Apple Cider- Innovation at work

What happens to all this left over produce when you close for the season?
This is a question asked by many of our customers.  We donate some to food banks and group homes through the generous effort of Patti, a wonderful customer, and her helpers.  The apples left this year have now been pressed into cider.

What is innovative about that, you may ask.
Apple cider has been around a long time, it's the process that is innovative.
Geissberger's Farmhouse Cider (www.farmhousecider.ca) in Durham Region just won the Ontario Farm Marketing Association Innovation Award sponsored by Foodland Ontario for their apple cider processing trailer.

We finally got a break in the weather this past weekend and were able to get our apples squeezed into cider.

Why this processing procedure?
As quoted from their website - "We provide sterile processing with high-tech equipment, innovative high temperature/ short time pasteurizer and convenient Bag-in-Box packaging.
The Bag-in-Box packaging system gives our ciders a shelf life of 1 year without preservatives or refrigeration.
The mobile mill meets all health regulations and is capable of processing and packaging up to 2 - 20 bushel bins of apples per hour, producing 500 litres of freshly-pressed pasteurized cider."  

I couldn't have said it better.

We were really excited to get our apples pressed into cider by them.  The 5 litre boxes will be available for sale when we open - first weekend in May.   We've booked them to come for the last Sunday in October to demonstrate the cider pressing at our farm.

Congratulations once again to the Geissbergers for providing a wonderful, innovative way of preserving the harvest.

Enjoy some pictures from our day pressing cider.  Jim had a good workout.

squeezing out the juice

Jim loading the apples

apple pulp getting wrapped for pressing

cider into the bag

Gord at the pasteurizer

it's in the bag

Wanda with the boxed cider

It all happens on the trailer

Looking to the Future, Reflecting on the Past

The new year is here and it is a white one.  Looks like we'll have a lot more snow than last year.  I don't mind, I mainly hibernate this time of year - cooking, cleaning, book work and just trying to slow down a bit.  Jim grumbles about having to plow it; I think the fresh air is good for him.

Last year was a year of change and challenge.

• Dan and James ventured into new territory with Dan developing a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) enterprise and joining the Markham and Whitby Farmers Markets and James joining the Oshawa Farmers Market.  The connections they made and experience gained has been immense.  Jim grew a larger selection of crops to supply them and both participated in the harvest.  We built a new cooler here in Greenbank to accommodate their produce and ours.
• Our market here in Greenbank is looking great.  Gillian, our long term Greenbank employee, appreciated the protection from the weather.  We were able to remain open daily during strawberry season with fresh picked and weather permitting pick your own berries.  We will continue to experiment with being open after strawberry season and build up our farm market business at this location.
• The warm winter and spring then late freeze in April played havoc with the Ontario apple and tree fruit growers making crop shortages the norm for the season.  We ventured further afield, met a new apple grower in Norfolk county who had apples and having a good experience with him will most likely continue to have him supply our apples next year.
• Our dry, sunny summer didn't affect the pumpkin crop - ours was great - it did make for a lot of weed and insect invasions.  It seemed all summer we were trying to find our crops among the weeds.  The weeds just kept coming.  Rainfall varied throughout the province, our area thankfully had enough.  
• Grain and hay prices shot up because of shortages throughout North America due to the dryness and some areas an extensive drought.  This affected us in the cost of animal feed and you may have noticed it reflected in the cost of our chickens and turkeys.  
• It was the rainy fall that really affected us.  With only 5 days in October with no rain our harvest festival days and school tours were damp.  The sunny days were welcomed by all and activity on the farm was busy then.  
• Hurricane Sandi in late October blew down our roadside sign, time to refresh it.  Otherwise the wind, cold and rain from it just delayed school groups and dampened the last days of October.  We're thankful that was all we experienced with the storm.  Tim, a former employee. was called down to New York to assist in the cleanup.  The devastation from the storm was immense, it seems recovery will take years.  
• December was fun - thanks to the hard work of John and Laura and the participation of our staff we took part in the Stouffville and Unionville Christmas parades.  A new experience for most of us.  Thanks to these communities for accepting and supporting us.
• Our soil's water level has fully recovered from the summer dryness.  The rain in December topped it up.  We know because of our wet basement.  The joys of older homes.

