The "It's Apple Season!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Just got finished with looking for a pumpkin and now it's time to pick some apples.  When the leaves begin to turn fall colors you know it is time to begin picking.  In Lancaster County, Pennsylvania there are quite a few orchards with pick-yourself options.  

Great time of year for picking apples.

Take the family along and see how much fun you may have spending the day picking apples. A few orchards that are in Lancaster have names such as Cherry Hill Orchards, Weaver's Orchard, Flinchbaugh's Orchard & Farm Market, Brecknock Orchard, Kauffman's Fruit Farm & Market and the Masonic Village Farm Market & Orchard.  This year's supply of apples seems to be exceptionally good this year, since there was plenty of moisture this summer in Lancaster County which helped the apples grow larger.  Most orchards allow picking Monday thru Saturdays and 9:00 am until late afternoon.  Some of the varieties available for picking this time of year are the Fuji, Cameo, Idared, Pink Lady, Stayman and Granny Smith.  Most all are great for snacking, baking and cooking.  The Fuji has a very sweet flavor and is juicy.  The Cameo has a sweet-tart flavor with hints of honey and citrus.  The Idared has a mild flavor with a hint of spice.  The Pink Lady is effervescent with a crunchy bite.  It tends to have a thicker skin than other apples.  The Granny Smith has a mouth-puckering tart flavor and was the choice of my mom and wife for use in making apple dumplings and applesauce.  In both my childhood household and my grown household apple dumplings constitute a meal in itself.  

Nice warm apple dumpling with milk...or ice cream is great.

Warm apple dumpling with cold milk and a spoonful of sugar is a great meal.  Usually can eat two or three apple dumplings depending on their size.  There are quite a few other varieties of apples, but the varieties I have mentioned are the apples that come into season during this month.  Maybe you can make a trip to pick a basket of apples as well as find your perfect pumpkin.  Enjoy both!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.