This week we bid farewell to our middle child and most experienced farm employee, Andrew. The picture below shows him with Mom & Dad at the end of his first summer on the farm. Almost nineteen now, he departed on Tuesday to start freshman year at Northwestern University, where he plans to study physics and … Read more
A classic Dutch apple pie recipe. Gently spiced, just a little sweet, and yummy! Great with Williams Pride apples. The crust texture is best the day it’s baked; store leftovers at room temperature for up to 2 days. Apples4 pounds apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼-inch-thick wedges¼ cup packed dark brown sugar1⁄2 cup raisins … Read more
New Name, Same Farm January 2024 – We’re excited to announce that we are now Blue Roof Orchard. We needed a new name! For twenty years now we have been Two Onion Farm, but we have not grown onions since 2018. We’ve become an orchard, specializing in unique varieties of delicious, organic apples, and we … Read more
Makes 9 rolls. Active time 40 minutes; total time 1 hour 15 minutesFor the filling:1 1/4 cups light brown sugar5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into chunks, plus more for greasing the pan2 teaspoons cinnamon1 large apple ( about 8 ounces), cored, and chopped into 1/4 inch piecesFor the buns:1/2 cup buttermilk1 large egg3 cups all-purpose … Read more
Our daughter Katie set herself a goal to dry each one of our apple varieties during the fall, to evaluate which varieties taste best when dried. In general, sweet apples remain sweet when dried, and tart apples remain tart. Very ripe apples are ideal for drying – even if they have begun to soften or … Read more
This week we bid farewell to our senior farm employee, our daughter Panka. The first picture above shows her in the spring of 2004, when she was just beginning to consider work on our farm. The second picture shows her on the eve of going off to college, after much farmwork – sometimes enjoyed and … Read more
Our daughter Katie has enjoyed making this simple apple cake recently. The rest of us have enjoyed eating it. She’s made it with both Pristine and Williams Pride apples. Batter 1-1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour1-1/2 tsp baking soda1/2 tsp salt1/4 cup sugar2 oz unsalted butter1 egg1/4 cup milk1/3 cup raisins3/4 cup walnuts, chopped Topping4 … Read more
We have a small secondhand food dehydrator in our house, and our youngest daughter loves making (and eating) dried apples. It’s a great use for the endless stream of fruit which finds its way onto our kitchen counter in late summer and autumn. Drying intensifies and highlights the apple flavor. Almost all apples taste yummy … Read more
This recipe is a staple in our house which never lasts long. It’s a simple, sugar-free dessert or a snack. With yogurt, it makes a hearty breakfast. Check out the video below of Juli making this in our kitchen! Apple crisp and pie are great uses for our #2 grade apples. Williams Pride, Liberty, Enterprise, … Read more
As leaves fall in our orchard, the structure of tree branches starts to emerge from under its leafy coat. Soon the orchard will look like the picture above. We spend a lot of time in the winter, spring, and summer coaxing trees into their optimal form. Every tree is tied to a metal stake to … Read more