Orchard Fresh Blog
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September 20, 2011
Top 10 Reasons to Pick Apples at Weaver's Orchard
Thinking of going apple picking this season? Well, here are 10 reasons that picking apples here is a fun and unique experience.
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September 15, 2011
Tasty "Apple Bugs!"
Every time Apple Season rolls around I begin to get a craving for my Dad's apple dip. He developed this recipe for my brother and I when we were younger-- it was his ploy to get us to eat more fruit. (I think it worked!) On Saturday, my four-year-old and I went for a walk through the orchard and picked a few apples. On Sunday, I was trying to come up with a creative snack idea for my son's first day of preschool, so I made this scrumptious apple dip. It was such a hit with my boys I had to seal it in a container and hide it at the back of my refrigerator.
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September 6, 2011
Johnny Appleseed Comes to Visit this Saturday!
Every time Apple Season rolls around I begin to get a craving for my Dad's apple dip. He developed this recipe for my brother and I when we were younger-- it was his ploy to get us to eat more fruit. (I think it worked!) On Saturday, my four-year-old and I went for a walk through the orchard and picked a few apples. On Sunday, I was trying to come up with a creative snack idea for my son's first day of preschool, so I made this scrumptious apple dip. It was such a hit with my boys I had to seal it in a container and hide it at the back of my refrigerator.
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August 25, 2011
A Wild Way to Pick Berries
Picking fruit is truly Edenic. Picking fruit in the wild brings it to a whole new level. Ever since I was a kid growing up on a 17-acre horse farm surrounded by the same woods that back up to the orchard, I've picked my fair share of wild berries. I even remember finding a cherry tree in the woods and picking enough berries to bake a pie! Usually though, I wasn't as determined to keep my forages and consumed most of what I picked before it made it to my bucket. This summer, I set out to pick as much fruit (wild or domesticated) as I could with a plan to preserve it for later use. My husband recently started asking for fresh fruit juice in his lunch, so I've been picking, juicing and then freezing about as much fruit as I possibly have the time to pick!
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August 11, 2011
Just Peachy Baked Oatmeal
Peach season is in full swing here at our orchard. I love going for evening golf cart rides through the peach trees and taking a deep breath. You can actually smell the peaches growing on the trees!
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June 23, 2011
Blueberry Picking and Baby Blueberry Blues!
It's hard for me to believe this is almost the end of June. Life at the Orchard is running at a regular (sometimes frantic) pace. The number of tractors and equipment buzzing by our door has provided constant entertainment for the boys. The fruit seems to be ripening so fast I can't keep track of what's available. On a daily walk this week, I discovered some ripe blueberries! My boys and I ended up picking about 13 quarts, with their two Aunties' help, and we put most of them away in the freezer. My 15 month old loved picking, or should I say he loved eating while we were picking. He probably ate close to a quart of blueberries and he has officially become the biggest blueberry fan I know (besides me)!
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June 14, 2011
Aunt Kathy's Blueberry Muffins
Blueberries are in full swing this week, the boys and I have done a little bit of picking almost every day. We even discovered a secret spot that my oldest son dubbed 'the cookie patch', because according to him the berries are the size of small cookies! This weekend would be a great time to come out with your family to pick some of our blueberries. I'm sorry though-- I think my boys have cleaned out the 'cookie patch' spot but there is still plenty of berries out there --who knows maybe you'll find your own special spot!
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June 7, 2011
Story Time Fun in the Orchard Sun!
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June 2, 2011
Create your own Strawberry Patch Memories
My youngest son is 15 months old and he is crazy about berries! I never knew a kid his age could polish down half a quart of strawberries in one sitting. He's sneaky and fast too, often swiping the strawberries off of my kitchen counter and gobbling them up while my back is turned. Because he is so passionate about berries, I thought it would be entertaining to see how he would react to the bountiful supply of berries in the strawberry patch. So we decided to take a family golf cart ride out to the patch on Sunday night and let our boys loose in the patch. Our little strawberry guy took one look at the millions of berries surrounding him and promptly plopped down in middle of the patch and began eating every berry with in sight-- stems and all! My oldest three year old was also fun to watch. He has more refined tastes and enjoyed walking through the patch inspecting each berry on the plant before picking it to make sure it met his criteria for redness and size. Afternoons like this are what memories are made of.
