Ellie Wilson, MS, RDN Family time is precious and rare in our busy lives these days, but there is a big opportunity ensure your family is stronger and your children have the skills they need to navigate in our distracted, over-scheduled world – it is the simple, old-fashioned family meal that can nurture and protect them in very significant ways. We have been highlighting some easy power bowl meals all month to help you with thefmm3 time/budget/#everyonelikesit part – now we have some fun tips on the table talk part. The simple act of chatting around a meal gives your children better social skills, and builds communication connections. Given how busy we all are, it is sometimes hard not to use that time to discuss chores, or grades, or sports. Those conversations are important, but maybe we can inspire you to finish with them rather than start. Help build your children’s confidence and emotional intelligence with some simple questions and conversation starters. Tip – have everyone put whatever phone/device they use on silent, and leave them in a basket in a different room until your mealtime clean-up is done. Play games when they are little, and get different topics going as they get older. Check out these ideas from our  Pinterest board! Written by Jane Golub Director In-Store Marketing Programs September 25, 2016 PILLSBURY MINI PIES Take dessert a step further at home with trusted Pillsbury brand Frozen Mini Pies. pillspies_embeddedAvailable in three popular trendy flavors – Apple Cinnamon – 4 Mini Pies – Filled with Apples and Spices – Caramel Icing Packets included Chocolate Lava – 4 Mini Pies – Filled with Chocolate – Vanilla Icing Packets included S’mores – 4 Mini Pies – Filled with Chocolate and Marshmallow – Chocolate Icing Packets included Fun and convenient size – ready in fifteen minutes or less. Look for Pillsbury Mini Pies in the Frozen Dessert aisle. Written by Jane Golub Director In-Store Marketing Programs September 18, 2016 SABRA HUMMUS SPREADS Sabra hummus spreadsIntroducing Sabra Spreads made with Hummus.  A new line of fresh tasting, wholesome refrigerated spreads that are simply delicious – with 75% less fat than the leading mayonnaise. Sabra Spreads make better Sandwiches and are non-GMO, Gluten Free, 0mg cholesterol, 0g trans-fat, No sugars added, vegan and Non-Dairy. Sabra Spreads come in easy squeezable bottles in three different flavors – Garlic Herb, Honey Mustard and Sea Salt & Cracker Pepper.  They are line priced with your favorite Sabra Hummus @ $3.99. Look for Sabra Hummus Spreads in the Deli Department next to the Sabra Hummus and enjoy on Sandwiches and Crackers today! Ellie Wilson, MS, RDN Our relationship with food is changing, with so much more interest in sourcing, animal welfare and farming methods than ever before. This has opened up the conversation about how food moves from farm to table, as newer brands step into the arena and highlight their commitments to organic and sustainable practices. Exclusively offered at Price Chopper and Market 32, Strauss Brands Chiappetti Meats is one of those holistic companies bringing a variety of fresh meat items that speak to our customers in a new way. September is a busy month, and includes a return to routines and busy schedules for many.  Chiappetti is featuring their organic ground beef in our stores, a delicious foundation for recipes old and new.  Chiappetti highlights some great recipes with us – Mexican Stuffed Zucchini  puts their delicious ground beef together with the local bounty of fresh zucchini we have in stores right now. Their Caprese Burger recipe is an easy, fun addition to your burger repertoire, great for families or entertaining friends. September is National Family Meals Month™, and ground beef is such a family meals staple – easy favorites like meatloaf and hamburgers bring everyone to the table. Cooler weather inspires the return of casseroles – updated beefaroni, or a new version of shepherd’s pie. Try Chiappetti’s Mediterranean Meatloaf – global flavor and comfort food come together as an updated classic. USDA Certified Organic meats have to meet very important standards in order to merit the label. These standards include ensuring cattle have a safe area to graze, on certified organic pasture, for the maximum period of time outdoor grazing is available the area the farm is located in. They must follow strict care and health programs, with a written organic management plan that is certified and inspected by USDA agents. Chiappetti’s family farmers do not use antibiotics or hormones, or grains – all beef is grass fed and finished. You can learn more at http://straussbrands.com/. Enjoy a fresh approach with organic Chiappetti ground beef! Written by Jane Golub Director In-Store Marketing Programs September 11, 2016 OLIVE GARDEN ITALIAN RED WINE BALSAMIC DRESSING Olive Garden Red Balsamic vin dressing Olive Garden Italian Red Wine Balsamic Dressing is the perfect balance of tangy and sweet flavors. Made with premium balsamic vinegar, a special blend of herbs, spices and a splash of red wine – it’s the perfect finishing touch to your salad. Look for Olive Garden Red Wine Balsamic Dressing in the Salad Dressing aisle. Ellie Wilson, MS, RDN Tailgating is a time-honored tradition – in fact, there is real history behind the practice, according to the American Tailgaters Association, starting with spectators “attending” the 1861 Battle of Bull Run in Virginia with food and wine, cheering on their Civil War “teams”. Chuck wagons, those traveling kitchens of the prairie, are also part of lore. The first football game, between Princeton and Rutgers, (145 