FOOD: Ocean Beach Farmer's Market

i love cooking and experimenting with new recipes and i am also into using fresh ingredients and supporting local farmers...which brought me to the OCEAN BEACH FARMER'S MARKET today. i used to go as a poor college student to get free samples of hummus, salsa, tamales, fish, etc (the equivalent to one dinner)...and now i enjoy purchasing the fresh, seasonal produce. the farmer's market is held every wednesday from about 3:30- 8pm and is located on Newport St. the crowd is very eclectic and the vendors are extremely friendly: even offering tips and recipes. today was especially cold outside and while buying my broccoli (a sweet old lady was kind enough to split the 3 lb. bunch with me) i was given a great recipe for broccoli cheese soup:




Broccoli Cheese Soup
Ingredients:
-1 chopped onion
-tbsp olive oil
-2 minced garlic cloves
-3 cups fat free chicken OR veggie broth
-1 bunch of broccoli (cut 1 inch off the bottom of the stem)
-2 1/2 cups plain soy milk (or reg. milk)
-1/3 cup whole wheat flour
-1/4 tsp pepper
-8 ounces shredded soy cheddar or sharp cheese
-1/2 cup soy parmesan cheese

Heat olive oil in a large pan, add the onion and garlic; saute until tender (3 min). Add broth and broccoli; bring to a boil over med-high heat. Reduce to med and cook for 10 minutes.
Combine milk and flour; stir with whisk until well blended. Add milk mixture to broccoli mixture; cook 5 min or until slightly thick, stirring constantly. Stir in pepper. Remove from heat and stir in cheese.
Place 1/3 of soup in a blender and process until smooth. Return pureed soup mixture to pan.
Serve with warm french bread from Con Pane.
Enjoy!