Seward Community Co-op is a 42-year-old natural food cooperative located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Seward Co-op has 15,000 owners, and it is looked upon as a leader among natural food cooperatives nationwide.

Unique to Seward Co-op is its “Ends Statement,” which is similar to an organization’s mission statement. Developed by the board, the Ends Statement states that Seward Co-op will sustain a healthy community that has: equitable economic relationships, positive environmental impacts, and inclusive, socially responsible practices. Because of this powerful Ends Statement, Seward Co-op decided to build a second store in the Bryant-Central neighborhood in South Minneapolis.

Unknown to Seward Co-op leadership, however, a group of community residents had formed what they called the Carrot Initiative (CI), the purpose of which was to attract a grocer to the Bryant-Central neighborhood. CI contacted a number of local food cooperatives, as well as national grocery chains, yet none of them were interested in a mixed-income community of color as a site for a new grocery store.

But then CI spoke with Seward Co-op. After looking at several spaces together, CI suggested that the store leadership consider the Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church as a location. The site seemed to be perfect for building the new location. Due to the enthusiastic response from CI, it was assumed that the community would be excited about this development as well. So, Seward Co-op began the process of acquiring the property and several surrounding parcels of land.

The Announcement

A community meeting was scheduled to announce the project. Prior to the announcement, another neighborhood group, At the Roots, emerged. At the Roots felt that the CI members were not true members of the neighborhood and should not be considered representatives of the community. The majority of residents in the Bryant-Central community are African American and Latino. The CI members are primarily white and are considered new arrivals to the community. Thus, the announcement of the new store was met with mixed feelings, including distrust and hostility. Many people felt that the new store was a “done deal” and were concerned that Seward Co-op could not and would not address issues of racial and economic equity.

The leadership of Seward Co-op was taken aback by the criticism, feeling like they were the “good guys.” They had walked into the intersection of race and class in a community that had been ignored for decades. But, along with the arrival of hipsters and coffee shops, the new cooperative seemed to signal that gentrification had arrived. It was feared that racial equity would be a challenge, as the majority of those representing the cooperative were white.

Addressing Racial and Economic Equity

Seward Co-op had received heavy criticism about everything, from the aggressive building timeline, to the appearance of its operations team and board members, to the cost of the food. The cooperative acknowledged that its employee demographic included just 14% people of color. In order to address the community concerns regarding hiring and jobs, the cooperative had to deliberately tackle its unconscious bias in the hiring process. The leadership began an intense process of gaining cultural competency, and this work led to the development of diversity goals for construction and store hiring.

Most food justice projects tend to focus on the consumer end of the food system when dealing with communities of color. Usually, the effort is around making the food more affordable. While this is important, it ignores the true capacity of the community. Most communities are comprised of residents and entrepreneurs who buy food, but who are also skilled and valuable to local emerging food stores. What many non-profit food projects miss is the connection between food access and fair wages.

So, Seward Co-op developed multiple access points to address food access concerns. One access point is a program called Nourish. While an ownership share of the cooperative is normally $75, via Nourish, anyone on SNAP, WIC or any other government-assistance program can access ownership for only $15. Additionally, a 10% discount on every purchase is available for those who request it. Another access point is the cooperative’s goal of having 32% nonwhite employees by 2018. Saying these numbers were soft and inadequate, however, community organizers called for a 70% goal.

The new store opened on October 6, 2015. By November 1, over 1,000 new owners had joined at the new location. Seward Co-op also exceeded its 2018 diversity goal ahead of target in 2015 by 3%, and today 61% of the new store’s staff are people of color. Moreover, the owners of the cooperative have confirmed their commitment to racial equity, as five of the nine board members are now people of color, making the cooperative the most diverse one of its scale in the country.

While this success is admirable, it should be noted that this kind of equity work in the food movement is the exception and not the rule. Indeed, it should be the goal of every food cooperative to embrace diversity by strategically working on racial and economic equity.

Mark your calendars for Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 8, and make sure to plan something special for the important moms in your life. What it means to be a mom is a continually evolving concept that looks different in every family. There are stay-at-home moms, birth moms, adopted moms, step-moms, and many people who just step up to the plate and stand in as “Mom.” We should celebrate these individuals in our lives every day, but picking up a little something special or doing something thoughtful this Mother’s Day will mean a lot to those who do so much for us day in and day out. Seward Co-op has a wide array of gift options and plenty of seasonal ingredients to prepare a delicious meal sure to please any mom.

