed, $9.99/lb
        Dietz & Watson Provolone or Muenster, $6.99/lb
    Libby's veggies, 11-15 oz cans, 49¢
    Libby's pumpkin, 15 oz cans, $1.49
    O-Live olive oil, 17 oz bottles, $4.99
    Birds Eye “Steamfresh” veggies, 10 oz frozen bags, 88¢
    Libby's veggies, 1 lb frozen bags, 88¢
    Clementines, 3 lb bag, $2.99
    Gala/Fuji/Granny Smith/Red Delicious apples, “Just Right Size”, 2/$1
    Seedless grapes, green or red, $2.99/lb
    Bartlett pears, $1.29/lb
    Organic Granny Smith apples, $2.99/lb
    Navel oranges, $1.29/lb
    Slicing tomatoes, $1.69/lb
    Organic vine tomatoes, $3.99/lb
    Earthbound Farms organic box salads, 16 oz, $5


Bashas':

    Beef petite sirloin roast or value pack steak, $3.87/lb
    Beef tenderloin, whole in bag, $7.99/lb
    Beef New York steak, bone in, value pack, $6.99/lb
    Ground beef sirloin, fat content not listed, value pack, $3.49/lb
    Pork loin roast, 3.99/lb
    Center cut pork chops, $3.99/lb
    Boneless skinless chicken breast, $1.77/lb
    Norbest turkeys, hen or tom, 10-24 lb, 79¢/lb with additional $25 purchase
    Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $6.99/lb
    Rockfish or Dover sole fillets, wild caught, $5.99/lb “weather permitting”
    Bashas' milk, gallons, $1.97
    Land O Lakes butter, $3.59
    Sargento cheeses, 5-8 oz shreds or shingle, $2.88
    Green Giant veg, 11-15 oz cans, 99¢
    Healthy Choice frozen entrees, $1.99
    Apples:  Fuji, Gala, Red Delicious, 77¢/lb
    Pears:  Bartlett, Bosc, Anjou, 77¢/lb
    Chiquita bananas, 39¢/lb
    Navel oranges, 99¢/lb
    Green or red seedless grapes, $1.99/lb
    Vine tomatoes, $1.99/lb
    Summer squashes, zucchini/yellow/grey, 99¢/lb
    Bell peppers, green/red/gold, 77¢ ea
    Organic acorn or butternut squash, 99¢/lb


Fry's:

    Beef roasts:  eye/top/bottom round, sirloin tip, shoulder, chuck, 50% off
    Beef petite sirloin steaks, boneless, $4.99/lb
    80/20 ground beef, $3.49/lb (3 lb chub)
    Foster Farms chicken breast/thighs/drumsticks, bone in, 99¢/lb
    Kroger frozen turkeys, 10-24 lb, 79¢/lb with additional $25 purchase
    Kroger cheeses, 6-8 oz chunk or shreds, $1.99
    Kroger frozen veggies, 10-12 oz bag, 10/$10
    Seedless grapes, green/red/black, $2.49/lb
    Bartlett pears, 99¢/lb
    HoneyCrisp apples, $1.99/lb
    Mandarins, 3 lb bag, $4.99
    Red/yellow/orange bell peppers, 88¢ ea


Safeway:

    Beef London broil, $3.99/lb
    Beef crossrib roast, boneless, $5.99/lb
    85/15 ground beef, “grass fed”, $4.99/lb
    Pork shoulder blade roast, bone in, whole in bag, $1.99/lb
    Half pork loin, boneless, whole in bag, $2.99/lb
    Safeway smoked half ham, rump or shank, bone in, $1.89/lb
    Safeway spiral sliced half ham, bone in, $2.29/lb
    Safeway Farms frozen turkeys, 8-24 lb, 79¢/lb with additional $25 purchase
    Butterball frozen turkeys, 10-24 lb, 99¢/lb with additional $25 purchase
    Butterball frozen turkeys, >24 lb, $1.29/lb
    Li'l Butterball frozen turkeys, 5-9 lb, $1.99/lb
    Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $8.99/lb
    Alaskan cod fillets, wild caught, $5.99/lb
    Pantry Essentials milk, gallons, $1.97
    Lucerne cheeses, 2 lb chunk or shreds, $7.99
    Land O Lakes butter, $3.99
    Tillamook cheeses, 12 oz slices, $3.99
    Mezzetta pasta sauces, 24-25 oz jars, buy 1 get 1 free
    Lean Cuisine “Simple Favorites” frozen entrees, 5/$10
    Gala/Fuji/Granny Smith apples, $1.99/lb
    Organic Gala or Fuji apples, $1.99/lb
    Bartlett pears, $1.49/lb
    Navel oranges, $1.49/lb
    Safeway Farms clementines, 3 lb bag, $5
    Seedless grapes, green/red/black, $2.99/lb
    Kiwifruit, 2/$1
    Vine tomatoes, 99¢/lb
    Organic Garnet yams, $1.99/lb



