Madelyn goes to market

let’s face it. this blog would not be possible if i had a job right now (oh, and was without a really supportive  fiance who helps me sustain my farmers market habit!). many of the markets are during the work week and in neighborhoods where most chicagoans live, not work. however there are four weekday farmers markets conveniently located in the confines of the loop to sate working folks’ appetite for farm fresh food. this is part one of a thrilling four-part series on downtown farmers markets.

before visiting any downtown markets, my expectations were that they a) would be smaller, b) would likely be limited in what they offer and c) may not have the best produce around because of their smaller size.

the first one i went to was the prudential plaza market and while it is smaller (only about 9 booths) and limited in offerings, this was certainly a case of quality over quantity. it is tucked back a bit on beaubien court which is at lake street on the east side of michigan. my strategy at every farmers market is to casually scope out the goods at each booth first and then decide where to purchase. this was a little more difficult at prudential plaza since i was the only person there at 9 am but it will always hold a special place in my heart because it is where i discovered a newfound love for peas.

this was a few weeks ago so i think peas may be on their way out by now, but a guy at one of the booths (wish i could remember the name!) told me to try an english pea right out of the pod and i was astounded by how good it was and how different it tasted from the frozen peas i’ve eaten (and despised) in the past. they also had sugar snap peas and snow peas. i bought a pint of all three, knowing that i’d enjoy them even if  i just ate them raw.

at that same producer, they had some of the first strawberries of the season and several different varieties. i must note that having been to several other farmers markets, most strawberry producers only offer one generic kind of strawberry labeled ‘michigan’, so this is place was special. i chose a pint of jewels (that’s the name of the variety). i also grabbed some wisconsin manchego and greens (see picture below) but i decided to devote dinner that night to peas and strawberries. not together of course.

i found a recipe on epicurious.com for a three-pea stir-fry, adapted it a bit for using fresh english peas instead of frozen peas and served it with rice so it could be filling enough for a main course. turns out, the peas were almost as good cooked as they are raw.

i also can rarely go without dessert, so i pulled out the good ol’ tartine bakery cookbook and found a recipe for strawberry shortcake with berry-caramel sauce. they say to make their own whip cream, but that was one too many steps for me, so i just used store-bought ice cream instead.

both recipes are below. enjoy!

oh, and if you work anywhere near the michigan and lake area, i would highly recommend this farmers market. it’s well worth the trip on your lunch break!

hours: every tuesday through october from 7am to 3 pm
location: prudential building plaza at lake street and beaubien court

• three pea stir-fry with white rice
• ingredients
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
• 6 oz sugar snap peas, trimmed and cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces
• 6 oz snow peas, trimmed and cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces
• 1 cup shelled english peas
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
• 1 cup white rice

preparation
cook rice according to package instructions . in the meantime, heat vegetable oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then stir-fry garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes until fragrant, about 1 minute. add sugar snaps and snow peas and stir-fry until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. add fresh peas and stir-fry until hot, about 1 minute. remove from heat, then stir in soy sauce and sesame oil. sprinkle with sesame seeds and season with salt.

strawberry shortcake with berry-caramel sauce and ice cream
ingredients – biscuits
2 1/2 cups + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 tsp salt
7 tbsp unsalted butter, very cold
1 cup heavy cream, very cold
1/4 cup heavy cream for brushing tops
2 tbsp sugar for topping

ingredients – berry-caramel sauce
2/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 vanilla bean
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp light corn syrup
3/4 tsp lemon juice
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup strawberries

2 pints strawberries

preparation
preheat oven to 425 and butter a baking sheet.

sift the flour and baking powder together into a mixing bowl. add the sugar and salt. cut the butter into 1/2-inch cues and scatter the cubes over the dry ingredients. using 2 knives, cut the butter into the dry ingredients (i know, it’s a pain to do it by hand versus with an electric mixer, but tartine recommends it and i’ve found that shortcake and scone recipes work better if you mix them by hand). you want to end up with a coarse mixture with pea-sized lumps of butter visible. make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the cream. gently mix the dough together wiht a wooden spoon or your hands but don’t overmix. it should look a bit shaggy at this point. turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and pat into a smooth ball. dust the top with flour and roll out gently about 1 inch thick. Using a 4-inch round cookie cutter (or a glass), cut out as many circles as possible. gather up the scraps, reroll them and cut out add’l circles. place the circles on the prepared sheet pan. brush the tops with the cream and sprinkle with the sugar. bake the biscuits until the tops are golden, 10 to 12 mins. to test for doneness, gently split a biscuit on the side to see if the dough has cooked all the way through. let cool for 15 minutes on a wire rack.

while the biscuits are baking and cooling, make the caramel sauce. pour the cream into a small, heavy saucepan. split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape the seeds into the cream. place over medium-high heat and bring to just under a boil, stirring occasionally. reduce the heat to low to keep the cream warm. in a medium, heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, water, salt and corn syrup. bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. then cook, without stirring, until the mixture is amber colored, 5 to 8 minutes. remove from heat. carefully and slowly add the cream to the sugar syrup. the mixture will boil vigorously at first. let the mixture simmer down and then whisk until smooth. add the lemon juice. let cool for about 10 minutes. cut the butter into 1-inch chunks and add them to the caramel one at a time, whisking constantly after each addition. once butter is mixed in, add 1/2 cup of the strawberries. place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the berries have exuded their juices and the caramel has reduced a bit, about 10 mins. remove the sauce from the heat and let stand until warm.

to assemble the shortcakes, split the biscuits horizontally and put the bases, cut side up, on individual plates. add a scoop of ice cream and divide the remaining the 2 pints of strawberries evenly among the bases, spooning them on top. top the berries evenly with the warm sauce. put the tops on, cut side down. serve immediately.