Mother’s Day Preview Event
Saturday, May 7 Noon–3 p.m.
Both stores

Browse locally made gifts, sample treats from our bakery and pick up some kid-friendly recipes for breakfast in bed. On Mother’s Day, May 8 from 8 a.m.–noon, treat Mom to a special brunch made fresh in our Deli. We’ll be rolling out white tablecloths and flowers to beautify our dining area. And if you’re planning to pick up a floral bouquet, we’ll custom wrap it for you from 9 a.m.–1 p.m.

P6 Meal for Mom

Honey takes center stage in this quick, easy and delicious meal for mom. The beeconscious sides that accompany the bee-centric main dish are simple and require very little preparation. Wherever possible, we call out P6 ingredients — products from farms or companies that meet at least two of the following criteria: small, local, and cooperatively owned. Whether or not the mom in your home cooks, we are confident she will be impressed and appreciative of your efforts and thoughtfulness.

Grilled Spring Chicken Sausage

4 Seward Co-op handmade spring chicken sausages (meatless options are available in our Grocery department)

1 package brat buns

1 jar Fleur de Beez Creole-style mustard

Weather permitting, get the grill started by filling a chimney with charcoal. Once all of the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour coals into grill. Arrange the sausages in a sauté pan and fill with water (or beer) until sausages are submerged in cooking liquid. Poach over medium-high heat until the internal temperature of the sausages registers 140°–145° F. Place sausages directly on grill grates to carefully char sausages for 3 minutes. If grilling is not an option, brown in sauté pan after poaching. Serves 4.

Honey-roasted Carrots

2 bunches of carrots

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. Beez Kneez Honey

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450° F. Cut carrots into thirds, then toss with oil, honey, salt and pepper. Place carrots on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake for 25 minutes. Serves 4.

Blue Cheese with Honey Spread

½ lb. Monforte bleu cheese

¼ cup Beez Kneez honey

1 Rustica baguette

2 Tbsp. olive oil

Preheat oven to 450° F. Make crostinis by cutting baguette into ½-inch discs. Place discs on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Toast in oven until bread is browned around edges, about 5–8 minutes. Place bleu cheese on plate and drizzle with honey. Serve with the crostinis. Serves 4.

Spinach Salad with Honey-glazed Pecans

1 Tbsp. Nordic Creamery butter

½ cup pecan halves

1 Tbsp. Beez Kneez honey

8 oz. spinach

1 pint raspberries

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. Locus Lane Vineyards verjus blanc vinegar

Melt butter in small frying pan over low heat, then add pecans and honey. Cook for 2–3 minutes, stirring constantly until mixture is caramelized. Spread out on wax paper to cool. In a bowl gently toss together spinach, pecans, and raspberries. Add oil and vinegar and toss again until everything is coated. Serves 4.

The month of March is a time where we see a juxtaposition of fresh, spring vegetables coming from California and Mexico and winter storage crops available from local farms. A perfect pairing of spring and winter crops can be enjoyed with the following recipe; Creamy Asparagus Soup. It’s vegan; the cream comes from one of my favorite potatoes, the German Butterball. We are still getting these golden spuds locally from Driftless Organics in Wisconsin, where Josh and Noah Engle are selling a large bounty of stored potatoes harvested in the fall. Organic asparagus is in season in Mexico and California and we are selling it at the lowest prices I have seen in all my years as Produce Buyer. I would definitely sauté some asparagus to have alongside the soup. In fact, I ate a pound of asparagus last night, simply sautéed in butter with salt and pepper.

Asparagus contains anti-inflammatory phytonutrients as well as anti-oxidants. It contains significant amounts of inulin, fiber and B-vitamins. Inulin is a pre-biotic which helps with digestive issues and inulin also promotes healthy blood sugar levels. Inulin can be found in other foods such as artichokes, bananas, garlic, leeks, onions and sunchokes.
Speaking of sunchokes, I hear the C-op Creamery Café will be featuring overwintered sunchokes from a local farm on their upcoming new Evening menu. Overwintered vegetables have been left in the field during the frozen months and dug in the spring when the ground thaws. Overwintered produce is another great example of the winter to spring transition. Keep an eye out for overwintered parsnips and sunchokes in our stores this spring!

