|
 Wishing
you Happy Holidays in 2003 from
all of us at Fruit From Washington, FFW Manufacturing and Eberhart Orchards.
Thank you to all of our customers for your past business, for ordering
gift boxes of Washington grown apples and pears and fine outdoor furniture
from FruitFromWashington.com and FFW
Manufacturing. To
all of our friends and family, may your holidays be safe, peaceful and
fulfilling and the new year bring bountiful health, joy and enduring love.
At
FruitFromWashington.com, we have been responding to your questions for
a few years now and have finally put together a collection of frequently
asked questions to share with all of you. Chances are pretty
good, if you take the time to ask, you'll get an answer back from us.
Be assured, there are no stupid questions. However, some of you have got
to be kidding (for example, we have no idea how to make horseradish flavored
vodka)! Of course, if your question is how does one go about ordering
gift boxes of Washington Grown Apples and Pears plus Classic Contemporary
Garden Furniture? Just go to our How
to Order information page!
Question: We use Granny
Smith apples all the time, eat them raw and in cooking. Sometimes we find
what looks like bruising in the middle of the apple near the core. Is
it safe to use this part of the apple?
Reply: It is a good
practice to trim away brown spots and other evidence of bruising during
fruit preparation.
Follow-up Question:
Even if it's inside the apple near the core?
Follow-up Reply: Especially
if it's inside the apple near the core. Here is an article which is not
about bruised fruit, but rather about core rot which explains what it
is, why the consumer sees it in purchased fruit, and what is being done
by the industry to keep it from happening. - www.rirdc.gov.au/pub/media_releases/
16july99.htm
Question: The apples
that I purchased came with a sticker which has four numbers on it. What
does this mean?
Reply: These are PLU,
or Produce Look Up codes. For instance, #4016 is the PLU Code for Large
Red Delicious Apples grown in the West. Here's a quick chart of some of
the most common apple varieties and their corresponding codes. For more
about those little sticky labels that you find on most grocery store fruit
- http://missourifamilies.org/features/
nutritionarticles /nut76.htm
Question: I need information
on drying all kinds of fruit and things to take on a sail boat. Need spacesavers.
Thank you.
Reply: Thank you for
contacting us at FruitFromWashington.com. Please see our webpage on drying
fruit for more information. Also, here is a link to an Extension
Service website about making fruit leather. There are plenty of reference
books available on preserving fruit. We highly recommend the Ball Bluebook
Guide to Home Canning, Freezing and Dehydration. You should be able to
find a copy at any local store that sells canning and drying equipment
and supplies. Good luck with your project! - ce
Question: We were on
the Mt. Hood train excursion and stopped over in Parkdale for lunch. They
were having their Harvest Festival at the time. We wandered over to the
fruit stand that had apples, pears etc. We tasted the most delicious Bosc
pears!!! They sure do not taste like that in the grocery store! Anyway,
I would like information on how to ship pears from Parkdale for gifts
for Christmas!! Thanks for your response.
Reply: A really good
pear is truly a luscious treat, isn't it! We share your enthusiasm wholeheartedly.
Naturally, what we offer here at FruitFromWashington.com are our own delicious
Washington pears and apples, rather than Parkdale's. I'm sure you'd find
in ours a match for those you relished there. Through the holiday season,
we offer 15-count boxes of Bosc or Red d'Anjou pears for $24.95 plus shipping,
or Hosui Asian pears for $22.95. We also have 6-count boxes packed in
a special wood crate for $26.95 plus shipping. We'd love to assist you
further. - jk.
For
many more questions and answers see the FruitFromWashington.com FAQ page!
I eat
heirloom apples and I vote. - Bumper Sticker
Off
the cuff - The November-December 2003 issue of Utne published an article
by Karen Russo (New York City freelancer) titled, "Is Your Favorite
Apple an Endangered Species? Chain stores' preference for looks over taste
threatens many apple varieties."
The premise of this story, as outlined in the headline, that diverse apple
varieties are endangered (the many types of apples that taste good as
opposed to just looking good) because Wal-Mart stocks bulk Washington
Red Delicious and Southern Hemisphere imports instead of locally grown
alternative apples is an oversimplification.
