Craving Comfort Food in the Fall

“I know the look of an apple that is roasting and sizzling on the hearth on a winter’s evening, and I know the comfort that comes of eating it hot, along with some sugar and a drench of cream.” Mark Twain

This is one of my favorite times of the year, when the weather turns a little crisp, the leaves are golden, and the sky is cerulean blue. My brother, sister, and I always drive up to the Shenandoah Mountains to visit my aunt and pick up several pints of the scrumptious apple butter that she and the ladies of Lebanon Baptist Church put up every fall.

The small towns around Winchester, Virginia used to once solely exist on the prolific apple orchards in the region, and still today, celebrate apple harvest with festivals, apple candy, apple butter, and bushels of the delectable orbs at every road-side stand.

My home state of Virginia is blessed with a perfect climate for apple orchards, and the rich soil yields 11 different varieties throughout the summer and fall.

Pick your own apples at Carter Mountain Orchard in Charlottesville or Wood’s Orchard in Hampton. You pay by the pound (prices vary with the variety), and both orchards also sell a wide array of jams, jellies, and cider.

CARTER MOUNTAIN ORCHARD HARVEST FESTIVAL
1435 Carters Mountain Trail
Charlottesville, VA
(434) 977-1833 or see www.cartermountainorchard.com for details and directions


WOOD’S ORCHARDS
Pick your own year round from 9-6 Monday-Friday or 9-5 on Saturday
183 E. Mercury Blvd.
Hampton, VA 23669
(757) 722-2873

http://www.visitwinchesterva.com/

Photo courtesy of the Winchester-Frederick County CVB