By Ryan Zemek, Director

One of the highlights of the year from my perspective was the Fall Festival we held in October. Thanks to some very generous donations from our producers, and member-owners, we were able to share a meal with the community. What I’ve enjoyed most was the energy I got from watching our member-owners share food, ideas, and laughter. I look forward to similar events in the future. I wanted to take the opportunity to share two of the recipes we used for the meal.

Beet Gratin

The first recipe is for Beet Gratin. Beets are a vegetable I found later in life, their earthiness and my unfamiliarity in their preparation led me to avoiding them for a long time. I was introduced to them through this recipe.

• 2 bunches (6 to beets
• Salt and pepper
• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup milk
• Butter for greasing
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 2 ounces cheese, grated (1/2 cup)

1. Roast the beets. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Then cut the ends off and slip off the skins. Slice into thin discs about ¼”.

2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a large baking dish. Beat together eggs, salt (about 1/2 teaspoon), garlic, pepper, milk, chives and the cheese. Alternate layers of beets, with the milk, egg, and cheese mixture into the dish. Bake 35 to 40 minutes until set and lightly browned on the top.

Venison Stew

The second recipe I wanted to share was for Venison Stew, in mind nothing is better for warming up on a cold day than a bowl of stew. Not only is it delicious, but inexpensive and easy to make.

• 3 lbs venison roast (or beef), cut into 2-inch pieces
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 2 onions diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups beef broth
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 4 carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch slices
• 2 stalks celery, cut into 1-inch slices
• 3 large potatoes, peeled and cut in eighths

1. On medium-high heat, add the oil to a large heavy pot .

2. Season the meat with salt and pepper and brown in the pan. Make sure the meat is browning, not steaming. Do in batches if necessary. Once browned, remove the beef with a slotted spoon set aside.

3. Add the onions, and sauté until softened. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

4. Add the broth, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, and the meat.

5. Bring back to a gentle simmer, cover and cook on very low for about 1 hour.

6. Add potatoes, carrots, and celery, and simmer covered for another 30 minutes or until the meat and vegetables are tender. Taste and adjust seasoning.

You know Harmony as a place where your values as a food consumer are put in to action.  Did you also know that beyond providing local whole foods to the region, Harmony is an engine of the local economy?  Harmony generates $160 of local economic activity for every $100 that is invested or spent in the store. 

As a cornerstone of both the local foods economy and the locally-owned economy, we are now working as cooperative owners of this store to Build a Solid Base for Harmony. 

Growth never comes without growing pains.  We knew things would get tight, financially speaking, during our first post-expansion year. However, our expansion plan involved either leasing or selling the old store.  Harmony can’t continue to muster the prevailing financial winds like we could in the old store when our assets were high and our debt was low.  Several blown cooler compressors, a construction bill from out of the blue, and expansion related overruns add up quickly when our cash is both servicing large quantities of debt and fueling store operations. 

We are also launching a fall Capital and Ownership drive to help resolve the situation.  Our goal is to raise $250,000 in additional equity, through a combination of loans, C stock shares, and new ownerships.  You’ll see on the Building a Solid Base fact sheet on our website, www.harmonycoop.com,  how we aim to bring Harmony’s debt-to-equity ratio into balance and where the new capital reserves will be dedicated to solidifying Harmony’s base.

As dedicated share-holder, there are other ways you can help build a stronger base for Harmony.  You could join the lead of your Board of Directors and initiate a new member-owner loan or buy shares of C stock.  We’ve already raised several thousand dollars from a dedicated circle of Harmony investors.

We also invite you to host a Harmony House Party.  In the old store, about 60% of our shoppers were owners.  Now, it is only about 50%.  We want to help people see the tangible and intangible benefit of owning their own whole-foods business by learning about the benefits of ownership from their families and friends.  We have literature and tips available to share with your house party guests.  If you’re interested in hosting one yourself, email me for details: mary@maryo.org

Also this fall we’ve decided that the General Membership Meeting (GMM) is so nice, we‘re changing things around doing it twice.  We know that some of you come to the GMM for the festivities, food and families.  Some of you come for the more business end of things.  Either way, we are splitting the GMM into two events this year— a gathering and a business meeting.  You can read Colleen’s article to find out the details about how we are celebrating with a GMM Gathering at the store on September 30 from 3-6 p.m.

At the beginning of the regularly scheduled October board meeting, we will host a brief GMM business meeting.  If you like receiving the annual report, seeing which new directors won their respective elections, disposing of the minutes from last year’s GMM, then join us for that brief GMM business meeting at 6:00 on October 24^th in the Community Kitchen. 

Fall tends to bring a renewed sense of scurry, new routines and opportunities.  We encourage you, as co-store owners to reinvest in Harmony’s base with us and help sink her financial roots deep into the community.  On behalf of your board of directors, we look forward to seeing you at the GMM gathering, the GMM business meeting or both.

<<solid base lit>>