Meadowbrook Farm…

My good friend, Chris, works at a local farm and oversees the various garden plots and growing projects on the property. Art and I recently had the distinct opportunity to visit Chris in his element and learn all about the history, people, plants, and mission of this wonderful Montgomery Country destination.

Meadowbrook Farm is nestled amongst the back roads of Abington and boasts a beautiful home once owned and occupied by J. Liddon Pennock, who was a tremendous advocate for the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. So much so, he donated his estate to the non-profit organization upon his death in 2003. In tandem with PHS, Meadowbrook is the flagship store of the Philadelphia Flower Show each year, so they’re a pretty big deal.

Anyways, Chris and I share a love for cooking, good food, and local ingredients. Knowing this, Chris invited Art and me to check out his various projects and give us a tour.

We first checked out the community plots he oversees where I saw anything from summer squash and lettuces to various tomatoes and ground cherries. The latter grabbed my attention when he said it because I had no idea what he was talking about. Oh yes, this is why I love visiting a farm!

A ground cherry is in the tomato family and wears a husk similar to a tomatillo. They get their name because they fall to the ground when ripe and they are the sweetest, tangiest, most citrusy veggie I’ve ever tasted. I could eat these by the handful like candy! I had no problem eating them right there in the garden too because Meadowbrook grows everything organically.

I love shallots and I cook with them all the time. I watched Chris pull some right from the ground and place them in my hands. Now that’s what I call a fresh, organic, and local ingredient!

Local, organic shallots

The Hop Project

  

















Chris had sent me a pic a while back of the frames/trellises he built to begin growing hops. Upon my visit, some vines were already making their ways up the bamboo!

Backyard pool

Pennock house foyer

The house is very cool. The ground level is still kept as it was when Mr. Pennock lived there. They don’t make houses like this anymore. Posh furniture, beautiful décor, exotic plants…

This was a fantastic way to spend an afternoon and see the great work a local farm is doing. Chris, his wife, me and Art all went to Mad Mex and had a delicious dinner that evening. It was an all around wonderful day and great dinner. I had some incredible tofu tacos. I’m not terribly into Mexican cuisine, but Chris did not steer me wrong with this one. I loved it.

I went on that week to use those lovely Meadowbrook shallots on my usual dishes and thoroughly enjoyed them. Now if I can only get my own personal, weekly supply of those tasty ground cherries throughout their season!