KITCHEN COPY: HEAVENLY HEIRLOOMS

Some heirloom tomato varieties hardly resemble tomatoes at all. That’s what one might think, anyway. The truth is that only in the last hundred years did tomatoes become so uniformly round, and red, and (Let’s admit it!) often flavorless. That’s all changed, of course. Americans have rediscovered (thanks to hard-working small farmers) how to embrace seasonality, and a desire to experience the…

15 Easy In-Season Recipes for Labor Day

How wonderful are Labor Day vacations?  They snag the last bits of summer, salvaging time with family and friends before the rush of fall schedules pulls us in different directions.  They celebrate cooler weather and golden sunlit evenings.  They offer rest. When I was growing up, Labor Day was our favorite family vacation time.  We…

Tomato Spinach Pasta: Making it On My Own

Meals that I made when I moved into my first apartment stay in my memory and remain my favorites.   Frying up an omelet and adding anything I had on hand– caramelized onions, tomatoes, sometimes even corn or black beans– was a sign not just of creativity but of independence.  Being resourceful meant that I was…

Fresh Indian Summer Salsa is Savvy in September

As a fitting segue in saying adieu to the heat of August while saying hello to September, a Fresh Indian Summer Salsa crafted from ingredients at Wolff’s Apple House is a great food-geared introduction to this autumn. The recipe, put together by Wolff’s marketing consultant, Rachel VanDuzer, incorporates not only tomatoes but peaches, corn and…

Labor Day Picnic Possibilities and Some Feisty Guacamole

While Fran, Pete and Ashley Wolff work every Labor Day, they’re grateful for the opportunity to help people appreciate their goodbye to summer with great foods and ideas for good spots for picnics. And they like that they close at 4 p.m., too, so they can get together with the rest of their family as…

Testing Out Tantalizing Tomato Pie

Since August is known as the time for local produce, especially tomatoes, a homemade tomato pie recipe from Phoebe Canakis pleases the palate and complements plentiful tomatoes perfectly. Canakis of Phoebe’s Pure Food lives in Lancaster County and spends much of her time focusing on bringing a strong reverence and flair into the avenue of…

The Zeal of Zesty Watermelon Gazpacho

As the face behind Global Vertical Farms based in Glenmoore, Chester County, Janice Kelsey and her whole food nutrition approaches keep summer recipes easily in the future: think Zesty Watermelon Gazpacho. “I prefer to use a smaller seedless watermelon,” Kelsey says about this recipe. “They’re easier to handle and a lot less waste.” And Wolff’s…

Heirloom Tomatoes Make for Great Salsa

  Jillian Prout of Prout’s Jollyview Farm in the Oley Valley of Berks County enjoys the heirloom tomatoes she grows, but it might be fair to say she enjoys a good salsa from them even more. Heirloom tomatoes, known as heritage tomatoes in the U.K., are the ancient tomatoes of those who came decades and…

The Cunning Way of Caprese

Caprese is an Italian-inspired summer dish that riles mouth-watering factors with ease. It has a lot of possibilities in variation but usually involves slices of freshly picked tomatoes, basil leaves from the garden, cuts of mozzarella cheese and either drizzles of olive oil or balsamic vinaigrette. Sprinkles of ground pepper complement this flavorful and especially…

Natural Fertilizers at Home: Feed Those Tomato Plants

With so many chemical fertilizers on the market today, it’s nice to know that there are plenty of natural versions of fertilizers and soil amendment possibilities right at home when you’re ready to feed the tomato plants you’ve purchased from Wolff’s Apple House. Eggshells Save your eggshells after breakfast or baking. Eggshells are rich in…