Raspberry Picking in Connecticut: Why Not!?

There's no arguing that winters in the Northeastern states of the US are bitterly cold. However, the summer makes for a good environment in which to grow many crops including apples, strawberries, and raspberries. Having picked apples and strawberries before, it seemed like a good idea to round out my pick-your-own experiences with a trip for raspberries.

The raspberry season, from what I understand, ends in early October so I just barely snuck my trip in on time. However, it was a little tricky finding a farm with a crop sufficient to allow for the public to come in. Fortunately, some friends just happened to know of the perfect spot so off I went last Saturday as early as I could muster in the morning. Knowing that the trip from New York to the White Silo Farm and Winery in Connecticut would take about an hour, I expected to arrive well before noon. Perfect timing I figured to avoid crowds and the worst of the day's heat.

Sure enough, upon my arrival I was greeted by several rows of raspberry bushes. Up first were the standard red variety you find in supermarkets, but to my delight there was also a yellow/orange variety too. The orange ones turned out to be sweeter than the red so I made sure to gather as many of them as I could. Prices were the same regardless of color and I believe I paid $7.50 per pound. I'm not one to keep track of fruit prices so I'm not sure if that's expensive or not, but it cost no more than a night at the movies and this was by far a healthier activity!

The bad thing about raspberries is that they don't keep for long even if refrigerated (although you can freeze them if so desired). They come off the bush quite delicate and it just gets worse from there. Knowing this, I tried to think about ways to incorporate them in to my meals. My best idea was throwing in a handful into the pancake mix I prepared for Sunday's breakfast. To make sure the raspberries were completely covered with the batter, I kept the mix thick. I have to tell you that these pancakes were quite good!

All in all a worthwhile trip out to the raspberry patch. I'll be sure to add it my list of things to do for next summer.