years ago!), though it pre-dated cars and parking lots, saw the first fans wear team colors and bring picnics, and the modern-day tailgate party tradition began. Now, it may be a professional sport event, or your son’s football games. It can be a iStock_7322188_LARGE.jpgmusic event, or your daughter’s soccer league – tailgating is a great way to enjoy meals and snacks with friends and family. For a delicious gathering that scores big taste, check out these tips and recipes! Make your own playbook with these ideas and more recipes on our Pinterest board. Go Team! #FamilyMealtimesMatter         Written by Jane Golub Director In-Store Marketing Programs September 4, 2016 HEINZ BBQ SAUCE MADE WITH THE MASTERS Heinz worked with some of the nation’s top pitmasters to create a collection of authentic regional barbecue sauces that taste even better than they look.  Which ‘cue are you? When most people think of ‘barbecue sauce’ – they are thinking about Kansas City barbecue sauce.  This is a classic barbecue sauce with a blend of sweetness, spice and tang that is often thick and rich, too. Memphis barbecue is known for its use of dry rubs and these spice blends are incorporated into the Heinz Memphis style sauce.  This sauce has more spice than a Kansas City style sauce and a complex sweetness from real brown sugar. Texas style barbecue sauces are tomato based and include earthy chili powdheinz bbq sauce 9.4.16ers and spices, black pepper and a smooth smokiness.  This sauce is bold, but balanced, with a smooth spiciness and not overly sweet. In the tradition of Carolina barbecue, this sauce delivers the distinct tanginess of apple cider vinegar with just the right amount of sweetness and spice.  The thinnest of the major regional barbecue sauces, Carolina style sauces are perfect for pulled pork and chicken. Look for Heinz BBQ Sauce Made with the Masters in the Condiments aisle fmm September is National Family Meals™ month, and we are celebrating with our annual Family Mealtimes Matter campaign! With our community partners, the Times Union and Cornell Cooperative Extension, we will be sharing recipes, blogs, videos, articles, Facebook posts, tweets and other resources about family meals. We are all so busy, for many, meals together have been moved out of family schedules. They should be a time to enjoy and connect! Commit to one more meal together as a family each week – the National Family Meals month goal to bring families together with food. You will enjoy family-building benefits that make this investment a lifetime win for parents and children. Meals don’t have to be perfectly nutritious, or only happen at dinnertime, or even be served on a plate  – just being together and sharing food offers everyone big benefits. Children and teens that have frequent family meals: Join us, and the National Family Meal month movement to Raise Your Mitt and Commit to one more meal per week with your family!raise your mitt Check out our favorite mealtime resources below! Written by Jane Golub Director In-Store Marketing Programs August 28, 2016 CURAD TRULY OUCHLESS! and PERFORMANCE SERIES curad20ouchleflexibfabricMedline CURAD has been known and trusted in North America for quality products since 1951.  Today they continue to offer innovative solutions to help and heal consumers. When it comes to cuts and burns, one of the most common places for these injuries to occur is in the home, specifically the kitchen and bathroom.  Just like injuries, all bandages are not the same.  That’s why having the right products at the right time can make all the difference.  CURAD announced a few new products to its innovation lineup – Truly Ouchless! And Performance Series – making hospital-grade technology available at home to consumers. We are proud to announce that these new CURAD products are now available at Price Chopper in the First Aid aisle: Truly Ouchless! – Ouchless technology has been taken to a higher level.  Truly Ouchless achieves exceptional bandage protection without the hurtful removal.  Plus, the advanced adhesive is totally repositionable.   That makes it easy and “Ouchless” to cover wounds the right way – or peek at how they’re healing. Performance Series – These are the bandages that won’t quit.   They feature Extreme Hold adhesive technology to stay on until you take them off.  Tough, heavy duty fabric offers outstanding protection and is also breathable and flexible.  The colored wound pad is three times more absorbent than most other leading brands. Look for CURAD Truly Ouchless! and Performance Series in the First Aid aisle. Written by Jane Golub Director In-Store Marketing Programs August 28, 2016 SNAPPLE STRAIGHT UP TEA Snapple Straight Up Tea offers a range of sweetness at 0, 90 and 180 calories per 18.5 oz. serving to satisfy consumers’ needs. Snapple Straight Up Tea is: Simple – 3 Unflavored Teas to let the natural tea flavor shine through. Just Right Sweetness – 3 levels of sweetness for different consumer prefersnapple18SSRstraigupteaence, plus two new herbal line extensions: Honey Green and Rooibos. Sorta Sweet Honey Green Tea – Green Tea is the most popular tea variety among consumers age 18 – 34. Sorta Sweet Rooibos Herbal Tea – Extends reach of the Straight Up Tea platform by rounding out the top three most popular tea varieties in Ready To Drink Tea. All Natural – Delivers on Snapple’s Best Stuff on Earth equity. Snapple Straight Up Tea can be found in the Ready to Drink aisle.  In addition it can be found on display with most Snapple Flavored tea displays.  Try them all today and cool down, as they are aggressively price at $1.00 each!