I have my Lou and Michael Carrino has his Lou; I had to meet Mike's Lou! This morning at Restaurant Passionne I did.

Louis Tommaso and Lori Pittenger, owners of Pittenger Farm, located in Andover, NJ (actually Tranquility NJ) were at Restaurant Passionne as part of a monthly winter Farmer's Market put together by Chef Carrino.

What makes Pittenger meat special? Pittenger's cattle are all raised on pasteur and are feed hay, supplemented by corn silage, which is an entire corn stalk ground up. Unlike feed lot cows, the Pittenger cattle are antibiotic and hormone free.

The Pittenger lamb are fed hay, silage and are supplemented with mixed grains containing corn, soybeans and oats. Pittenger also raises Yorkshire cross and Bershire pigs

Among the Pittenger products for sale were Pittenger Farm meats, including the highly marbelized aged beef Porterhouse steaks, as well as beef jerky, local honey, preserves, pickles, relishes, and locally made goat's milk soap.

I went home a dozen pale blue "Martha Stewart" eggs. I cooked them up as soon as I got home and they were as farm eggs should be, flavorful, with a deep, rich yolk.

From June through late October LL Pittenger is at the Blairstown Farmers Market on Saturdays, and the Olde Lafayette village Farmers Market on Sundays.

For more pics, visit the gallery.