Ms. Russo has jumped on a bandwagon
that left town a long time ago. There are ample alternatives to Red Delicious.
Orchardists have planned for the changing market by developing new orchards
or switching over old blocks of trees to new varieties with the hope that
they will catch the wave of consumer preference. Just because Wal-Mart
doesn't stock choice in apples, doesn't mean that choice is not available
nor that these popular relatively new apple varieties are particularly
"endangered".
Impulse Wal-Mart shoppers
are getting exactly what they deserve for the price they're paying. If
they, as informed consumers, really cared about the quality and flavor
of the fruit they buy they certainly would not be shopping at a discount
department store like Wal-Mart for fresh, local produce. We're not even
going to mention heirloom varieties, rather Fujis, Braeburns, and Galas
are named as the desired alternative apple varieties to what Wal-Mart
carries. These apple varieties are common enough to be mainstream now.
Ms. Russo reports that consumer
preferences are changing. Her evidence is that 9 million bushels of Fujis
are grown annually in Washington State whereas none were grown in 1988.
She's putting the cart before the horse. It's not that consumer preferences
changed and then Washington orchardists grew these new, better tasting
varieties of apples, considering it takes about 6 years to bring a tree
into production and the industry takes another, shall we say 10 years
to develop a market, the change in consumer preference is right on schedule
as hoped for by growers about a decade and a half ago.
Wal-Mart does not drive the
apple market. The reason that many apple varieties are not threatened
by Wal-Mart's reported concentration on a single variety is that informed
consumers who care about what they eat can go elsewhere for really good,
fresh, crisp, regionally grown, in season fruit. - ce, 11/10/03
|
Months
of November - December
Feature Recipe
Pork Chops and Apples
Adapted from an old, faded newspaper clipping tucked in the
pages of one of Grandma Violet Boulton's cookbooks.
6 pork chops, cut 3/4 to 1-inch thick
2 T. melted butter or margarine
1 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1/2 c. apple juice
2 medium apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch slices
1/3 c. raisins
Water
2 T. honey
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 t. cornstarch
Brown pork chops in butter or margarine. Season with salt and pepper.
Add apple juice. Cover tightly and cook 30 minutes. Place an apple
slice on each chop. Top with raisins. Cover and continue to cook
slowly 30 minutes longer or until meat is done. Remove chops to
heated platter. Add enough water to cooking liquid to make 1/2 c.
Add honey, Worcestershire sauce and cornstarch. Cook, stirring constantly,
until thickened and clear. Serve over pork chops.
For more main dish recipes (using
Fruit From Washington apples) see the FruitFromWashington
Main Recipes page!
|
She had
only to stand in the orchard, to put her hand on a little crab tree and
look up at the apples, to make you feel the goodness of planting and tending
and harvesting at last. - Willa Cather
Eastern
Washington acreage for sale
Rural lot
with panoramic view of Kittitas Valley and Cascade Mountains for sale
by owner. Located on southern rim of the Kittitas Valley. This is a beautiful
four season location characterized by sunny dry summers, colorful autumns,
snowy (but not too long) winters, and early springs. Warm dry summers
and irrigation water create a landscaper's paradise. Although plants must
be winter hardy, there are many colorful and rewarding landscape plants
to choose from for this area. Short (under 15 minute) drive to Ellensburg
with shopping, schools, Central Washington University. Two hour drive
from Seattle (international airport, city arts, eating, culture). Perfect
country estate size - approximately 3 acres - for rural living. Protective
covenants. Deep soil and irrigation water - ideal for the gardener or
horse owner. (Click for more)
Use our printable
order forms to phone or fax your Fruit
Gift Box or Furniture
Orders to our sales desk  at
Fruit From Washington.com. Order form is pdf version requiring Adobe Reader
to view.
