An apple a day...

Of course, it probably could have been a drier day... when we had originally planned to go apple-picking, raincoats, umbrellas and water-proof shoes were not supposed to be part of the package. But the freaky September weather being what it is and the remnants of Hurricane Ike coming our way, fruit-picking (apples and raspberries) at Wasem Fruit Farm included a fair amount of dodging and darting about. The good thing was everyone had fun- rain or no rain- the kids were especially game and they came all prepared with their adorable raincoats and galoshes :)

What made apple-picking most exciting for me though was the entire experience of picking fresh fruit, and then having it lovingly prepared that very day. Wendy thoughtfully prepared pie dough in advance and our afternoon was spent just hanging out at the Cooneys and basking in the deliriously wondrous smell and flavor of homemade apple pie. And it was the BEST apple pie I've ever tasted- the apple pie against which all apple pies will now be forever measured, in no small measure due, I'm sure, to Wendy's awesome crust, and simply how fresh and delicious those apples were.

It's this intensely intimate relationship with food that's one of the greatest arguments for supporting local farmers. Not only are you assured that your food is humanely and responsibly grown, you help sustain the efforts of famers who strive to do so. The other thing that occurred to me yesterday was how inspiring it is to cook according to the seasons. I'd never really thought about it before until watching Wendy bake her pie- to cook with ingredients that are at their peak of flavor and not just bland, generic-tasting food you can get all-year round at the supermarket because they've been industrially produced. Cooking and eating seasonally situates your food in a time and place, and in that sense, makes the experience a very particular memory. So even though apples are available all-year round, as I go through the two crisper drawers full of apples in our fridge and now and forever more, every time I eat or cook with apples, I'm going to associate it with that one cusp-of-Fall rainy day, when picking apples had everything to do with raincoats, umbrellas and water-proof shoes :)