Hi, friends and Happy Wednesday! As I look outside my window, there is a light drizzle in the middle of a sunshiny day! How typical of southern Louisiana! I think we actually had a cool front come through on Saturday. If you listen carefully, though, it won’t be thunder you’ll hear – it’s the sound of toe-tapping music on the breeze calling you to the Market. It’s lunchtime…It’s a perfect day for a visit to the Market. Don’t miss out on a lovely summer soup and salad. Surely, you hear it too.
Roma will have that sensational Tandoori Chicken platter with rice and raita (a lovely yogurt sauce.) You’ll want to grab frozen curry for later in the week. Perhaps it’s Kandi’s crunchy shrimp with cream cheese egg rolls calling your name – absolutely scrumptious – you’ve got to taste ‘em to believe how good they are. Jeff’s pulled pork speaks for itself – another great idea for later in the week.
It will be another lovely Saturday at the market (I refuse to have anything else). Jon Hebert will get us started with wonderful tunes drifting from the gazebo. Market Vendors Susan Tarasova and Liz Bragdon of Kombucha Girl Living Beverages, will serve Vintage Cocktails, Shrub, Bitters and Living Beverages. Talk to Susan and Liz about the health benefits of Kombucha and water kefir. They’re a treasure trove of knowledge. So grab a cup of coffee and one of Lena’s cinnamon rolls and relax a while with us.
Peaches are still available at the market…think peach pizza. I know, I know – you’re thinking she’s gone wacko again, but give me a minute. Picture one of Lena’s plain pizza rounds or a nice hefty slice of bread (7grain or Windfield Farms), laying there looking very lonely. So in the spirit of cooperation, you give it a generous coating of Mauthe’s cream cheese or one of Farmhouse Dairy’s velvety chevres. Then pile on the peaches – peeled and sliced, of course. Top with a sprinkling (or two) of brown sugar and pop it into a hot oven until it’s bubbly and delicious. Oh BTW, you’ll want to put that on a pan so all that deliciousness doesn’t drip onto the bottom of the oven. While that’s baking, brew a fresh pot of coffee (surely, you remembered to get a bag from Coast Roast.) Voila! Breakfast! Whoa! I feeeel good! Like I knew that I would! You could be singing all day long.
I know that the summer veggies are starting to wind down but there are still tomatoes to be found and squashes to be stuffed. I’ve seen new potatoes on the tables; they are sooo tasty when they are freshly harvested and roasted with a drizzle of Nuccio’s Cajun Olive Oil. It doesn’t matter what you serve them with – hamburger, roast, chicken, shrimp – and a side salad of tomato & cucumber bathed in Jennifer’s Basil Vinaigrette. Heaven! I’m in heaven! (Sorry, I promise I won’t burst into song again.)
Well, another birthday has come and gone and I don’t really feel any older. Steering clear of mirrors, I make my traditional pledge to eat better – and I do (no, really, I do) – but have you seen the cookie selection at the market? Oh, my goodness! Chocolate chip, wedding cookies, anise cookies, lemon crunchies, fig cookies, sinful almond croissants, oatmeal raisin (actually, they don’t count; aren’t they good for you?). There I go…falling off the wagon already. Ok, so technically I never really got on. Most of the time, I’m pretty good… but there are those times when it’s not visions of sugar plums dancing in my head but the thought of Suzie’s whoppin’ fat market cookies, Nanette’s raw almond bars, or Teresa’s orange almond biscotti. Enough of that, now, or I’ll never make it through the week.
But, it’s not the cookies that drew me to the market or kept me coming back. It’s the vendors and their passion for their products. It’s finding out what plant is suited to your garden or what makes grass finished beef best. It’s learning to add a little orange olive oil to the brownie mix or pineapple pepper jelly on your chicken or bleu cheese dressing to your hamburger. It’s the promise of freshly made cheeses, dressings, salsas, hummus. It’s local produce and fresh eggs, laughter, music, Tabasco’s rousing Cock-A-Doodle-Do…is it Market Day yet?
Lots of love,
Charlene LeJeune
Abundant Life Kitchen
The Covington Farmers’ Market is open each Wednesday, rain or shine, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Covington Trailhead, 419 N. New Hampshire and every Saturday from 8a.m. to 12p.m. on the side lawn of the Covington Police Station, 609 N. Columbia St. Call (985) 892-1873 for information or visit www.covingtonfarmersmarket.org
