U-Pick Citrus

-
Today we went on a wonderful field trip to one of THE last U-Pick Citrus Farms in Southwest Florida!!

It is owned and run by a couple by the name of Johnson. Judy and Bob began planting there 10-acre grove in 1980. Bob planted all 3,000 trees himself, from seed! Unfortunately they lost that initial crop to frost. But that did not stop him. He has had a thriving business for many years that also helps support local needy people.


 Each season they donate 12,000 pounds of fruit to the Harry Chapin Food Bank and they also work with churches in their area to help feed hungry children.

They also sell some local wild flower honey from their nieghbor's bee farm down the road.

Their barn is an eclectic mix of antiques, Bob's sign and license plate collection and the supplies he needs to run the farm.



The grove is open from November to May. The location is:
 18971 Misty Morning Lane, Ft. Myers, FL.
Email address is: upickcitrus@netzero.net
Phone: 239-657-4996

Judy and Bob were a delight and they were so wonderful to our homeschool group. The children had just as much fun playing with their dog and cat as they did picking the oranges and tangerines. The older two children were there as well but I didn't get a good photo of them...bummer!




I bought almost 60 lbs of citrus!!! You can imagine how much fresh juice we will be getting from that! And how wonderful the juice will be in our morning green smoothies.




 And I am happy to say that they do not use any pesticides on their fruit! Grazing in the grove is free and they allow you to taste from the tree before you pick so you can select the fruit that is right for your individual taste. How great is that!!

Thank you Bob and Judy for allowing us to spend the day at your lovely home/grove. It was a splendid day and we had so much fun.

How about a green smoothie recipe with fresh squeezed Honey Tangerine juice:

I juiced several of the Honey Tangerines and added the juice to a blender full of raw sunflower seeds, freshly ground flax, 4 large collard leaves, banana and finally frozen mango and some ice.

U-Pick Green Smoothieby Elizabeth @ rawlivingandlearning.blogspot.com

2 C freshly juiced honey tangerine juice
4 T raw sunflower seeds
3 dates, pitted
3 T freshly ground flax seeds
4 large collard leaves, torn
3 small bananas
2 C frozen mango
1/2 C ice
Blend till creamy and smooth. Enjoy the goodness!
Our oldest son enjoyed a large glass of fresh squeezed Valencia juice with his breakfast--yum!

+JMJ+ Today I am grateful for a day in the sunshine picking fresh citrus with friends and family.

Comments

aribelle2624 said…
Yum! I will definitely try this. My children really enjoyed picking their own fruit. Thanks!

~Heather
January 21, 2012 at 4:27 PM
Mr. H. said…
A U-pick citrus farm, what a wonderful adventure. We found a citrus called Yuzu Ichandrin that will survive conditions down to 0°F and in the next year or so hope to try growing it ourselves.

Enjoy all that wonderful juice.:)
February 5, 2012 at 11:33 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Another Salad Dressing Post

-
Today I would like to share some really great raw salad dressings. Wait, aren't all salad dressings considered raw? No they are not. Remember, you have to be very careful about the ingredients you use. Raw salad dressings are as unprocessed as possible. Using ingredients that are as close as possible to their natural state. That is why I choose first cold pressed olive oils, unpasteurized apple cider vinegar and coconut vinegar, fresh herbs, vegetables and fruits. You get the picture. But keep in mind sometimes I will use a small amount of ingredients that may not be truly raw. For example, real maple syrup is heated to reduce the amount of water content and to make the syrup into what it is when we purchase it in jars. And I am pretty sure balsamic vinegar is not raw. I still love the taste sometimes in dressings so I don't mind using a tiny amount. I am not an extreme raw foodist . If I choose to eat something that is not raw I am fine with that. Keep it simple or you set you
Read more

My First Post

-
Image
~ JMJ ~ I am happy to start posting on my new blog. I should introduce myself first. I am a wife and a mother of five children. I home school all of my children for religious and academic reasons. I choose to eat a raw living food diet. I love raw food and how this living food makes me feel. I have been eating raw living foods since November, 2009. My goal is to consume foods as close as possible to the way they appear in nature, the way God created them to be. Here I will share my experiences with the raw food lifestyle and great recipes I make/create each day. I will share raw food recipes, my sprouting adventures, square foot gardening and container gardening, favorite raw food book titles, raw food products, kitchen appliances, and tools that have helped me with food preparation. From time-to-time I just might share some homeschooling thoughts, experiences, ideas, and tips. I will also take time to reflect back on my days and find all the ways I can experience gratitude.
Read more

Health Benefits of Sea Vegetables

-
Image
Elizabeth's Sea Vegetable Salad Lunch yesterday was a fabulous salad made with loads of fresh vegetables and  sea vegetables. I used the Creamy Thai Dressing from yesterday's salad dressing post. I decided to use the red pepper flakes instead of the Thai bird chilies. I like things slightly spicy, not overly spicy. The red pepper flakes gave it just the right amount of heat. I enjoyed this salad so much, I was tempted to lick my plate when it was all gone! If you are trying sea vegetables for the first time you may want to use less than I did in my recipe. I really adore them so my recipe has quite a bit. Alter it to your tastes and I'm sure it will be fantastic. Below the recipe I have pasted an excellent article outlining the wonderful health benefits of sea vegetables. It also points out the one sea vegetable you should steer clear of. Please read it and educate yourself. You will be truly amazed at how healthful these plants are. Here is my
Read more