Cherry Grove Farm - The Best of Lawrenceville NJ

 New Jersey has amazing farms which have a wide variety of fresh made and organic products. Cherry Grove Farm in the quaint town of Lawrenceville right outside of Princeton. The town itself is like an American version of a Jane Austen setting.

The farm is a dairy farm , rare in New Jersey and known for their homemade mozzarella and burrata. There are several animals for petting and just nuzzling.

                             Here is an adorable baby goat. It has the softest fur and sweetest disposition.

                   This is the sheep and goat. There's also a chicken coop and fields full of cattle.

                                      Here is the sheep, possibly a ewe, along with that adorable kid.

Cherry Grove is also known for their small country store. I couldn't get over the variety and array of fresh made products.It was hard to choose  what food to buy.

                                          They have a fig almond spread and a red pepper tapanade.

These are the preserves and jams.It was hard not to pass up the bread and butter pickles and pickled green beans.

Cherry Grove Farms also has a fantastic array of bee products from honey to pollen. I want to get the pollen on my next visit.

    I decided on the Weaver's Orchard's applesauce and Oak View Acres strawberry jam, these coming from the heart of Amish country near Reading ,PA.  not  all that far from Lawrenceville. I plan on serving the apple sauce with veggie pancakes and the jam slathered on croissants.

Cherry Grove Farms is the perfect fall outing. Take a ride there to see the animals and try their amazing array of different preserves, cheeses, jams, honey, and applesauce. Enjoy  a fall day in the country

Cherry Grove Farm is located at 3200, Lawrenceville Road , Lawrenceville ,NJ. It's right off the New Jersey Turnpike and Route 206

Farm Fresh Goodness

Now that the warm weather is here it's time to head to your local farms.Many areas , including my overly built up state of New Jersey still has some good clean acreage. Local farms not only provide fresh produce; they also give a respite from our busy lives. There's nothing like wandering through fresh fields picking the fruits and vegetables of the season or the thrill of buying something newly harvested or just out of the oven baked.

While writing yesterday's blog on strawberries I discovered a neat website called
www.pickyourown.org. It lets you find farms in your area or anywhere in the world for that matter. Pickyourown also has what each farm grows along with other farms that specialize in picking your own pumpkins and cutting down your own X-mas trees. Another good aspect of this site is that it gives tips and a monthly table for when to pick various fruits and vegetables. This is a definite print out to put on your fridge. It also has a must have list for picking which is essential for anyone going with children (again another must print out). Pickyourown has instructions about how to identify ripe fruit as well as how to properly pick it. This is a boon and a must have guide for any neophyte. The site also has canning and storing tips as well.

When you visit a farm take advantage of its' other products. A lot of them will have fresh baked pies made with their own fruit as well as cookies and muffins. These are incredible and come the closest to what's known as old fashioned farm baking. Also there may be some home made preserves and jams. These are a definite buy. Their flavor is more intense and delicious than the mass produced sorts A favorite NJ farm, Delicious Orchards, makes its' own raspberry jam that's pure heaven on croissants. Buy a couple of jars.Some farms will also produce their own relishes, piccalillies and chutneys which are good for summer barbecues. Take advantage of these home made favorites at any stand.

Now is the time to head to your local farms. Not only will you get the benefit of freshly picked fruits and vegetables you 'll enjoy time away from your busy schedule. There's nothing like being in the countryside surrounded by summer's bountiful harvest.

To Buy Or Not To Buy Organic

There's a real problem when we hit our local grocery's vegetable and fruit section. Do we splurge and buy organic?Or do we scrimp and get the regular pesticide doused tomatoes and apples? There in lies the question.

Is organic produce really better than ordinary produce? A good and dear friend of the family had suggested we try organic bananas. She said they were sweeter tasting and definitely worth the price increase of twenty cents more than our regular grown bananas. I bought them but was still skeptical. Well, they did have a slightly sweeter taste and slightly firmer texture than the non organic kind. Yet that was it. I went back to buying my good old bananas the next week. To be honest I really didn't see any real difference in buying the two qualities. As for fear of ingesting pesticides, my produce has always been thoroughly washed before serving or prepping. I do give every fruit and veg in my house a double rinsing before eating. Maybe it's not enough. I don't know.

Years ago another friend used to be into all things organic. However he switched prices on the organic and regular oranges so he wouldn't have to pay full price. I used to laugh at him as well as admonish him for doing such. He just shrugged and said he was doing his wallet and his body a favor. Even at that time, ten years ago, I wondered if organic was really that good for you. After all aren't all plants exposed to our toxic air too? I'm sure pollution has done a number to our American produce as well.To be honest if you want really organic, grow it yourself. You can limit the amount of pest control on your fruits and veggies. Besides now is the time to start buying plants. Most stores such as Lowe's, Home Depot, and your corner nursery are selling everything form fruit trees to herbs. Also your local farms and farmers markets are probably big purveyors of evertyhing organic, from greens to cheeses even

Should you splurge and buy organic? As a foodie I'll say yes. As a smart shopper I'll say no but advise you to double wash and rinse all your fruits and vegs.