Courtesy Terhune Orchards
Apple picking season (their 40th!) at Terhune Orchards starts at the Van Kirk Road orchard on September 5. They’ll be open for picking every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., weather permitting, through October. Beginning picking starts with Jonamac and Jonathan varieties. (If you can’t wait, you’ll find some Galas ready to pick now at the “home farm” on Cold Soil Road.)
And here’s a wonderful thing – their apple trees are dwarf varieties, making it easy for children or adults to pick! Their orchard staff will direct you to rows loaded with perfectly ripe, juicy apples and even demonstrate the best way to pick them.
Also note that Terhune’s annual Apple Day weekend is September 12 and 13 (10am-5pm), kicking off eight weeks of festival fun. (Check the website for details.)
To find out which varieties are available on the day of your visit, call the farm store at 609-924-2310.
Throughout the 2015 season you may find:
Early Fuji- eat this sweet, crisp apple right out of hand
Empire- juicy, perfect for applesauce, pies, desserts
Fuji- very sweet, crisp, fresh eating, long storage life
Golden Delicious- sweet eating apple, good for pies, baking, aromatic
Granny Smith – tart, all-purpose
Jonamac – peels easily, use in crisps and sauce
Jonathan- crisp, mildly tart, great for pie
Liberty- red skin, juicy flesh
McIntosh- aromatic, cooks quickly, easy to peel
Macoun- very crunchy, fresh eating, salads and sauces
Red Delicious- sweet, juicy, low acidity
Stayman Winesap- Our most popular apple, flavorful, tart, keeps well
But if you don’t want to pick your own, the farm store always has apples, too, along with recipes like this Mount family favorite below. This sounds like the perfect apple cake to me, especially since the pan is greased and sugared.
Mama’s Apple Cake:
1 cup cooking oil
2 eggs, beat until foamy
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 cups Terhune Orchards apples, chopped, peeled & cored
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
½ cup nuts or raisins (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the oil and sugar until very well mixed. Add the eggs and vanilla. Sift the dry ingredients and blend in. Fold in apples. Pour batter into a greased and sugared Bundt pan. Bake for one hour. Let the cake cool thoroughly before removing from the pan.
NJ SPICE 