Sprouts:

    Beef London broil OR stew meat, boneless, $3.99/lb
    Beef chuck roast or steak, boneless, $5.79/lb
    Beef ribeye roast or steak, bone in, $7.99/lb
    Assorted pork chops, “2 center and 2 end”, bone in, $2.99/lb
    Spiral sliced ham, bone in, $2.99/lb
    Boneless skinless chicken thighs, value pack, $1.99/lb
    Chicken drums/thighs/leg quarters, bone in, value pack, $1.79/lb
    Alaskan sockeye salmon fillets, wild caught, $8.99/lb
    Whole Lane snapper, wild caught, $6.99/lb
    Tilapia fillets, farm raised, $6.99/lb
    Cranberries, 12 oz bag, 98¢
    Blackberries, 5 oz boxes, 98¢
    Navel oranges OR Orlando tangelos, 88¢/lb
    Pears:  Bartlett, D'Anjou, red, Bosc, Comice, 88¢/lb
    Organic Braeburn or Red Delicious apples,
    “Texas Rio Star” grapefruit, 3/$1
    Winter squashes:  acorn, butternut, spaghetti, Kabocha, 88¢/lb
    Roma tomatoes, 98¢/lb
    Earthbound Farms organic bag salads, 5 oz, $1.98

Wren's bargain guide, week beginning November 5th:

Fooducate has a look at the new formulation for I Can't Believe It's Not Butter:  a much shorter ingredients list, unsaturated fats, and non-GMO ingredients.  (The ingredients list is still not as short as that for butter, which as Fooducate points out reads “Cultured pasteurized cream”.)

Darya Rose has a couple of good pieces, one on practical ways of dealing with the upcoming “two solid months of parties, feasts and festivities”, and another on what she calls “bringing unsexy back”:  improving your health, not by sudden overwhelming total transformations that you won't be able to maintain, but by building a series of small habits that don't look all that exciting but that will in time do the job – and without making you miserable.  “The little, unsexy things that seem insignificant like eating breakfast, walking 10K steps per day, and cooking healthy meals at home aren’t nearly as alluring as the dramatic acts of suffering that promise crazy results, like bootcamp or fasting. But the unsexy road to health is far less painful, and this is one of the main reasons it actually works.”

And Yoni Freedhoff has a candid-camera video taken at the Boston conference of the Obesity Society and the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.  Five thousand of the world's foremost experts on obesity and weight loss.  In the several minutes he's condensed down to nineteen seconds of video, forty-five or more of these experts – “the folks with arguably the most education about the value of purposeful healthful lifestyle choices” – take the escalator.  Exactly four take the stairs.  WHICH ARE BETWEEN THE ESCALATORS. 

Recipes!  Chow.com, warming up for Thanksgiving, has a classic roasted turkey plus nine other things to do with it, and for a lighter touch, a salad of poached pears with bleu cheese and walnuts.  Simply Recipes has delicata squash roasted with brussels sprouts;  Simple Nourished Living has a sausage pasta sauce from the slow cooker, a fruit-and-grain salad, and mini tarts made out of Snickers bars.  And Snack Girl offers DIY instant oatmeal, vegan Thanksgiving stuffing, and in God's name why did Oscar Mayer invent Breakfast Lunchables?

