A-Day-A-Whey

While at a great little cheese shop in Williamsburg, Adrien and I picked up a flyer for a cheese and apple field trip:

"Join us for a trip to Sprout Creek Farm to see how cheese is made,
enjoy a farm-grown harvest meal, and go apple picking.

Just when you thought your weekends out of the city were coming to a
close, Saxelby Cheesemongers, Matthew Scott, Sprout Creek Farm, and
Barton Orchards invite you to spend a Saturday noshing in gorgeous New
York farm country! Sit back relax, and let us do the driving… all you
have to bring is your appetite.

Daytrippers will observe Sprout Creek's creamery in action, and watch
cheese being made first hand! Cheese maker Brent Wasser will explain
the process and hold a Q & A session for all those curious about the
mysteries of cheese! Visitors will then embark on a tour of the farm,
exploring Sprout Creek's gardens, barns, and on-farm market.

After the curds are out of the whey, a bountiful picnic lunch will be
served, prepared by the farm's staff of Culinary Institute of America
graduates. They will bring new meaning to the phrase 'eating local'
using ingredients grown right on the farm.

Sprout Creek is one of the most innovative working farms and education
centers in the country. Founded in 1990, it encompasses over 200
acres of farmland and produces artisanal cheeses, grass fed meats, and
vegetables. Our visit will be guided by Margo Morris, founder and
steam engine behind the farm's many educational programs, and her
talented staff.

As if all that weren't yummy enough… our trip will then head to Barton
Orchard for a few more hours of sunshine and pick your own apples. Be
sure to grab enough to make apple pie! We heard it is best when
garnished with a thick slice of Sprout Creek Cheese… "

This sounded like the best way to get out of the city, and see some of the famous upstate New York fall foliage. So we signed up and went out for an adventure. Here are a few pictures of our day-a-whey...











The creamery/ farm had lots of animals, including these adorable calves that were just a few days old.





These are a couple of pictures from the apple farm. A great expansive farm with at least a dozen varieties, ripe at various points during the fall. We picked Ida Reds, Fuji’s, Connell Test, Granny Smith, and a few mystery ones.



Here are our apples. So far Adrien has made an apple pie, and an apple and potato dish. I have been busy making apple German pancakes, apple ebelskeltzers (sp?), butternut squash and apple soup, apple turnovers, and apple and cheese sandwiches. We still have lots of apples left if anyone has any recipe ideas.

The first day of fall was 4 days ago. After having gone to bed with the ac running and awaking to a diferent season was a change we were unprepared for! Suddenly it's windy and cool with occasional showers, right on schedule.

With signs of winter already aproaching, karen thought it would be a good idea to show me around the new york botanical gardens, where she works. After seeing a small portion of it, I can tell you that it is expansive and gorgious, especially with the work of Dale Chihuly 'growing' amidst the plants.

I arrived in the afternoon just before the farmer's market closed up for the day. Karen and I went immediately to the conservatory to see the glass! The conservatory itself is a historic landmark and is over 100 years old.



Then we took the trolly through the magnolias and pines to the family farm, a great feature of the gardens. Here, families can plant private plots for a season like at a community garden and visiting group of children can experience small scale agriculture in the plots maintained by the gardens.



We walked back through the native forest on our way to where karen works, passing over the only natural river in new york city.

By this time, nearly 4 hours later we barely had enough energy to check out the gift shop and get to the train. We had dinner at grand central station before karen had to go to school.