Posts Tagged ‘local farms’

Blueberry Picking

Posted on August 23rd, 2011 by Tonia 6 Comments

{Alternate title: Kurplunk!}

It’s the tail-end of blueberry season ’round these parts, which means the bushes are loaded and the berries are tastier than ever. The plants can sense that fall is closing in, and they think, “Crap! Must procreate!” and they put all their energy into beautiful fruit. Yum.

My aunt, uncle, and two cousins were visiting from Chicago and we got the berry-picking itch. Blue Vista is one of my favorite places to pick because their farm is gorgeous- perched on a hill overlooking Lake Superior- and they’re organic, so we headed north with visions of blueberry pancakes and muffins and pies to come.

Blueberries here, raspberries behind us.

A blue heron overhead, the big lake below.

Whole handfuls of berries coming off the bush all at once.

“She picked three more berries and ate them. Then she picked more berries and dropped one in the pail-Kurplunk! And the rest she ate.” -McCloskey, R. (1976). Blueberries for Sal. New York: Viking Press.

What beautiful girls my cousins are…

And yet they can make the weirdest faces…

Hmmm, yes, I do believe we are related. Except, why are they so tall and I am so short? Unfair.

Local Wheat Berry Salad

Posted on July 27th, 2011 by Tonia No Comments

Let me count the ways in which I love Maple Hill Farm. It’s right down the road from us, which makes shopping pretty easy. They do pigs, wheat/flour, veggies, soap, yarn, and more. They’re super friendly, happy to answer questions and spend time visiting whenever we drop in.

I brought home some of their wheat berries the other day and made this recipe with them. It was so fresh, summery, and filling {I wish I had doubled the batch because just the two of us gobbled it all down immediately.}

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked farro or wheat berries
1 cup shelled green peas (about 3/4 pound unshelled)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup cubed seeded watermelon
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) shaved fresh pecorino Romano cheese

Steps:

1. Place wheat berries in a large saucepan, and cover with water to 2 inches above berries. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 23 minutes or until desired degree of doneness.
2. Add green peas to pan with wheat berries, and cook for 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and rinse berry mixture with cold water; drain.
3. Combine berry mixture, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper in a large bowl. Add the watermelon cubes and 1 cup chopped parsley, and toss gently to combine. Top with pecorino cheese.

Enjoy!

Adventures in Jam Making, part one

Posted on July 14th, 2011 by Tonia 8 Comments

Yesterday we got up bright and early and headed to Bayfield, a beautiful little town known for its plethora of apple and cherry orchards and berry patches.

Bayfield is situated just so on the peninsula that it’s basically incubated by Lake Superior and the growing season is a whole zone better than it is at our house, just 12 miles to the south. Hence, fruit-growers have flocked to the area and set up shop on every south-facing slope that could be found.

The whole town is full of picturesque orchards {most with ancient, twisted, gnarly rootstocks that have been re-grafted onto many times in their life.} It’s a pretty magical place. We’re lucky to live so near to it, yet far enough away that we’re not quite so bombarded with tourists all summer long.

Anyway, our mission in Bayfield was to pick strawberries, and we chose Northwind Farm because they grow organically and because the farm and homestead is 100% powered by the wind and sun. Even the car has a solar-panel.

The owner, Tom, showed us to a patch ripe for picking and set us loose.

It was pretty glorious out there in the early morning sun, the smell of strawberry hanging in the air, the chickens clucking away behind us, and the crickets singing.

In fact, it was down-right romantic! I love working quietly away at the same task with Mike. We’re both in our element when our hands and minds are busy yet we’re relaxed…not in a rush to be somewhere else or do something else; not thinking about the To Do list at home. Something about the smell of strawberries is romantic, too.

We picked almost 20 lbs. and then moseyed home to begin the jam making {oh, if only we had known at that point how incredibly unprepared we were for how much work jam making is!}

To be continued