Since Brendan is taking a break from food blogging, I decided to step-in with an update. We are now entering summer-time in Louisville. It has been lovely so far, not too humid or hot (except for a couple of weeks in late May).
We discovered that Louisville has a few farmers markets during the growing season. Great guide to local farmers market locations can be found here. The first couple visits to the Highlands market were disappointing in terms of produce, as there was only one vendor there selling green vegetables. The situation is improving now as more and more fruits and vegetables are ripening. What a different experience it is to be in a state with four seasons, where one has to wait for the fresh veggies rather then expect them all year round like we did in San Francisco. I have to say, it makes waiting for the spring that much more exciting!
The market had several meat and dairy vendors. We loved to see that, especially that the meat farmers were willing to take special orders for hanger steaks (oh, how we miss the Golden Gate Meats…).
Yesterday, I took advantage of the farmers market chicken and leaks and made a vegetable/leak infused soup. It came out fantastic. First, I made chicken stock. Once that was complete, I melted some butter at the bottom of a stock pan and added chopped up leaks, onion, carrots, baby buck-choy (pretty much whatever vegetable I could find in the fridge). I let the veggies get nice and buttery and soft. Added salt, pepper and some paprika to make things spicy. Then I added some of the chicken stock and let the whole thing cook for a while. After about an hour, I put the veggies and some stock in a food processor only to pulse for a bit (so it wouldn’t become baby food). Then I poured back into the pan with remaining stock. I let the whole thing simmer for a bit longer, added additional spice to taste and voila! We had a wonderful spring/summer soup with chicken and toast for dinner. I just ate some tonight and have to say it was even better the second day!