Webmasters
- We hope you'll consider linking to our site. Choose from our link
graphics or text
or create a text link to a FruitFromWashington.com page that's pertinent
to your site.
|
It's the action,
not the fruit of the action, that's important. You have to do the right
thing. It may not be in your power, may not be in your time, that there'll
be any fruit. But that doesn't mean you stop doing the right thing. You
may never know what results come from your action. - Gandhi
Detail from a 1940's Washington State Apple Commission Brochure
Map
The
Romantic Story of Washington State Apples (from a promotional brochure
produced by the Washington Apple Commission, circa 1940's)
Why are
Washington Apples the finest apples grown? The answer lies in the extreme
care and patience used in the hand cultivation of this excellent fruit.
Protected
from damp, coastal winds by the towering Cascade mountains and nourished
by a fertile top-soil of volcanic ash, the trees receive the same painstaking
handling as a delicate rose.
While
a bountiful nature looks on encouragingly, the apples are thinned by hand
while still quite small. This keeps them from touching one another, thus
permitting the tree to put all its energy into the development of a fine,
uniform fruit.
Brought
to the peak of perfection by the long summer days and short, cool nights,
the apples are skillfully picked at maturity by gloved hands, and placed
carefully in canvas bags to prevent bruising. Taken immediately to the
packing house, each apple is gently but thoroughly cleansed by power-driven
washing devices. From the washers they pass by moving belt to the grading
table where expert women sorters determine the grade of each apple, removing
all fruit which is short of perfection.
Moving
on to the sizing machine, each apple trips gently into one of a series
of cups which carry it to its proper size bin.
Photo
#1 Farm worker who lives at the Farm Security Administration farm family
migratory labor camp is attending
the WPA (Work Projects Administration) apple packing school at the camp
in Yakima, Washington in September
1941.
Photo
#2
Work Projects Administration
instructor demonstrates proper method of wrapping apples at Farm Security
Administration apple packing school in Yakima, Washington, September 1941.
(*Sources noted below)
There,
nimble-fingered workers wrap each apple in its protective oil-paper covering,
and place it in an apple box. When each box is filled to the brim, it
is lidded and rolled immediately to refrigerator car for shipment to you.
An average of 33,000 carloads valued at $75,000,000 travels annually to
the 48 states and to customers in many foreign nations.
And with
each box goes the sincere wish to each of the 5000 apple growers of Washington
State that the excellent flavor and health-giving properties of the fruit
will be enjoyed by every member of your family. - Source: Washington
Apple Commission brochure (circa 1940's)
*
Photo !: CALL NUMBER: LC-USF34- 070140-D [P&P] DIGITAL ID: fsa 8c22364
CARD#: fsa2000046807/PP
Photo 2: LC-USF34-
070139-D DIGITAL ID: fsa 8c22363 CARD#: fsa2000046806/PP - BOTH PHOTOS
CREATED/PUBLISHED: 1941 Sept. by Russell Lee, photographer. United States
Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress Prints
& Photographs Division Washington, DC 20540) Accessed: 11/09/03
After
Apple-picking by Robert Frost (from North of Boston)
My long two-pointed
ladder’s sticking through a tree
Toward heaven still,
And there’s a barrel that I didn’t fill
Beside it, and there may be two or three
Apples I didn’t pick upon some bough.
But I am done with apple-picking now.
Essence of winter sleep is on the night,
The scent of apples: I am drowsing off.
I cannot rub the strangeness from my sight
I got from looking through a pane of glass
I skimmed this morning from the drinking trough
And held against the world of hoary grass.
It melted, and I let it fall and break.
But I was well
Upon my way to sleep before it fell,
And I could tell
What form my dreaming was about to take.
Magnified apples appear and disappear,
Stem end and blossom end,
And every fleck of russet showing clear.
My instep arch not only keeps the ache,
It keeps the pressure of a ladder-round.
I feel the ladder sway as the boughs bend.
And I keep
hearing from the cellar bin
The rumbling sound
Of load on load of apples coming in.
For I have had too much
Of apple-picking: I am overtired
Of the great harvest I myself desired.
There were ten thousand thousand fruit to touch,
Cherish in hand, lift down, and not let fall.
