All About Apples
I certainly do love a good, old-fashioned alliterative tile, and it had been much too long since we'd had one here on the blog- wouldn't you agree? Well, that's one thing taken care of, then! So on to apples!
Mr. Mersy and I joined M & Z for a day of apple picking at an orchard just north of the city. The drive was phenomenal, winding through the hills along the Hudson, with nearly neon foliage surrounding us. We were leaf peepers and loving it! I'm glad it's possible to scamper away from the city and find yourself in the hills and forest so quickly.
It was great to be out and about with such wonderful peeps (Penny was there, too!), but I have to admit that our orchard experience in NY couldn't hold a candle to Illinois. This isn't coming from some misplaced, stubborn sense of homesick nostalgia- I promise! It's just that an orchard should be a peaceful, calm, family-centered, warm place, not packed with thousands of city dwellers wandering around with cups of beer. I'm just continually shocked at how many otherwise potentially lovely experiences in this area are detrimentally shaped by overwhelming numbers of sometimes unpleasant people trying to fly away from the day-to-day urban life and acting very competitively along the way. It was a nice day out, but it just wasn't how it should be. I do have to say, however, that the farm animals were clearly very lovingly cared for and very clean and well fed, and totally happy!
We did find some solitude in the orchards, and we relished that wonderful fermenting smell of apples that had fallen from the heavily laden branches. Apple trees always look so short and stout to me, as if they were about to begin flexing their arms and walking about, hurumphing about something or other!
When we returned home, we hung our Indian corn on the cracked green door of our apartment and I made a batch of apple salsa. It's fantastic- that perfect combo of sweet and sour and savory with just a little kick to keep it interesting. Here's what's in it:
Jalapeno, red onion, red bell pepper, apples, cilantro, salt, honey, and lime juice. And here's the final product, ready for munching:
If you're ever feelin' blue, just close your eyes and let yourself sit quietly under an apple tree in the afternoon sun- preferably in Illinois! ; )
Lots of love,
~Mersyodtes
Mr. Mersy and I joined M & Z for a day of apple picking at an orchard just north of the city. The drive was phenomenal, winding through the hills along the Hudson, with nearly neon foliage surrounding us. We were leaf peepers and loving it! I'm glad it's possible to scamper away from the city and find yourself in the hills and forest so quickly.
It was great to be out and about with such wonderful peeps (Penny was there, too!), but I have to admit that our orchard experience in NY couldn't hold a candle to Illinois. This isn't coming from some misplaced, stubborn sense of homesick nostalgia- I promise! It's just that an orchard should be a peaceful, calm, family-centered, warm place, not packed with thousands of city dwellers wandering around with cups of beer. I'm just continually shocked at how many otherwise potentially lovely experiences in this area are detrimentally shaped by overwhelming numbers of sometimes unpleasant people trying to fly away from the day-to-day urban life and acting very competitively along the way. It was a nice day out, but it just wasn't how it should be. I do have to say, however, that the farm animals were clearly very lovingly cared for and very clean and well fed, and totally happy!
We did find some solitude in the orchards, and we relished that wonderful fermenting smell of apples that had fallen from the heavily laden branches. Apple trees always look so short and stout to me, as if they were about to begin flexing their arms and walking about, hurumphing about something or other!
When we returned home, we hung our Indian corn on the cracked green door of our apartment and I made a batch of apple salsa. It's fantastic- that perfect combo of sweet and sour and savory with just a little kick to keep it interesting. Here's what's in it:
Jalapeno, red onion, red bell pepper, apples, cilantro, salt, honey, and lime juice. And here's the final product, ready for munching:
If you're ever feelin' blue, just close your eyes and let yourself sit quietly under an apple tree in the afternoon sun- preferably in Illinois! ; )
Lots of love,
~Mersyodtes
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