I had never picked apples until today, and I’d highly recommend a stroll through the local orchard on a warm autumn day if you have the time to spare. My niece and nephew were supposed to be coming into town this weekend, and so we decided a visit to a nearby orchard and fall festival would be a pleasant way to entertain. Unfortunately, everybody became ill at one point or another this past week, so my family did not make the trip down from New England. That didn’t deter us, however, and joined by friends, Kate and Yvan and their adorable daughter Clara, we spent the afternoon meandering through rows of apple trees at the Highland Orchards, sampling the local fujis, winesaps, stamens and a mysterious yellow apple that just wasn’t quite golden delicious. We climbed trees in search of the perfect apple, tiptoed around the pulp lining the shady corridors of apple trees and sidestepped the flies, hornets and bees dining on the fallen fruit littering the orchard floor. Thoughts of Newton and Eden can’t be helped in the serenity of an apple orchard, and it was a perfect way to spend a sunny, fall afternoon.
But the true highlight of the day was the fine food and drink and the enchanting pumpkins and gourds at the small festival by the orchard’s entrance. Chilled apple cider, whole-wheat-chocolate-chip cookies, pumpkin ice cream, fresh baked brownies and a bag of funions (one of the only delicacies that have ever rivaled cheese balls…) slaked our thirst and gorged our stomachs. There were pumpkins big and small, “spooky pumpkins” which looked just like all the other pumpkins but cost a fraction of the rest, turkish turbans, an oddity of the natural order unlike anything I have seen, and crates of gourds in every shape imaginable.
The highlight of the market was the gigantic, exercise-ball-sized pumpkins that were an undeniable steal at a mere 25 dollars. Candy apples, caramel covered apples, whoopee-pies, broccoli the size of my head and countless other vegetable-lover delights overflowed from the crates and baskets lining the farmers’ market. My stomach isn’t quite right though the festival is now hours behind me, but it was a delightful day on the farm, and it was wonderful to see so many kids so happy and excited with no I-pods, cell phones, video games or televisions in sight. Just good old fresh air, hay and bushels and pecks of apples.
But the true highlight of the day was the fine food and drink and the enchanting pumpkins and gourds at the small festival by the orchard’s entrance. Chilled apple cider, whole-wheat-chocolate-chip cookies, pumpkin ice cream, fresh baked brownies and a bag of funions (one of the only delicacies that have ever rivaled cheese balls…) slaked our thirst and gorged our stomachs. There were pumpkins big and small, “spooky pumpkins” which looked just like all the other pumpkins but cost a fraction of the rest, turkish turbans, an oddity of the natural order unlike anything I have seen, and crates of gourds in every shape imaginable.
The highlight of the market was the gigantic, exercise-ball-sized pumpkins that were an undeniable steal at a mere 25 dollars. Candy apples, caramel covered apples, whoopee-pies, broccoli the size of my head and countless other vegetable-lover delights overflowed from the crates and baskets lining the farmers’ market. My stomach isn’t quite right though the festival is now hours behind me, but it was a delightful day on the farm, and it was wonderful to see so many kids so happy and excited with no I-pods, cell phones, video games or televisions in sight. Just good old fresh air, hay and bushels and pecks of apples.
No comments:
Post a Comment