Sky Top Orchard

On Thursday, while attending the beer tasting at The Growler Station, mine and B's conversation went a little something like this:

B: We should go to an orchard up in North Carolina on Saturday. Do you want to?
Me: Ooooh, yeah, let's!

And that was that. The more I learn, the more I've started getting a little concerned about what we put in our bodies and where it comes from. Apples that we pick ourselves is about as close as we're going to get to the farm-to-table concept (or rather, orchard to kitchen counter, but anyway).

So this morning we woke ourselves up at 8:00 to put the dog in the car and drive the hour to Sky Top Orchard in Hendersonville, NC. I'd heard several people talk about it, so I was super-excited. After a brief detour to downtown Hendersonville to the Wells Fargo ATM (Sky Top is cash-only), we drove up a long and windy road, parked haphazardly where indicated along the side of said road, and entered the delightful zoo that is the orchard. We arrived around 9:30, and it was already crowded with people, especially families with kids. And when we left at 11...the crowds, oh my goodness, the crowds. If you ever go, go EARLY. Or on a weekday. But anyway.

We had heard many good things about the apple cider doughnuts, so we began our day with a hearty and amazing breakfast. These doughnuts are hot, crumbly, cider-y, cinnamon-y, sugary goodness. After our bellies were happy, we grabbed a bucket and began the adventure of apple picking. Sweet Luna was so well-behaved and loved all the new smells to sniff. We had fun picking our own food. The weather was lovely, and we even ran into some good friends, their two kids' and the wife's parents while we were there. It was a really delightful day.

But the best part is, we ended up with something like 30 apples, so stay tuned for a LOT of apple-based recipes. I'll give you a teaser...there's going to be some applesauce, but this recipe has a super secret ingredient to give it an amazing kick. And that's just the beginning. Enjoy the pics...recipes coming soon!

We had one tired pup on the way home. Luna says picking apples is too much hard work!