Creamy Asparagus Soup

1 ½ lbs. asparagus spears, trimmed
1 ½ Tbs. olive oil
1 ½ cups finely chopped shallots (about 10)
½ lb. boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes
2 vegetable bouillon cubes
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
Coarsely ground black pepper for garnish

1. Reserve 8 spears of asparagus for garnish. Cut remaining asparagus stalks into 1-inch pieces.

2. In medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring often, until beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Add potatoes, cut-up asparagus and 4 cups water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Add bouillon and 1 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, in wide, deep pot of lightly salted boiling water, blanch reserved asparagus spears until just tender, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, remove spears to colander and rinse under cold running water, drain well and set aside.

4. In food processor or blender, process soup in batches until smooth and creamy. Return to pot and add freshly ground pepper to taste and lemon juice. Adjust salt to taste. Garnish with asparagus spears and ground black pepper. Serve hot.

Recipe courtesy of Vegetarian Times

The month of March is a time where we see a juxtaposition of fresh, spring vegetables coming from California and Mexico and winter storage crops available from local farms. A perfect pairing of spring and winter crops can be enjoyed with the following recipe; Creamy Asparagus Soup. It’s vegan; the cream comes from one of my favorite potatoes, the German Butterball. We are still getting these golden spuds locally from Driftless Organics in Wisconsin, where Josh and Noah Engle are selling a large bounty of stored potatoes harvested in the fall. Organic asparagus is in season in Mexico and California and we are selling it at the lowest prices I have seen in all my years as Produce Buyer. I would definitely sauté some asparagus to have alongside the soup. In fact, I ate a pound of asparagus last night, simply sautéed in butter with salt and pepper.

Asparagus contains anti-inflammatory phytonutrients as well as anti-oxidants. It contains significant amounts of inulin, fiber and B-vitamins. Inulin is a pre-biotic which helps with digestive issues and inulin also promotes healthy blood sugar levels. Inulin can be found in other foods such as artichokes, bananas, garlic, leeks, onions and sunchokes.
Speaking of sunchokes, I hear the C-op Creamery Café will be featuring overwintered sunchokes from a local farm on their upcoming new Evening menu. Overwintered vegetables have been left in the field during the frozen months and dug in the spring when the ground thaws. Overwintered produce is another great example of the winter to spring transition. Keep an eye out for overwintered parsnips and sunchokes in our stores this spring!

Creamy Asparagus Soup

1 ½ lbs. asparagus spears, trimmed
1 ½ Tbs. olive oil
1 ½ cups finely chopped shallots (about 10)
½ lb. boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes
2 vegetable bouillon cubes
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
Coarsely ground black pepper for garnish

1. Reserve 8 spears of asparagus for garnish. Cut remaining asparagus stalks into 1-inch pieces.

2. In medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring often, until beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Add potatoes, cut-up asparagus and 4 cups water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Add bouillon and 1 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, in wide, deep pot of lightly salted boiling water, blanch reserved asparagus spears until just tender, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, remove spears to colander and rinse under cold running water, drain well and set aside.

4. In food processor or blender, process soup in batches until smooth and creamy. Return to pot and add freshly ground pepper to taste and lemon juice. Adjust salt to taste. Garnish with asparagus spears and ground black pepper. Serve hot.

Recipe courtesy of Vegetarian Times

At Seward Co-op, we are very proud of our Bulk foods department. Bulk has been a keystone of the co-op from its earliest days, and it continues to be one of our greatest successes.

Whether shopping in bulk is a new prospect for you, or you’ve been shopping bulk exclusively for decades, we have a rare treat for you: a 10-percent-off sale on all bulk items on March 24. All day — for one day only — everything in the Bulk department (even sale items) is 10 percent off.

Please join us Thursday, March 24, in the Bulk departments of both stores, where extra staff and product vendors will be on hand to answer questions and assist you in shopping the best way possible — in bulk.

Throughout the day, enjoy samples of bulk products like Equal Exchange coffee (at the Franklin store), granola, and Barsey’s almonds. Also visit with a handful of our suppliers, including Equal Exchange and local grain producer Whole Grain Milling.

