Whole Foods- My Achilles Heel

When the manchild lived at home, I dreamed of a time I could cut the exotic Indian or Moroccan recipes out of my Food Network magazine and prepare them without preparing a second meal. I had visions of kale, spinach and quinoa and halibut prepared in parchment paper. The manchild would have had none of that.

So when he went to school, leaving us empty nesters, I began cooking the types of food I only fantasized about. But, often times, I would need an odd spice or ingredient, so I would find myself heading to my favorite grocery store, Whole Foods.

I’d love to be one of those people who show up with their piles of reusable grocery bags and do all my shopping there. But I’m not cool enough, and I’m definitely not rich enough. I’ll go there for a few things, and I’ll be damned if I don’t spend $100 every time!

My first stop is always produce. It’s a cornucopia of the exotic and weird… not as much as it use to be, but still intriguing. My out of control bill starts in this section as I pick up heirloom tomatoes, dozens of shallots and maybe some lemongrass. I am hypnotized by the huge lemons, shiny zucchini and Japanese eggplant.

Next is the oil and vinegar aisle: olive oil, extra virgin olive oil, sherry vinegar, dark aged balsamic vinegar, grapeseed oil… my mind is blown! I want one of everything.  But I settle for a balsamic glaze that will go nicely on my heirloom tomatoes (always thinking!)

As my cart rounds the corner, I come up on the pasta and rice aisle. I am lucky to make it out of this section with only a bottle of organic pasta sauce and some Arborio rice.

And then I find the spice section. In it are spices I’ve only read about, and they find their way into my cart:  saffron, Herbs de Provence and the Indian spice I came for, Garam Masala, which was the only thing I “needed.”

I manage to stay away from the other aisles, but around the corner is the seafood section. There’s fish fillets, whole fish, Dungeness crab, oysters and squid. I decide that little neck clams sound good and fresh caught shrimp are on sale.

And then comes the bread and cheese section. I can’t leave without a hunk of authentic Parmesan Reggiano and Chevre (goat cheese).

Uh Oh… there’s the salad and hot bar, and I’m starving. I need a nice big salad for lunch and load up in my environmentally-friendly to-go container.

Time to check out. Yes, the organic dark chocolate at the register looks good, but I had a feeling my Whole Foods budget was blown.

I wasn’t wrong but I sure did enjoy the little neck clams with a saffron broth!