Farm Fresh and Local In the Newburyport Area
July 10, 2015
As a child growing up in the rural area of Massachusetts’ Northshore, my family grew our own vegetables as so many rural families did in the 1950’s and 1960’s. There were also many small farm stands around the area, and by the time I was in high school in the early 1970’s a few of the local farms were starting to go by the wayside.
The farm policy had changed drastically during the Nixon administration thanks to Earl Butz, who was Nixon’s Secretary of the USDA. Many small farmers found it difficult to stay afloat without the subsidies they were accustomed to receiving from the federal government. The documentary King Corn, is a very informative film about how Butz’s policies shaped factory farming and growing corn as a the number one staple in processed food.
Very few working family farms remain in the Newburyport area that were working farms when I was a child. Most of the smaller farms of my childhood days are gone with the land being sold off for housing and commercial development. A few small farms continue to grow their own and sell their produce and meats at their farm-stand businesses. However, two newer, more enterprising larger farms in the area also carry other local and non-local produce and products as well as their own locally grown vegetables and fruits.
On a late spring afternoon in mid-June, I decided to take a drive along the backroads of the Newburyport area to take stock of the local farm stands and what they have to offer. Newburyport also has a vibrant Farmer’s Market on Sunday mornings at the Tannery on Water Street, but locavores in the area also rely on local farm stands for fresh vegetables and fruits in season as well as grass fed meats and free-range poultry.My first stop was Cider Hill Farm on Rte. 150 in Amesbury, Massachusetts. Cider Hill Farm is my favorite local farm because they offer a diverse variety of fresh produce that includes their own farm-grown produce as well as other wonderful fresh produce. Founded in 1978, Cider Hill Farm encompasses what was once the old Battis Dairy Farm as well as the neighboring Vedrani Poultry Farm. Cider Hill continues to expand today with their offerings free-range poultry and eggs, an apple orchard boasting 65 – 70 varieties of apples including many New England native apples such as Gravensteins, Macintosh, Cortlands and Baldwins, and a weekly CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program.
Cider Hill Farm offers “Pick Your Own” for their apples, peaches, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, plums and nectarines. Strawberry picking was underway when I visited Cider Hill Farm. Local strawberries are typically smaller and much sweeter than the California strawberries that are now available year round in the supermarkets thanks to factory farming. Cider Hill Farm’s unpasteurized cider is a State and National award winner made from seven to twelve varieties of apples that are blended together to create a complex flavor of both tart apple and sweet apple with a lovely aroma. I wait with anxious anticipation for apple season.
There is much to love about Cider Hill Farm. Cider Hill Farm is located at 45 Fern Ave (Rte. 150) in Amesbury, MA 01913. They are open from early May through just before Christmas. For more information, a complete list of their crops and their self pick selection, visit their website at CiderHill.com.
My next stop was Tendercrop Farm on Rte. 1A in Newbury, Massachusetts. Tendercrop another newer farm in the area, founded in 1986. Their Newbury farm is open year round and they have a butchery section featuring their own grass fed beef, pork and free-range chickens, as well as a wide selection of their own produce as well as a large selection of other non-local produce and products. The butchery at Tendercrop is a little on the pricey side in my opinion, with their chicken prices averaging approximately $2.00 more per pound than Cider Hill Farm. Their own local produce is always fresh picked they offer a wonderful variety of fruit and vegetables in season. Their greenhouse adjacent to the farm stores features a wonderful eclectic variety of herb plants in the spring. I noticed a few varieties of interest including a purple toned Red Rubin Basil, Zesty Orange Mint, and Chocolate Ganache Mint.
On their website, Tendercrop Farm promotes the notion of buying local and becoming a “locavore.” They offer a variety of other local farm fresh products including milk and eggs from other area farms, and fresh baked goods made at their own bakery as well as other local bakeries. Like Cider Hill, Tendercrop had some lovely fresh picked strawberries from their own farm. Tendercrop Farm is located at 108 High Road in Newbury, MA. Their website is TendercropFarm.com.
There are still a few smaller local farms that offer fabulous fresh produce, eggs and meats. Colby Farm in Newburyport had their own strawberries, salad greens and fresh asparagus when I stopped in to check what was fresh that day. In their meat cooler, I found some fresh and smoked pork and grass fed beef. They also had their own eggs. Colby Farms has been in operation and in the Colby family since 1960. It is located at 50 Scotland Road in Newbury, MA. Visit ColbyFarms.com for more information.
In West Newbury, Brown Spring Farm on Main Street is still operated by the Cooney family. They offer fresh produce seasonally and they typically have the best Butter and Sugar corn I have ever had. They too were offering local strawberries when I stopped in to see what they had for sale. I have a longstanding personal attachment to shopping at Brown Spring Farm; it was the closest farm to my parent’s house when I was child. The farm’s land was my playground; the owner was my bus driver.
Of final note in the Newburyport area’s farm stands is Bartlett Farm at 96 Main Street in Salisbury, MA. Bartlett Farm Stand is located at 96 Main Street. Bartlett Farm has a special distinction in the area, as it is one of the oldest family farms in America. Founded in 1659, Bartlett Farm Sand sells their own grass fed beef as well as a variety of their vegetables and local fruit. They also sell local jams, honey, coffee, and fudge.
Seeing the fresh sweet local strawberries at all of the local farms made me think back to my childhood. My mother would buy fresh strawberries from a small grower in West Newbury, near where we lived. Every night while strawberries were in season we had strawberry shortcake for desert. Sometimes we even had it for dinner! Bartlett’s is typically a go to for me for fresh green or wax beans and corn.
Marguerite’s Strawberry Shortcake (aka Betty Crocker Classic Strawberry Shortcake)
1 quart (4 cups) fresh local strawberries, sliced and mashed
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/3 cups Original Bisquick™ mix
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup heavy cream
Directions
- Heat oven to 425°F. In large bowl, mix sliced strawberries and 1/4 cup sugar; mash strawberries slightly with a potato masher and set aside.
- In medium bowl, stir Bisquick mix, milk, 3 tablespoons sugar and the butter until soft dough forms. On ungreased cookie sheet, drop dough by 6 spoonfuls.
- Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, in small bowl, beat whipping cream with electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form.
- Split warm shortcakes; fill and top with strawberries and fresh whipped heavy cream sweetened with a dash of sugar.