The season can be summed up in an appropriate statement from one of our cohorts who grows apples. " It is a challenge to have a business with Mother Nature as a partner. "

Farming is a next years business.  We're re-energizing, reflecting and reworking things.  Always optimistic about the future, we look back appreciating our customers support for us and the boys, and look forward to a exciting and challenging new season.

We wish you all the best for the new year.  See you in the spring.

Stouffville Santa Clause Parade

We were there - staff and their families; a great time was had by all.  Thanks to Laura and John for taking the initiative and working hard to make our presence in the parade possible.  Thanks to Markham Mower for loaning us their small tractor to pull our wagons.
You can catch us again at the Unionville parade.

Fraser Fir Christmas Trees are here

Time to start celebrating the Coming of Christmas.  The Fraser fir trees are here and the Balsam will be arriving soon. What a great smelling time of year. Oh to reboot the brain with the aroma of the trees.  Even the snow has arrived.  Apple cider is hot in the market so come on in and enjoy a cup.  Right now it is our central heating system, in other words, dress warm for the weather.

Soup is on each weekend.  Naresh is here to offer ideas on great ways to prepare those comfort foods inspired by the weather that get us through the winter.  We still have a great selection of Ontario apples including Honey Crisp and Ambrosia.

Christmas cookie trays start next week featuring gingerbread and shortbread cookies along with a selection of other yummy baked goodies.  They're great as hostess gifts, for office parties and just for nibbling on a nice selection of treats.

Time to get your freezer orders in for winter.  Bacon and sausage will be here soon.  We are currently taking orders for fresh turkeys and pies for Christmas.  Stock up your shelves with our homemade preserves and jams.

Come on in, enjoy all the great smells of Christmas.  We're open this Saturday and Sunday 9 -5 and beginning Thursday Nov 29th we'll be open daily till December 24th.

Time is flying by!

We're past the half way mark of November and time keeps marching on.  Soon our fall season will end; the corn maze will be combined, Jim will finish his plowing, the fall mums fade.  Our farm animals always love visitors though.

The best thing about farming is one season leads to another - for us it will be the Coming of Christmas.

Our Christmas trees will be arriving soon.  Balsam fir, Fraser fir and pine trees change the look of the farm from fall to winter - brrrr.  Hopefully this sunny weather will stay with us.

We are now taking orders for fresh Christmas turkeys and getting organized for our Christmas cookie trays.  Our market will transform after the American Thanksgiving from pumpkins to evergreens, snowflakes and candy canes.

Christmas may seem so far off at this moment but it will arrive quicker than you think.  Our farm is open November Thursdays to Sundays 9-5 then daily in December until December 24th.

Sunday November 4th Kennedy Rd. closure till 1 pm

Kennedy Road will be closed till 1 pm Sunday November 4th for a fund raising marathon.  Our farm and market will be open as soon as they open Kennedy Rd.

Dress warmly and wear rubber boots, we've had a few days of rain so the ground is boggy.  November weather can be pleasant but cool.  Dressing in layers and keeping warm helps you to enjoy the great outdoors.

November is a time to pause

November gives us the opportunity to catch our breath after the hectic buildup to Halloween and to pause before the busy Christmas season.   The beauty is in the browns of the trees and fields, the call of the geese heading south and the cool, cloudy skies.

It's also a time to cook all those great comfort foods.  Saturdays, Naresh will be taking some of the basics - onions, garlic, squash, sweet potatoes etc and creating hearty delicious soup.  He is passionate about all the delicious food grown in Ontario and is happy to share that passion giving you easy, quick ways to cook them.

We still have a great selection of Ontario apples - Empire, Mutsu, Macintosh, Fugi, Ambrosia, Honey Crisp and Russet.  We are now taking orders for Christmas turkeys and pies.

Our farm and market is open Thursday to Sundays in November from 9-5.  Come and enjoy the peacefulness of the November on the farm.  Its time to stock up for winter.