Our trip earlier this week, through the Amish countryside in Lancaster County Pennsylvania.
Lunch
Lunch in an old Lunchmate Cooler and Alladin Flask waiting by the edge of the covered 'bridge' for the Buggy Drivers.
We chose to visit the Bird-in-Hand Bake Shop after our buggy ride through the Amish countryside. It is a short drive inside from the main Old Philadelphia Pike/ Route 340 but brings you into a green space, covered wooden glider swings, a small petting zoo..yes touristy but still good for a picnic! Photography is not allowed inside. A couple of ladies in Amish costume but men in 'normal' clothes... the usual touristy things for sale alongwith the Bake Shop produce.
Perhaps one had different notions about the kind of produce sold at the Amish stores like organic, natural etc..etc. Our ride, and the visit to the farm earlier should have cleared that notion but moi persisted...
Yes, the breads, the good selection of pies, the honey's and the preserves had that non-factory feel but it also had a commercial feel to it.
White Bread from the Bake Shop
Ingredients were Flour, Water, Vegetable Oil, Sugar, Applesauce, Yeast and Salt.
The bread was heavenly and we did not wait for any accompaniments and it stayed soft and tasty the next day too! The Boysenberry Jam was good; the ingredients listed were pectin, sugar and fruit. None of us are fans of sweet pies of any kind, but we did try a slice of Shoofly Pie sold for about 85 cents; nice molasses flavour but too sweet.
Something sweet other than pies?... and we decided to sample the Oranges Cream fudge which looked good but check the list of ingredients which included natural and artifical flavours and preservatives. Again, the fudge recipes I have tasted here have just that little over-the-edge-sweetness! The Indian version of fudge, burfi's and peda's...well at least the good one's, have just the right amount of sweet, taste and tooth to them!
Good photos, crisp narration.
ReplyDeleteSounded Strange! Cooler and Flask in Philadelphia? Wow! Never seen that in US.
ReplyDeleteMadhuri, this is very common and not just for picnic's. It is a common lunch-carrier, used for camping, fishing etc.. You can also see these among construction/ road workers.
ReplyDeleteThis particular one seems to be an older model and was used by the Amish buggy drivers. With what we saw, the Amish way of life is not so exclusive and cut-off from technology, products and tourism.
And flasks, styling like some older models in India [perhaps 40- 50 years ago] are widely avaialable especially in the camping gear sections.
Did you get to try any schnitz or Rhubarb pie? To get the non-commercial feel then you should visit one of the farmers markets in Dutch Country. If you enjoy learning and exploring about the PA dutch culture then check out www.Pa-Dutch-Travel.com
ReplyDeleteNo, unfortunatly we have not tried those pies but Rhubarb has been on my 'to-cook' list for sometime!
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, we did want to visit one of the Farmers Market and 'that' was one aspect we missed on our trip! Thank you for your suggestion; will definitely take it up on our next trip. :-)
During our Columbus stay in ohio, we planned meny times to visit Amish county..but some how it didn't turn out...nice to get a glance of it here..thanks for sharing...
ReplyDeleteNicely written and good pics!!
ReplyDeletehttp://padhuskitchen.blogspot.com/
Wow, now this is a place u gotta take me with u next time! Never seen an Amish country living....lovely post.
ReplyDeleteThanks Preeti! However for most us who have 'seen' and more often than not lived/grown up in farms, especially in South Asia, this would be a let down. One goes as a tourist and gets only that!
ReplyDelete