All About Apples

September is the start of apple picking season in New England.  Apple picking is a great way to spend your afternoon with families and kids.  They can see where the apples grow and look at all of the different kinds.

It’s not only fun to pick the apples, but they are good for you too!  Apples are a great, low calorie fruit with no saturated fat or cholesterol. They are also filled with great vitamins such as vitamin C and B-complex vitamins and minerals like calcium, potassium, and phosphorus which make you healthy and strong.  It’s no wonder why they say an apple a day keeps the doctors away! 

There are many different types of apples that grow in the New England area that are great for apples, sauces and other snacks. 
C.N. Smith Farm in East Bridgewater has a great list of apple varieties, harvest dates and uses.  You can check it out here.

Here are some yummy treats you can make with apples:

 

Apple Cider

Nothing says fall like enjoying a nice cup of apple cider.  This cozy beverage can either be served hot or cold.  Many apple orchards and stores sell apple cider, but if you are looking for a nice drink to make with your kids and want your house to smell delicious, you can make it at home. For a recipe, click here!

Apple Pie

After a nice big dinner, apple pie is the best dessert to serve in the fall and a great way to use all of the apples you picked!  Your kids can help you mix the ingredients together as a great introduction to cooking in the kitchen.

Suggestion- Serve hot with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream! For a recipe, click here!

Apple Sauce

A delicious snack or even a healthy baking substitute for oil, this apple sauce is supper easy and everyone will love it!  All you need is some apples, cinnamon, a Crockpot and mason jars to store. For a recipe, click here!

Caramel Apples

This fall treat is often seen at fairs and carnivals, but you can also make it at home.  With this mini caramel apples recipe, you can serve them at fall parties or gatherings and kids will be coming back for more. For a recipe, click here!

Apple Chips

This crispy and crunchy snack is super easy to make and a healthier alternative to potato chips. Just thinly slice your apples, pour on some cinnamon and bake them in the oven for about two hours.  These are great to put in your kids lunchbox or an after-school snack. These chips are so good that you might want to make a batch for yourself too! For a recipe, click here!

Apples and Peanut ButterIf you aren’t in the mood for baking, kids will love their apples with peanut butter.  You can even make these cute little sandwiches and add in some granola or raisins.

Here are some great orchards to visit in the Southeastern Mass area to visit with your family this fall:

• ·         C.N Smith Farm Inc- East Bridgewater, MA
• ·         Fairmount Fruit Farm- Franklin, MA
• ·         Downse Orchard- Sherborn, MA
• ·         Wijcik Farm- Blackstone, MA
• ·         Belkin Family Lookout Farm-Natick, MA

Written by Stephanie Starbard- PR and Communications Intern

Halloween Fun At Home

Ghouls, Ghosts, and Goblins OH MY! Halloween season is quickly approaching, and with that in mind, we've come up with spooktacular experiments, crafts, and snack ideas for you and your children to create together!

Homemade green Flubber: You aren't a true mad scientist until you've created your own Flubber. This is a very hands-on experiment that kids will absolutely love and the final product is something that your children won't want to put down for hours! One of the best things about this experiment is that your child is able to play a big role in making the Flubber. While they are conducting this experiment, ask them questions along the way like "What colors are you using?", "How many drops of this did you put in?", or "What does the Flubber feel like?" Asking questions like this will keep your child engaged and thinking about what they're doing. To get more information for this experiment, visit this website. Click here

Magic Puff Paint: Have you ever wanted a painting to come to life right before your eyes? Well, when you create some magic puff paint all your paintings will take on a new life of their own! The directions are very simple and the ingredients include easy to find things like flour, salt,and baking powder. To get the rest of the directions, click on the link to this website. Click here

Make a Ghost Appear: Everyone know the classic volcano experiment where you combine baking soda and vinegar to make the volcano "erupt". Well here is a new and fun twist on that project. This time, you will combine the two ingredients but instead of an eruption, the final product will be a balloon inflating on its own! All you need other than baking soda and vinegar is a water bottle and a balloon. To make this experiment Halloween themed, get a white balloon and draw a spooky face on it while it's deflated. If you are interested in giving this experiment a try, take a look at this website. Click here

What good is Halloween if you can't have some creepily cute decorations around your house? Take a look at some of these simple and fun craft projects that you and your child can make together!

Paper Plate Ghost:
What you'll need
-Paper plates
-Black marker
-White paper
-White streamers or toilet paper
-String
-Tape
-Scissors
Directions
Step 1: Draw a spooky ghost face on the back of your paper plate
Step 2: Cut out some arms for your ghost and then tape them behind the face
Step 3: Rip off strips of toilet paper or streamers and tape them to the on the bottom half of the plate behind the face of the ghost
Step 4: Punch a small hole at the very top of the plate then pull the string through so that you will be able to hang up your ghost.

Foam Cup Spider
What you'll need
-Foam/paper cups
-Acrylic paint
-Pipe cleaners 
Directions
Step 1: Paint your cup with any color  you want your spider to be. Then set it aside to dry
Step 2: Take 4 pipe cleaners and cut them in half. Then bend each pipe cleaner from about a third of the way down. 
Step 3: Paint some details on your spider like spots, fangs, eyes, and a mouth
Step 4: Poke the shorter half of the bent pipe cleaners through the cup. Then bend the bottom of each pipe cleaner so that it creates a little foot.


Glowing Eyes
What you'll need
-Toilet paper/paper towel rolls
-Scissors
-Glow sticks (any color)
Directions
Step 1: Take a toilet paper roll and draw an outline of a pair of spooky eyes.
Step 2: Now, using a pair of scissors, CAREFULLY cut out the shapes that you have drawn on the toilet paper rolls.
Step 3: Crack the glow stick so it starts to glow. Then tape it to the inside of the toilet paper roll.
* You can use these to decorate the trees and bushes outside your house. It makes it look like there are glowing eyes watching you!!! 

Even mad scientists and monsters have to eat. What better way to refuel you and your kids than with a couple of frighteningly delicious snacks!

Witch's Hat Cookies: Who knew that hats could be so tasty? Especially a Witch's hat! This easy to make recipe will provide you with some of the most creative and adorable cookies you've ever seen. One of the best parts about this recipe is that there is no baking required. All you have to do is provide the ingredients and then you can let your child take care of the rest. After making these cookies, you'll wonder why you've never thought of something like this yourself. To find out more about this recipe, click on this link. Click here

Frankenstein Pudding: Frankenstein isn't just a fictional monster, he is also a snack! This recipe is perfect for Halloween parties because not only is it fun to eat, but you also get to draw your own monster on a cup! All you'll need for this recipe is vanilla pudding, green food coloring, clear plastic cups, and Oreos. To find out more about this recipe, click on this link. Click here

Gingerbread Skeleton Men: Gingerbread men aren't just for the holiday season! Whip up some of your own horrifyingly delicious skeleton men! the only difference between skeleton men and gingerbread men is how you decorate them. All you have to do is pick up a package of gingerbread cookie mix and some gingerbread men cookie cutters (if you don't already have some), and a tube of decorating frosting. If this sounds like an idea that you want to try, follow this link to the website. Click here

After giving all of these ideas a try, your house is bound to look like something straight out of a ghost story! You'll have spiders and ghosts infesting your halls, skeletons being served as snacks, and paintings that look like they're about to hop right off the paper! We hope that these ideas will help you and your children have one of the most fun filled Halloween seasons yet. Don't forget to keep checking our blog for new updates and other creative ideas as well!