How ya like them apples?

Sundays are our one family day together so we try to make a point of going somewhere whether that be a hike on Mount Tamalpais, or checking out a local so state park or just BBQing in Tilden Park. It always feels like a waste of a Sunday if we just laze around the apartment. This Sunday I woke up, turned to Rob in bed and said "It's September. I want to pick apples today." I have no idea why this suddenly had to happen since I've never actually picked apples, September or otherwise. But for whatever reason, it was non-negotiable. I did a quick internet search and found a grass-fed beef farm in Petaluma called Chileno Valley Ranch (about an hour from us) that also happens to have a U-Pick apple orchard during the months of September and October. On Sundays only. Ba-duh-bing! We packed up and drove out only to get lost way too many times. Seriously, it was just one of those days. We probably doubled our drive time. But anyway, we finally made it to the ranch in time to pick the apples.

 

 

 



Almost as an afterthought the owners warned us about yellow jackets but as you can see, they were no afterthought. About a third of the apples were demolished by the bees but it wasn't really a big deal considering the branches were LOADED with fruit.

 

 

Ophelia wasn't all that interested in actually picking the fruit however dropping it into the bag was a favorite. The of course we showed her the cows (and chickens) and she mooed happily for the rest of the harvest.

 

 

 

 



 

 

In all we picked about 12 lbs of fruit, even throwing in some of their Asian pears. The bag was about twice as full as this picture when we were done. Of all people, Rob couldn't stop talking about how amazing it was, how great of a deal the apples were and how we should come back in the next couple of weeks for more apples. It didn't take me very long to figure out he'd scheming to make some hard apple cider. He tried a batch with store apple juice a few months back and it was pretty dismal. He says he's worked out the kink in the recipe and just needs to try again. In theory I'm all for this. I'm a huge cider fan. But if we buy fifty bucks worth of apples and it flops again it will be a pretty expensive mistake. Guess I don't have much say in it though...

 

 

 

I think we'll be using these apples to make some delicious apple sauce for our applesauce-loving baby. I can't say I've actually made it before but it's gotta be delicious...it's homemade!

 

 

Well folks, it's official. Fall is here and I'm loving it!

 

xoxo

 

Mama Macgyver