Okay, so you have come out and picked so many apples that you don’t know what to do with them! You need some fast and easy recipes to put those yummy apples to good use.
This list is a mixture of classic recipes and some more fun ones that might take more time but totally worth it.
4. Apple Crisp
We know it can be difficult to plan a trip to the grocery store with kids let alone an apple orchard! We want you to be prepared and have the best family time with us at Cider Hill.
Photo by Natalie fieleke
Every Thursday, we post what types of apples we are picking and any specials we have going on that weekend. Usually, the apples we start to pick one weekend will carry over for the following week.
You are at an orchard which is in the great outdoors! We have lots of bugs and bees that pollinate the trees in the spring. It definitely can be warm in September so water is essential to stay hydrated.
We welcome you to pack a lunch and spend the whole day with us. We have many picnic tables or if you want to bring a blanket there are perfect areas for you to have a picnic under a shady tree.
The other option is our delicious BBQ meal. Jeff smokes brisket and pulled pork weekly for our weekend guests. It includes french fries and your choice of beans or our yummy apple coleslaw. We have chicken tenders for the kiddos too!
Photo by Natalie fieleke
The orchard has many fun photo opportunities. Snap some photos while you are picking apples or sitting by the bonfire enjoying marshmallows because this might be your new family tradition! Share them with us! We would love to see them.
Bring your pole and bait it's catch and release here at the Orchard! We have 5 ponds stocked with fish. You are welcome to fish during the hours we are open.
Please remember it's a great place to bring the family but it can be busy! We are a family owned orchard so everything we do we do ourselves and the crowds can be hard to handle some times. We want everyone to have an enjoyable experience at our orchard.
Today we are going to talk about the difference between an eating apple and a cooking apple. Many people don’t know that there are types of apples specifically for cooking.
At Cider Hill Family Orchard, we grow 18 different kinds of apples. We have both great cooking and eating apples. Based on our experience, we tend to mix several kinds of apples together for our apple food products as well as our Fresh Pressed Cider.
These apples are what you make pies, crisp, sauce and jam out of. The best for pies are the firm flesh and tart taste. When choosing an apple for sauces, the best are the ones that are soft.
Examples: Jonathons, Rome, Granny Smith
These apples are the ones that taste good of course! They have a more sweet flavor and can be soft or crisp.
Examples: Gala, Empire, Fuji, Hilltop, Red Dixie, Pristine, Honey Crisp
These apples are the jack of all trades of apples. Great for all your cooking needs and taste delicious.
Examples: Golden Delicious, Pink Lady, Winesap, Jonagold, Enterprise, Gold Rush
While these are the outline for the different purposes of apples but we encourage you to experiment by using several different types and seeing what you like best!
See you at the Orchard!
Cider Hill Family Orchard is a U-Pick Orchard. What does this mean exactly? It means that you and your family get the experience of picking your own fruit. Here is the rundown of what happens at our orchard.
When you arrive to the orchard, head up towards the store. It’s in between the barn and the Victorian house. You will see a fruit stand with bushels of apples.
You will be greeted by Cider Hill welcomers who will explain pricing, what apples we are picking, and what to do when you are done picking; you can taste the varieties we have that day to see which you prefer.
After you have picked the size of bag you would like, head over to the hayride in front of the house (Hayrides start Labor Day weekend, before Labor Day weekend, a Cider Hill employee will walk you to the trees).
Your tractor driver will take you to the trees we are picking that day. Please ONLY pick at the trees that they advise. We often run out of apples so quickly because people pick unripened apples.
Find a tree you like and start picking! We are totally okay with taste testing while you are picking. You have to make sure you love the apples!
After you have filled your bag up as full as you can, you can catch a ride back up to the store on the hayride or you can walk. If you couldn’t fill your bag up all the way, that’s totally fine. You can fill the rest of your bag up with our pre-picked apples up at the fruit stand.
After you have paid for you apples, we hope you will stick around and enjoy the property, activities and yummy treats we have available for purchase! Our apple cider donuts are our best seller.
We hope to see you at the orchard!
Apple Prices 2019
Kids bag $5.00
Peck $11.00
1/2 Bushel $21.00
Bushel $40.00
