An Apple a Day...

My second visit to the Easton Farmers Market happened on Saturday, October 12. That was the date of the Apple Jam, another popular themed celebration I discovered on their calendar of events. Being an apple fan, I was excited to sample various types of apple desserts.

Ironically, I didn't actually sample the desserts nor attend the pie eating contest. I would have, but maybe we were there too early and nothing was set up yet. It was too bad since the desserts on display looked delicious. Instead, I found myself at a long table filled with plates of apples sliced for sampling. For a $1 donation, festival attendees could try 25 different varieties of apples.

All of the apples on the sampling table were also being sold at the Apple Jam. I discovered that I actually have a new favorite apple: the humble winesap. It's not a pretty looking apple, but it's firm (my biggest requirement in an apple) and it has a tart taste that's a welcome change from my other favorites, the honeycrisp and suncrisp.

In addition to the apples (suncrisp and winesap) I purchased, I also bought an apple scone from one of the vendors, and satisfied my immediate hunger for something containing apples by eating the best apple fritters I've ever had. Instead of a doughnut, these apple fritters were the sweet version of an onion ring, dusted with powdered sugar.

Entertainment at the Apple Jam was provided by a band, but I was more interested in seeing the old fashioned apple cider press. It's always nice when local celebrations remind us how things used to be done. It was as just fascinating as the Moravian cooking demonstration at Burnside Plantation's Blueberry Festival.

There's one more special event at the Farmers Market for this year: Baconfest, on November 9. It's hard to resist the lure of bacon.

Ate, Drank and Stank

Up until this fall, I'd never been to the Easton Farmers Market. Parking in the downtown area is not always readily available. It took getting a friend who lives in Easton to guide me before I was finally able to enjoy the outdoor market that boasts being America's "Longest Continuous Running Open-Air Market." Not surprising, given that the market was established in 1752, the same year the city of Easton was founded.

Pictured: balloons at entrance to Garlic Festival
My introduction to the market was at the 2013 Garlic Festival, held this year on October 5-6. The market was filled with the smell and taste of garlic in so many different products, it was difficult choosing which ones to try. I attempted to be adventurous and sampled garlic shortbread cookies, roasted garlic dipped in chocolate, garlic nut tossie, garlic and sugar coated popcorn, garlic lolipops and garlic ice cream.

Pictured: garlic lolipops
I couldn't pass up a garlic filled lunch from Cook's Corner. A small cup of garlic chowder paired perfectly with a garlic kielbasa and sauerkraut sandwich. Sharing (with my husband and friend) an order of pierogies cooked in butter, with onions and fresh garlic, topped off the hearty meal.

Pictured: pierogies with garlic, garlic chowder, garlic kielbasa with sauerkraut
In addition to all of the garlic related products, the farmers market also featured fresh produce from local farms, cooking demonstrations and live musical entertainment. I'm already looking forward to eating, drinking and stinking again at the Garlic Festival in 2014!

Dusting This Thing Off

I've gotten out of the habit of blogging. I still post pictures online, but I do it at my website (http://sharonexner.com). I don't take as many photographs of food as I once did. Instead, my subjects tend to be local festivals, where I can enjoy the fun things the Lehigh Valley has to offer.

So far this year, my husband and I have gone to Bethlehem's Celtic Classic, Oktoberfest and the Harvest Festival. We've also attended a couple of fun celebrations at the Easton Farmer's Market: Garlic Festival and Apple Jam. We hope to go to Baconfest at the Easton Farmers Market, Christkindlmarkt and Peeps Fest, before the year is over. Missing from our list of activities this year are Burnside Plantation's Blueberry Festival, the Historic Bethlehem Partnership Reception (this year, held in conjunction with the reopening of the Kemerer Museum) and Musikfest. A combination of summer hot weather, general disinterest and movies that we wanted to see kept us from attending.

The main vacation my husband I took this year was a one-day bus trip to the Philadelphia Zoo, and the Adventure Aquarium in Camden, NJ. With both of us working every weekday (and me not having vacation for the first six months of my new job), it's been hard to get away except on weekends. Hopefully, that will change in 2014. A local bus company has a week-long trip to New England that I would love to take.

Maybe I'll post a few of my favorite pictures from this year, just to catch up a little.