August really is a fecund month. Oh, how I love the chance to use that word, fecund. From the Oxford English Dictionary online:
adjective
Indeed, a lush and fecund garden is what we have, as do many of our neighboring Maryland farms.
We’ve been graced with a steady supply of tomatoes, peppers of many kinds, eggplants, spring onions and tons of herbs for weeks now. And all of these have been heavily featured in our breakfasts each day.
We like to try and offer our guests something different each day, so that if folks are staying several days in a row, they will have a variety of breakfasts. However, when certain seasons come along (I’m talking about YOU, tomatoes and peaches!), there is always a chance that some repetition simply cannot be avoided. You might find freshly made salsa with tomatoes, jalapenos and cilantro from our garden at our afternoon tea buffet, and then see more tomatoes the next morning, possibly paired with fresh mozzarella and basil, or maybe feta cheese and oregano. You wouldn’t hold that against us, would you?
As for peaches, well they hold a special place in our hearts. You see, this property was originally a peach farm and so we try to serve peaches, in season, every chance we can get! I mean, who doesn’t like peaches? In addition to not repeating ingredients daily, we also try not to repeat things too often in the same breakfast: for example, if the fruit of the day is a poached pear, we generally wouldn’t use pears in the muffins or on the pancakes that day.
This is not the case during peach season. You are very likely to have a peach muffin and a grilled peach on the same day. And we might even go as far as serving peach cobbler that afternoon. Again I ask, WHO DOESNT LIKE PEACHES??
So, if you’re like us and you can’t get enough of the pretty little stone-fruit, we have several Maryland farms to share with you.
Just up the street from us, about 3 miles west toward Rock Hall, you’ll find Redman Farms. A true roadside stand, they sell everyday by the street, and on Saturdays at the Farmers Market in Chestertown. Melons, corn, tomatoes, peaches, etc. They are a good choice for our guests who want to pick up something quickly before heading home.
About 4 miles from here in Worton we have Lockbriar Farms, a pick your own mecca. Lots of berries, peaches, vegetables and of course pumpkins! They also sell their homemade ice creams and sorbets, which are fantastic. The chocolate sorbet is not to be missed.
A little further afield and totally worth the drive is Godfrey’s Farm, a beautiful family farm that grows tons of berries, peaches, veggies, flowers and bedding plants. We get a lot of our fruit for jam making from them (including the peaches shown above), as well as asparagus.
I guess it’s not surprising that in such a rural place as Kent County, MD, we should have all these choices for fresh produce. But we still feel really lucky.