(The March 24 bulk sale does not include: reusable glass and plastic containers; items sold per pound in other departments, such as Produce; and Meat & Seafood).

Homemade Soba Noodles

Ingredients:

For the noodles:
2 cups buckwheat flour
1 cup white spelt flour (can also substitute with all-purpose flour)
1-1 1/4 cup hot water

To serve:
2 carrots, diced, shaved, or cut into matchsticks
1 bunch spring onions, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. garlic oil (or 2 cloves of minced garlic and 2 tablespoons of your choice of oil)
2 Tsp. toasted sesame seed oil
1 lime, cut into wedges
Cashews (optional)
Protein of your choice, such as fried tofu

Method:
Combine the buckwheat flour and kamut or spelt flour in a large mixing bowl. Add the water gradually, and then work the flours and water together, kneading to form the dough. If at any point the dough feels too crumbly, add a little more water. Alternatively, if the dough is too sticky, add a little more kamut or spelt flour. Knead the dough until it comes together in a smooth, round ball, then turn it out on the counter and knead it with the heel of your hand. The dough should be soft and smooth; if any cracks appear, add a little more water. Once it’s smooth, shape the dough into a flat rectangular parcel. This will help the dough keep its shape as you roll. Sprinkle the semolina or buckwheat starch onto the counter and lightly over top of the dough, which will prevent sticking. Now it’s time to start rolling out the dough: The best way is to roll from the center outwards, shaping the edges as you go so that the dough remains rectangular. This will save you from having to trim later. Spread a generous handful of semolina or buckwheat starch over the dough. Then fold the top third of the dough down and spread it with more starch.

Fold the bottom third of the dough upwards, like you would fold a letter, and coat that with the semolina or starch, as well. Begin cutting the noodles approximately half a centimeter (a quarter of an inch) thick. Keep slicing until you have used all of the dough. Toss the cut noodles with a little more semolina or starch so that they don’t stick together. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt the water generously, and drop in the soba. Cook the noodles for one minute, then drain them, and rinse them under cool water immediately. Use your hands to lift and gently shake the noodles as you rinse them; this helps to remove the starchy film that coats the noodles as they cook. After rinsing, drain the noodles and serve them cold or at room temperature. Toss the noodles with garlic oil, toasted sesame oil, and soy sauce. Toss in protein and scatter with chopped spring onions, carrots, and toasted cashews over top.

Serves 4

How to Make Natural Egg-Dyes

Ingredients:

Any number of hollowed white eggs
One pot per color of dye
1 Tbsp. white vinegar per cup of strained dye liquid (optional)
Bowls or egg cartons for drying dyed eggs
Paper towels

Don’t be too precious about this process. It’s meant to be fun for you and your kids, so proportions aren’t exact and don’t need to be.

1. Hallow…desired amount of white eggs

Start by gently washing the eggs with soap and water. Take a pin and delicately push it into one end of the egg making a whole about the size of an eraser. Stick the pin in the hole and wiggle it around to break the yolk. Next, make a pin size hole on the opposite end. Finally, empty the contents of the egg into a bowl and reserve in the refrigerator for up to two days. We like to use the egg innards in this two-ingredient pancake recipe.

2. Shop …for the veggies and other items that you’ll use for creating your dyes.

Some of these items can be gathered over the days running up to your egg-dying extravaganza.

• Red cabbage (blue, almost-indigo dye)
• Red onion skins (lavender or red)
• Yellow onion skins (orange or gold)
• Ground or cut turmeric (yellow)
• Red Zinger tea bags (lavender)
• Beets (pink; more of a brownish red the longer you leave eggs in this dye)

Err on the side of more veggie matter rather than less when creating your dyes.

You can use juices and beverages for dying, too.

• Grape juice
• Cooking wine or old red wine
• Leftover coffee
• Juice from pickled beets

Rule of thumb: If you’d freak out upon spilling a certain liquid on a white shirt, then it’s going to make a decent dye. These ingredients may be mixed in any combination for some great effect, too. We encourage you to experiment and see what you come up with!

