Why Eat Local? Ask Fran Wolff. As the 4th generation owner of Wolff’s Apple House and someone who grew up in a farming family, Fran is uniquely positioned to talk about this issue in a straightforward, common-sense way. I recently…
When I visit my parents during the summer, no meal is complete without corn on the cob. Preparing it is a chance to sit and catch up with siblings or other relatives as we wrench the husks off the corn…
I’ve been told that men tend to gain a lot of weight in their thirties. I keep hoping that will happen to me. I could stand to gain a pound or two. But all I’ve gotten so far is lactose intolerance, and…
Has it ever happened to you that two things enter your life at the same time, and forever after it’s nearly impossible to think of one without also thinking of the other? It happened to me about twelve years ago. It…
Right about now the Mums begin rolling into Wolff’s and taking over the place like some kind of bizarre alien invasion. It seems like every day more cloudbursts of color are added to the expanding floral grid. Their arrival coincides with…
The single memory from my childhood of eating watermelon centers more upon the large, black, unpleasant, inedible seeds than it does the deliciously sweet and totally consumable flesh. It is a memory which speaks volumes about the kind of person I am. It’s no secret how I…
I’m fully allowed to taste the produce at Wolff’s Apple House. As their resident chef, it’s part of my job. Nevertheless, there is always a moment (right about the time I lift the fruit from the display) when it feels criminal. Like I’m getting away with something.…
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.…
Whether whores first invented puttanesca is no concern of mine. The sauce is bright, flavorful, pungent, and goes with just about anything you can scrounge together. Including the ubiquitous green bean. Literally translated, alla puttanesca means “in the style of a prostitute.” It is…
For the second time this year, I’m meeting with one of the Wolff clan in the living room of Ken and Gennie Wolff. Their house sits right across from the recently cultivated Sunny Brae Farm. I have spent a fair…
There is a narrow dirt road that runs along the edge of the Wolff’s modest Sunny Brae farm. Mostly inactive now, this road used to be heavily traversed by tractors and various farming implements. Currently, three generations of Wolffs live…
I know this girl that hates mushrooms. It doesn’t surprise me. She hates a lot of the foods that I love. But as I add the finishing touches to latest batch of Cream of Mushroom Soup, I can’t believe what…
I sat across from my cousin’s nine-year-old son this Thanksgiving. A big platter of cranberry sauce gleamed on the table between us. Greedily, we both stared at it. “Well, my friend,” I said. “Looks like there’s half for you and…
If you’ve visited wolfsapplehouse.com in the past, no doubt you’ve noticed our new look! On July 15, 2011 we launched our new website, which reflects the authentic beauty of our century old store, makes it easy to find quality information…
