Celebrating the Harvest

Yesterday we made a trip out to Underwood Family Farms in Moorpark, CA. The kids had a blast. We were driven out to the fields by a tractor. Once there we picked our own produce including fresh beets, lettuce, leeks, corn, carrots, broccoli, and celery.

It was a great learning experience for Ella, as she got to see where her food comes from. At least the kind that comes from the ground :) She was so into it that she wanted to take one of every kind of vegetable. Sadly, we did not have enough bags or room in our refrigerator for all that the farm had to offer.

Besides picking produce we got to see animals, including an "animal show" with trained rats, pigs, dogs and bunnies. There were two train rides, a playground and a bouncy house for the kids. We lunched next to a very enthusiastic donkey who seemed very much to want what we were eating. Who knew that rice cakes with smoked turkey would seem so appealing to a farm animal? Milo walked everywhere and came home covered in dirt.

Upon returning home with our bounty, Ella directed me in the kitchen. We were to have a farm salad, using all of the veggies that we had brought home. Don't tell her, but I am saving the leeks for a soup that I will make later this week. I also supplemented our feast with wheat-free pumpkin muffins (Gluten-Free Baking Classics by Annalise G. Roberts). Being a true follower of Martha Stewart, I would love to tell you that I had hand-picked a pumpkin and pureed it myself. But I would be lying. As it turns out, Libby makes a really spectacular puree, which did the trick. We also had corn on the cob and my cornflake pork tenderloin (see recipe in a September post).

Dinner was a hit, especially the pumpkin muffins. Even those of us who can eat wheat, happily gobbled them down. We are going to be finishing off the batch tomorrow, for breakfast. All in all, it was a magical afternoon and our limitations did not mean that we had to sacrifice anything!