The 9th, this Sunday, is both National Scrapple Day and National Cook Something Bold And Pungent Day.  Scrapple is indeed available for purchase, at the deli counter at Fry's.  Or maybe that was headcheese.  I can't remember.  And one week from today is National Pizza With Everything Day (Except Anchovies).  You can even put scrapple on it.


November 5th:  National Doughnut Day
November 6th:  National Nachos Day
November 7th:  Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day
November 8th:  National Cappuccino Day, National Harvey Wallbanger Day
November 9th:  National Scrapple Day, Cook Something Bold and Pungent Day
November 10th:  National Vanilla Cupcake Day
November 11th:  National Sundae Day
November 12th:  National Pizza With Everything Day (Except Anchovies)




Albertson's:

    Beef ribeye/t-bone/New York steaks, bone in, buy 1 get 1 free
    Beef chuck/crossrib/bottom round roast or family pack steaks, boneless, $5.49/lb
    Beef petite sirloin steaks, boneless, $11.99/lb, buy 1 get 1 free
    85/15 ground beef, $3.79/lb
    Assorted pork chops, bone in, family pack, $1.88/lb
    Center cut pork chops, bone in or boneless, buy 1 get 1 free
    Cook's spiral cut ham, bone in, $2.99/lb
    Hormel Cure 81 half ham, boneless, $3.99/lb
    Boneless skinless chicken breast, $1.77/lb
    Honeysuckle White frozen turkey breast, $1.99/lb
    Butterball frozen turkeys, tom or hen, $1.49/lb
    Sanderson farms roasting chickens, $1.69/lb
    Tyson game hens, 20 oz pkg, 2/$7
    Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $5.99/lb
    Alaskan cod fillets, wild caught, $3.99/lb
    Rockfish or Dover sole fillets, wild caught, $6.99
    Catfish fillets, farm raised, $6.99/lb
    Ahi tuna, wild caught, 5 oz portions, $2.99 ea
    Albertson's milk, gallons, $1.97
    Albertson's eggs, AA large, dozens, 99¢
    Challenge butter, 2/$5
    Yoplait conventional yogurts incl. Light, 20$10
    Deli:    Signature Virginia ham, $3.99/lb
        Dietz & Watson Santa Fe, mesquite, or “Gourmet Lite” turkey, $8.99/b
        Dietz & Watson classic, honey, or “Gourmet Lite” ham, $8.99/lb
        Healthy Ones oven or honey turkey, chicken breast, honey ham, $6.99/lb
        Margherita hard or Genoa salami OR pepperoni,$5.99/lb
        Dietz & Watson Provolone or Muenster, $6.99/lb
    Libby's veggies, 11-15 oz cans, 49¢
    Essential Everyday tomatoes or variety (non-baked) beans, 14-15 oz cans, 69¢
    Bertolli pasta sauces, 15-24 oz jars, 2/$4
    Essential Everyday olive oil, 25 oz bottles, $4.99
    Apples:  Gala, Fuji, Granny Smith, Red Delicious, “Just Right Size”, 2/$1
    “Cuties” clementines, 3 lb bag, $4.99
    Organic HoneyCrisp apples, $3.99/lb
    Pom pomegranates, 2/$5
    Green or red seedless grapes, $2.99/lb
    Red bell peppers, 99¢ ea
    Broccoli crowns OR cauliflower, $1.49/lb
    Earthbound Farms organic box salads, 5 oz, $3


Bashas':