3. Chop …your veggies and prepare your dyes.

We found that chopping fine, but not too fine, worked best. We used roughly 4 cups veggie matter for 4–6 cups water. Drop the veggies into the water and bring to a boil, turn heat down to low and simmer, covered, for 15–30 minutes. The dye is ready when it reaches a hue a few shades darker than you want for your egg. Finish by adding white vinegar right after simmering.

4. Pop …your eggs in the dye.

Strain the veggie matter out and set your hollowed eggs in the dye for several hours (or even over night). This will result in clean, crisp colors. After removing eggs from the dye, try draping wet onion skins over the eggs for an hour or two to take advantage of the onion skins’ cool patterns. Red cabbage would work as well.

You can experiment also with different amounts of vinegar, too. More vinegar will leave a thick film on the eggs that you can leave on and let dry, making them look gnarly and wonderful. Or you can rub the film away with a paper towel to find interesting patterns beneath, as the veggies and vinegar will soak into different parts of the egg. Dry your eggs in bowls or eggs cartons over night.

Spring, the season of new beginnings is on the way, and that calls for celebration. Soon, the scent of cherry blossoms and blooming tulips will fill the air, and the days will start to get a little longer. Everything will transform from brown to green before we know it. Farmers and gardeners are already starting to chatter about planting seeds, and there’s a local buzz about farmer’s markets and CSA opportunities. However you choose to honor spring, we have everything you need for a bountiful one!

Produce: Green-top carrots and asparagus make a great accompaniment to any feast. Spring lilies, azalea trees, and hydrangeas make great centerpieces and are another way to bring the outdoors in. We also have a vast selection of vegetable and flower seeds for starting seedlings indoors!

Cheese: Gruyere, the perfect melting cheese is on sale for $12.99/lb. (reg. $17.99/lb.) through 3/29. Add it to home-made quiches, potatoes, or have it in fondue!

Deli: Our Deli makes an assortment of quiches daily, stop in early for the best selection! Prices range from $8.89/lb.–9.59/lb.

Grocery: We have an abundance of candy ranging from jelly beans to chocolate, just waiting to be tucked into a basket! We also offer frozen pastry crusts sure to make a foolproof foundation for a quick quiche!

Home & Gifts: Wooden Eggs craft kits with Natural Earth paint are an excellent vegan alternative for “egg” dyeing, stop in to pick one up soon because these won’t last long!

Meat & Seafood: Looking to try something different at this year’s Spring Feast? Roast a whole Wild Acres duck now only $4.99/lb. through 3/29!

Saturday, March 26: Look for special demos throughout the stores featuring Spring celebration-inspired items.

As we enter into the month of March many of us are craving tropical fruits and the warm, sweet sunshine they bring to our kitchens. I am reminded every year by Travis, the produce manager at our Franklin store, that March is mango month. I then remind him that mangoes don’t really come into season until April or May and that we should call it “May-ngo” month instead. I like his catch phrase “March On Mangoes” though, because at this time of year, I really feel like I’m just “marching on”; waiting for spring to come, waiting for local farmers to start selling their first harvests, waiting for the days to get longer and the air to become fragrant with tree blossoms.

Mangoes are one of the world’s most popular fruits and there are hundreds of varieties, yet we are only fortunate enough to sample a few here in Minnesota. The types of mangoes that come through our doors are: Tommy Atkins, Kent, Keitt, Ataulfo, and if we’re really lucky, the Francique mango from Haiti.

Tommy Atkins, Kent and Keitt mangoes are rounded and green to golden red skinned. When ripe, the fruit is sweet and luscious.

Ataulfo Mangoes, also known as champagne mangoes, are oblong with a smooth skin ranging from greenish to deep golden. The smooth, custardy flesh is piney sweet, sometimes accented with a bit of a tang.

A related variety, the Francique, comes from Haiti tasting musky sweet. These mangoes are Haiti’s top export crop and, in some areas, represent a solution to the country’s massive deforestation problem – if small farmers can sell export-quality fruit from grafts on weed-mango trees, they won’t chop the trees and sell them for charcoal. We hope to see some this season.

Pick a mango by its smell and feel. A ripe mango will smell exciting, and will give when you press it very gently, like a peach. Ripen mangoes by leaving them on the counter in a paper bag or with a banana. Whatever you do, don’t refrigerate them! This discolors the flesh and leaches out the flavor. If you cut one that’s gray inside, it’s probably been chilled. Mostly, skin color doesn’t indicate ripeness; sometimes what’s green on the outside is sunshiny orange inside.

