Central Chicago from Lincoln Park

Today's post is a little detour from what I normally talk about here. It was such a great Chicago kind of weekend for John and I, so I decided to share a little of what makes this city (and the Midwest) such a great place to live in. While many people complain about winter and cold grey weather, it was almost impossible to complain about the weather this weekend, which was not only almost perfect, but also reminded me of one of the things that is so great about the Midwest in the summer: fresh produce. In the summer, Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana and Illinois produce some of the most wonderful fruits and vegetables you can imagine. The only problem? Chicago is not exactly farm country and in spite of what you might think, even in the summer our grocery stores sell a lot of unappetizing produce. So, on Saturday morning, John and I headed off to check out something I've wanted to know more about for a while:

Green City Market

The Green City Market is a market that is meant to connect very high quality small farms with chefs, restauranteurs and the general public. It's located in the south end of Lincoln Park (the actual park, not the location in the city) every Wednesday and Saturday morning in the summer. It's a project that has been spearheaded by many of Chicago's prominent chefs who are interested in serving foods that support local farms and sustainable and organic farming practices. Anyone who comes to sell their wares there must be certified organic and must be dedicated to sustainable farming practices (along with a host of other credentials). Not surprisingly it is composed of a relatively small and select group of farmers and small businesses. Since we had such a nice time Saturday afternoon, I thought I'd give you all a little photo tour of what we found there.

Green Acres Farm (Indiana) Booth

We bought some of the most wonderful baby greens from Green Acres Farm, as well as some really splendid fresh garlic (which I took home and sliced into some special olive oil along with some basil from our garden). Another great find? Fresh asparagus from a farm that I (unfortunately) can't remember the name of.

Ripe Tomatoes

Apparently it is time for the early tomatoes to come in. Neither John nor I eats tomatoes (unless they are in a sauce), but I still thought that they looked beautiful sitting on the tables of the several vendors who brought them.

Simply Wool

And lest you think that there will be no fibery content today at all, here's the Simply Wool booth that was featuring hand-dyed natural wool yarns. I didn't get a chance to talk to her, but some of the colors were really lovely, and apaprently she will also do custom colors.

Green City Market Crepe Booth

Some festivals feature fried Twinkies. This market featured fresh made crepes and panini sandwiches. John and I decided that we had to stop for a crepe made with fresh strawberry preserves. Yum! Even more fun when you get to watch your crepe being made in front of your eyes.

Musical Entertainment

Our shopping and crepe eating was accompanied by this lovely string group playing folksy music. How can you not love the idea of a huge string bass in the middle of Lincoln Park?

Before we left, we had also bought a steak produced by Heartland Meats. This farm features Piedmontese cattle which are a special breed that is lower fat but not lower in tenderness. Not only is the meat hormone free, but the farm grows its own non-GMO to feed the cattle and ensure the high quality of the product. For dinner, John and I had a wonderful salad with the baby greens, and John grilled up the steak and the asparagus. We had an almost entirely "organic" meal that was just wonderful.

Our only regret for the day? That we didn't get to the Market early enough to get a chance to grab some of the strawberries that some of the producers sold out of. Is there anything better than farm fresh strawberries in early June? Almost nothing to a midwestern girl like me.