    Beef top sirloin steak, value pack, $4.77/lb
    Beef bottom round roast, buy 1 get 1 free
    Ground beef round, fat content not listed, value pack, $4.99/lb
    Pork sirloin roast OR country style ribs, boneless, value pack, $1.99/lb
    Sanderson Farms chicken breast or leg quarters, bone in, 99¢/lb
    True cod fillets, $5.99/lb “weather permitting”
    Atlantic salmon, farm raised, 5 oz portions, $3
    Steelhead fillets, farm raised, $8.99/lb
    Bashas' eggs, AA large, dozens, $1.49
    Food Club butter, $2.49
    Bashas' sour cream incl. Light, 16 oz tubs, $1.39
    Bashas' cottage cheese incl. Light, 16 oz tubs, $1.99
    Tillamook cheeses, 12-16 oz chunk or sliced, $3.99
    Chicken of the Sea chunk light tuna, 5 oz cans, 99¢
    Hunt's tomatoes, 14 oz cans, 99¢
    Bush's variety beans, 15-16 oz cans, 99¢
    Ro*tel tomatoes, 10 oz cans, 99¢
    Food Club fruit, 15 oz cans, 99¢
    Libby's corn, peas, or green beans, 14 oz cans, 5/$3
    Bashas' HomeStyle bread, 24 oz wide-pan loaves, $2.49
    Green or red seedless grapes, 77¢/lb
    Fuji or Gala apples, 77¢/lb
    Red/Golden Delicious or Granny Smith apples, 99¢/lb
    Bartlett pears, 99¢/lb
    HoneyCrisp apples, $1.99/lb
    Red or orange yams, 99¢/lb
    Organic acorn or butternut squash, 99¢/lb


Fry's:

    Beef t-bone steaks, $6.88/lb
    93/7 ground beef, $4.49/lb (2 lb chub)
    Pork loin chops, center cut boneless, family pack, $2.99/lb
    Pork shoulder butt roast, bone in, whole in bag, $1.99
    Boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs, family pack, $1.77/lb
    Chicken leg quarters, bone in, family pack, 99¢/lb
    Kroger frozen turkeys, 10-20 lb, 79¢/lb with $25 purchase
    Fry's eggs, AA large, 18 ct, $1.88
    Kroger cheeses, 12-16 oz chunk or shreds, $2.99
    Chicken of the Sea chunk light tuna, 5 oz cans, 79¢
    Kroger olive oil, 25 oz bottles, $5.99
    Kroger veggies, 10-12 oz pkg, 10/$10
    Blackberries, 6 oz box, 99¢
    Apples:  Gala, Fuji, Granny Smith, Red/Golden Delicious, 99¢/lb
    Bartlett pears, 99¢/lb
    HoneyCrisp apples, $1.99/lb
    Mandarins, 3 lb bag, $3.99
    Seedless grapes, green/red/black, $1.99/lb
    Zucchini OR yellow squash, $1.49/lb
    Leaf lettuce, green/red/Romaine, OR iceberg, 99¢ ea


Safeway:

    Beef top sirloin steak, boneless, $3.99/lb
    Open Nature ribeye or New York steak, boneless, $9.99/lb
    80/20 ground beef, value pack, $3.49/lb
    Pork sirloin chops OR country style ribs, boneless, $4.49/lb
    Eating Right boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs, $1.99/lb
    Safeway Farms frozen turkey, 8-24 lbs, 79¢/lb with $25 purchase
    Butterball frozen turkey, 10-24 lbs, 99¢/lb with $25 purchase
    Jennie-O ground turkey, 16-20 oz pkg, $5
    Tilapia fillets, farm raised, $6.99/lb
    Tillamook cheeses, 8 oz shingle pack, 2/$6
    HoneyCrisp apples, $1.47/lb
    Organic Gala apples, $1.99/lb
    Green or red seedless grapes, $1.99/lb
    Pomegranates, 2/$4
    Kiwifruit, 2/$1
    Navel oranges, $1.49/lb
    Clementines, 3 lb bag, $5
    Bartlett pears, $1.49/lb


Sprouts:

    Beef sirloin tip roast or steak, boneless, $3.99/lb
    85/15 ground beef, value pack, $4.99/lb
    Pork loin roast or chops, center cut boneless, $2.99/lb
    Pork shoulder roast, country style ribs, or spare ribs, bone in, $2.99
    “Apple-Anche”:  SEVENTEEN different varieties of apples, 88¢/lb
    Green seedless grapes, 88¢/lb
    Navel oranges, 88¢/lb
    Bartlett pears, 88¢/lb
    Texas grapefruit, 88¢ ea
    Roma tomatoes, 88¢/lb
    Winter squashes, acorn/butternut/kabocha/spaghetti, 88¢/lb
    Summer squashes, Italian/yellow/Mexican, 98¢/lb
    Eggplant, 88¢ ea
    Green bell peppers, 48¢ ea
    Red bell peppers, 88¢ ea