Mangoes complement many foods including: ice cream, soft cheese, fish and seafood, chicken, and black bean soup, to name a few. They can be diced and added to salsas, mixed with banana and papaya for a tropical salad, or blended into smoothies. Mango chutney is a classic condiment for Indian meals. While most people love the mango for its sweetness, you can eat them even when green. Sprinkled with chili powder and lime juice, they taste a lot like pickles.

Most mangoes that come from outside the US are dipped in a hot water bath. Mangoes hate this! They are dipped in this hot water bath to remove a potentially invasive fruit fly species that are prevalent in certain areas of Mexico and South America. It changes the texture and flavor-which is why we are always especially excited when we can source undipped mangoes. The Baja region doesn’t have these types of fruit flies, so they are usually undipped when they sourced from that region. Once ripe, they are especially sweet and juicy. Undipped mangoes are only available infrequently, so indulge!

When we began discussing a fair trade avocado program with Equal Exchange, we were told that not only were the avocados organically grown by PRAGOR, a small, farmer-owned cooperative–therefore P6– they were supposedly more delicious than other organic avocados on the market from both California and Mexico. Satisfying our values and our palettes is something for which we strive–but having eaten our fair share of avocados, we were a bit skeptical.

In preparation for Seward’s avocado month this February, we began to bring in cases of Equal Exchange avocados. We were blown away. These were the creamiest, nuttiest, most flavorful avocados many of us had ever tasted. They also steadily ripened and were nearly blemish free with small seeds. Pretty much the perfect avocado.

Taking full advantage of the superlative quality and the sale price ($2.99/pound), I have eaten at least an avocado a day for the past three weeks. Some days for breakfast sliced over rice and a poached egg bathed in lamb broth and topped with kimchi. Other times as a snack with just a little salt and a squeeze of lime or mashed onto a piece of toast with some arugula lightly dressed with lemon juice, olive oil, salt and thinly sliced shallots. I’ve also been mixing a few avocados (2) in with hard boiled eggs (8), lemon juice and salt to create an incredibly creamy, mayo-free egg salad. Surprisingly, I haven’t made guacamole once in the past few weeks –although these avocados would make a delicious guacamole as well.

Avocado season in Michoacan, Mexico where the PRAGOR farms are located, is long – from September to March – but it is nearly over for this year. With citrus season waning as well, now is the time to make the following salad!

Roasted Citrus and Avocado Salad

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Ingredients

1 blood or Valencia orange, sliced ” thick, seeds removed

1 Meyer or regular lemon, sliced ” thick, seeds removed

4 Tbsp. olive oil, divided

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

¼ small red onion, thinly sliced

2 Tbp. fresh Meyer or regular lemon juice

1 bunch watercress or arugula, thick stems trimmed

½ cup fresh mint leaves

1 avocado, cut into wedges

Method

Preheat oven to 425°. Toss orange and lemon slices with 1 Tbsp. oil on a rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Roast citrus, tossing occasionally, until lightly charred in spots and starting to caramelize, 10–15 minutes. This makes the citrus flavor more complex. Let cool.

Meanwhile, combine onion and lemon juice in a large bowl; season with salt and pepper and let sit 5 minutes (onion will soften a bit and get slightly sweeter and less harsh).

Add roasted citrus to bowl with onion along with arugula and mint. Drizzle remaining 3 Tbsp. oil over; season with salt and pepper and toss everything to combine and coat. Add avocado and very gently toss until lightly dressed (avoid crushing the avocado). Serves 4

Thank you, co-op shoppers! Last year, you “rounded up” more than $235,745 to benefit SEED recipients. These SEED organizations share the co-op’s commitment to a healthy community and/or support our P6 focus on local, cooperatively owned/nonprofit, and small-scale farmers/producers.

If you are a Seward Co-op owner and would like to receive a letter stating your SEED donations total for 2015, please click here to email a request or call Customer Service at 612-338-2465. Our February/March Sprout! incorrectly stated the e-mail address for requesting SEED donation totals as SEED@seward.coop. This was incorrect, please use the address hyperlinked above to e-mail requests.