How 'bout them apples?

We moved to our neighborhood 18 months ago, six of which I was away working in Europe.  So we're still exploring. It seems like every time we go out, we find a new interesting place - especially on the roads leading outside the city. Examples of some of the neat things close by are: a Sikh temple (I mean, how many of those will you find in Indiana?), a very nice local winery (Buck Creek Winery), and a rather large and supposedly haunted community theatre (Buck Creek Playhouse). Maybe I will write about those places in future entries. But today I want to write about Anderson Orchard.

This afternoon on the way home from work, we decided to follow the red apple-shaped signs labeled Anderson Orchard. The route took us all the way to Carroll Road, where we passed an alpaca farm (no kidding!) and finally found the orchard. 

What a pleasant surprise! Anderson has several varieties of apples, including Jonagold, Gala, Granny Smith, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, and Mutsu. (They also had Buttercrisp but those have already been sold out for the season.) You can pick 'em yourself, or buy them by the half peck, peck, half bushel, or bushel. Of course, they sell apple cider. They also have an "apple slush" machine, and being the curious person that I am, I had to try it. (It was awesome!) 

Anderson also sells in-season produce. They had lots of sweet peppers today, some pumpkins, gourds, butternut squash, and green beans. And mums! They had lots of mums, in several different colors.

We bought a half peck of Gala apples for the low, low price of four dollars. If like me you're not exactly sure what a "half peck" is, well, I counted 16. We could have had a whole peck for $7, a 1/2 bushel for $13, or a whole bushel for $24. But what in the world would you do with a bushel of apples? (My Mom would make apple jelly with the peelings, and she'd put the apples in jars. I don't have those skills.)

I ate one after dinner tonight. It was the perfect blend of sweet and tart. I can't wait to eat another one. If eating an apple a day keeps the doctor away, then what happens if you eat two apples a day?