For all
That struck the earth,
No matter if not bruised or spiked with stubble,
Went surely to the cider-apple heap
As of no worth.
One can see what will trouble
This sleep of mine, whatever sleep it is.
Were he not gone,
The woodchuck could say whether it’s like his
Long sleep, as I describe its coming on,
Or just some human sleep.
|
Up
on the Blackboard
Special Days in the Month
of November 2003
and Month
of December 2003
November
1, 2003 - All Saints Day & Dia de Los
Muertos
November
2, 2003 - All Souls'
Day
November
4, 2003 - Election Day
November
5, 2003 - Guy Fawkes Day
November
11, 2003 - Veterans Day
November
15, 2003 - America Recycles Day
November
27, 2003 - Happy Thanksgiving
Serenely
full, the epicure would say, Fate cannot harm me, - I have dined
to-day. -Sydney Smith (1769-1845)
December
10, 2003 - Human Rights Day
Begins
at Sunset December 19, 2003 - Hanukkah
December
21, 2003 - Yule
December
22, 2003 - Winter Solstice
December
25, 2003 - Christmas Day
December
26, 2003 - Kwanzaa
December
31, 2003 - New Year's Eve
|
As
Toilsome I Wander’d by Walt Whitman (from Leaves of Grass)
As
toilsome I wander’d Virginia’s woods,
To the music of rustling leaves, kick’d by my feet, (for ’twas autumn,)
I mark’d at the foot of a tree the grave of a soldier,
Mortally wounded he, and buried on the retreat, (easily all could I understand;)
The halt of a mid-day hour, when up! no time to lose—yet this sign left,
On a tablet scrawl’d and nail’d on the tree by the grave,
Bold, cautious, true, and my loving comrade.
Long, long I muse, then on my way go wandering;
Many a changeful season to follow, and many a scene of life;
Yet at times through changeful season and scene, abrupt, alone, or in
the crowded street,
Comes before me the unknown soldier’s grave—comes the inscription rude
in Virginia’s woods,
Bold, cautious, true, and my loving comrade.
|
The
FruitFromWashington.com
Archive Feature of the Month
Photograph
of crowd at dedication of the Battlefield of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
on November 11, 1863. From the Library of Congress Mathew Brady
Civil War Photograph Collection - More
about Mathew Brady.
CALL NUMBER:
LC-B815- 1160 [P&P]
REPRODUCTION NUMBER: LC-DIG-cwpb-00652
CREATED/PUBLISHED: 1863 Nov. 11. Forms part of Brady Civil War Photograph
Collection, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Washington, D.C. 20540 USA DIGITAL ID: (b&w scan) cwpb 00652 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cwpb.00652
- Accessed:
11/09/03
The FruitFromWashington
Archive Feature metaphorically blows the dust off of an image or
document from our past and brings it to the light of day for a new
audience to see.
|
Quick Click Highlights for Winter
Grocery List
•
Calorie
Search • Fruit
Calorie Search
• Searchable
recipe database • Winter
Time Literary Quotes •
Virtual Art Gallery of Fruit Still
Life, Farm & Orchard Scenes •
Welcome
the Holidays • Blessings,
Graces & Toasts •
Winter
Celebration: Poems, Stories, Recipes & More
• Share
the Cheer and the Nostalgia by sending friends and family a Virtual Historic
Christmas or Winter Postcard Courtesy of FruitFromWashington.com
•
Winter Farm scene screensaver
• Winter Garden Tips •
Cooking Links
• Fruit Dessert Recipes •
Cookie Recipes
• Seasonal computer wallpaper by Katie Eberhart: Christmas
Images &
Winter Orchard Images
|
Big
Green Egg® or alternate smoker unit sold separately. Smoker Cart with
wheels - Regular price $460.99 (including shipping*)
We
offer other solidly
constructed and beautiful
retro-styled pieces including 
Gift Box of 15 
Gift Box of 15 
Gift Box of 15 
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Gift
Box of 15 
Gift Box of 15 
Gift Box of 15 
Gift Box of 15 
Gift Box of 15 
Gift Box of 15 
Gift Box of 15 
