Martin's Hillside Orchard

Explore the Orchard

Last Weekend of the Season! – November 4 & 5

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Come on out and pick the last apples of the season.

The Pink Lady Apple – We are proud to share our first crop of of Pink Lady apples EVER!  Developed in Australia, they are crunchy with a great sweet/tart balance. Great for eating and one of the top baking apples according to Bonappetit.

Note – For those who didn’t see the posting elsewhere, our raspberry picking season has come to an end.

Pardon our dents – Mother Nature treated us to a lovely hail storm the end of June.  So, you’ll find a fair number of apples decorated with hail marks.  But, hail marks or not, they still taste great and we hope you give even the “decorated” apples a try.

New this Fall

  • Separate entrance/exit – We’ve built a separate entrance to make checking in and out more streamlined and speedy to get you on your way.
  • Entry fee assessed upfront – We are charging the $4/entry fee upfront this year.  That fee then goes toward the purchase of your u-pick fruit when you check out.
  • Lots more in store – We’ve got some new snacks planned including gourmet caramel apples; new challenges for the kids, including a spider web they can climb on; t-shirts (how do you like those apples?), and, oh yes, a brand new look in the Apple Barn.

We look forward to seeing your crew out at the orchard this fall!

Ginger Pickled Peaches

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A Savory Twist – Ginger Pickled Peaches

 – Oh me, oh my!  If you are a vinegar fan, you will loooove these.  Simple and super flavorful.  Followed the recipe called out in Food in Jars although didn’t bother to process them in water bath.  Just popped the peaches in a canning jar with the hot brine and parked them in refrigerator.  They will go fast!

Only four ingredients – peaches, apple cider vinegar, sugar and fresh ginger. Great paired with savory items as well as sweet.

Savory – serve with grilled pork chops

Sweet – top a bowl of vanilla ice cream with this flavor combo or use quick filling for cobbler finished with bit of whipped cream.  Yummo

 

 

2017 Orchard Season

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Opening Weekend is 8/26-27 featuring peaches, gala apples, and raspberries. 

Pardon our dents – Mother Nature treated us to a lovely hail storm the end of June.  So, you’ll find a fair number of apples decorated with hail marks.  But, hail marks or not, they still taste great and we hope you give even the “decorated” apples a try.

New this Fall

  • Separate entrance/exit – We’ve built a separate entrance to make checking in and out more streamlined and speedy to get you on your way.
  • Entry fee assessed upfront – We are charging the $4/entry fee upfront this year.  That fee then goes toward the purchase of your u-pick fruit when you check out.
  • Lots more in store – We’ve got some new snacks planned including gourmet caramel apples; we’ve got new challenges for the kids, including a spider web they can climb on; and, oh yes, a brand new look in the Apple Barn.

We look forward to seeing your crew out at the orchard this fall!

Squash Mac and Cheese

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Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Cool fall weather has us thinking comfort food – soups, stews, risotto, etc.  This recipe caught our eye and it really satisfies.  One medium squash can make this recipes four times over.

Below is breakdown of the types of cheese we used, but you can mix and match to include all your favorites.

  • American cheese – a mainstay
  • Boursin cheese – the recipe called for a semisoft cheese with garlic and herbs.  We opted for Boursin just because we had some left from a wine & cheese tasting. Yummy!  Although it probably more than offset the health benefits of using squash.  Oops
  • Sharp cheddar – Yes, we added even more cheese.  A bit of sharp cheddar.  Feta might be a good choice as well.

Complete recipe from Better Homes & Gardens

Tips

  • Shredding squash – Initially, seemed kind of intimidating, but we didn’t want to muck up a food processor so we just shredded the squash with a food greater.  Worked well and didn’t take long.
  • Spicing it up – For those who like a little heat, we’d suggest adding some peppers.  We’re going to give that a shot next time around.

Butternut Squash Soup

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Butternut Squash Soup

Cool temps have us thinking of warm comfort foods. It’s soup weather, everyone!

We can definitely recommend the following (kid-tested and mom-approved):

1. With Cream – Roasted Butternut Squash Soup – we skipped the curry as a courtesy to the kids but think it would add a nice heat element; good with whole milk as a substitute for cream

2. Without Cream – Butternut Squash Bisque – to make it kid friendly, maybe skip the ginger? We love that flavor note, however. This particular blog post is authored by a cousin back east. Good stuff. Seems that we are all thinking comfort foods this time of year.