Dennis Fox pours out our harvest at The Fruit and Berry Patch

Sometimes the serendipitous adventures are best — well, at least it was last Sunday as my husband Bert and I took a leisurely ride through Halls (North Knoxville) just looking at all the new developments and changes out that way. 

Have you ever been to The Fruit and Berry Patch? I asked. 

Can’t say that I have, he answered — and that’s when we took the country road up to the farm of Dr. Dennis Fox.

Owner Dennis Fox tells us what’s in season and where the best pickin’s can be found!

Former botany professor at UT, Dr. Fox is an affable, knowledgeable, committed-to-sharing farmer who’s here almost seven days a week at this heavenly pick-your-own site. He spends quality time with city slickers like us, telling us what’s ripe and where to find not-yet-picked-over bushes.  We saw a young man holding a bucket ready to hit the fields of blueberries, but we were pretty sure we couldn’t stand the 100-degree heat that afternoon just for a few berries!

A visitor ready for berry-picking

So, we looked around the place. 

We spotted fresh honey (and there’s lots more to come since Dr. Fox has recently bought all the honey one local beekeeper can harvest).

And preserves and apple butter made locally from his fruit. 

Gallons of apple cider.

And fried pies, too.  Peach, fresh apple, blueberry, strawberry — some made from old family recipes, some new. (Strawberry’s my choice, but Bert ALWAYS picks apple desserts in any form!)

A cooler of home-made fried pies!

The place has a sense of humor, too, in a country sort of way.

But really, we had no intention of picking.  That is, until Dr. Fox showed us a map of the farm, how close the blueberries were to the shop, and the location of the “berriest” bushes that hadn’t been over-picked!  It’s been a tough summer for blueberries — we just haven’t had any rain to speak of, he told us.  But you can still find them, if you look.

Then he handed us a bucket.  How could we resist?

Bert reaches high to find the best berries.

So, with no hat, sunscreen, or appropriate clothing, we were off on our berry pickin’ adventure.

I did my share of picking — and loving the quiet!

We met up with this family — and listened to them one row over as we all picked in the silence of the fields. Look for the big, fat blue ones, the mother told her child.  And I could just imagine little pickers intent on learning the craft by grabbing not only blue but also green berries, twigs, leaves and all — anything to fill a bucket!  Happens, I suppose!

Family fun – berry pickin’ on a Sunday afternoon

But we were off in search of big fat blue ones, ourselves.  The berries we found were beautiful — or so we thought — until one man passed by and said, I know everyone thinks they’ve found just the right spot, but really, if you go down to the end of that row (and he pointed left and down), you’ll find some bushes that are just loaded. He was right.

That’s the fun of picking!  You hunt for the bushes with the best berries — down the lane, around the corner, up and down.  Even when your bucket is full. Just a few more, you say to yourself! It’s the hunt as much as it is the harvest!

In search of bountiful blueberry bushes

We were quite fortunate that young man came along, because the journey to find the best blueberries had a side benefit: we were squarely in front of the neighboring blackberry patch — and that’s a whole ‘nother story.  We hadn’t even thought of blackberries, yet here they were: huge blackberries ripe for the pickin’.  Well, mostly.  Lots more red ones this trip — waiting to turn black after summer storms like the ones we’ve had this week.  (Maybe if you go now, you can get the ones we left behind!)

More red than black — but that’s what makes the search so interesting!

Life lessons abound, I suppose, through experiences like this, and my English teacher mind couldn’t help but find symbolism in the simple act of picking blackberries: the search for something desirable, the joy of finding it– even if the find is based on happenstance and spare at best. Then the reach –careful, of course, to avoid tangles or an encounter with a stinging creature. And the fun of bounty hunting — God’s perfect (and sometimes imperfect) berries in an idyllic farm in Halls on a hot afternoon! Simple summer pleasures, for sure.

Rows of blackberry bushes with beautiful blue sky behind – Does it get any better than this?

We brought back our bucketfuls for Dr. Fox to weigh.

Weighing the pickin’s

And then plunked down extra money for bottled water and a fried pie — rewards for a job well done! 

If you want to go, call ahead first and listen to Dr. Fox’s daily message.  At this writing, here are the latest announcements:  1) Blueberries, blackberries, and peaches are ready to pick, but 2) The Fruit and Berry Patch will close if the temperature hits 94 degrees.  (Good plan!)

My advice? Go early — and that’s not just to beat the heat.  After all, it’s the other pickers you’re really racing against! Here’s the number to call:  865-922-3779.

So, what did we do with all those gorgeous blackberries?  Make a cobbler, of course!

Foundry’s Blackberry Cobbler from Summer Suppers

Here’s an easy recipe from the Knox Heritage Summer Suppers cookbook for Foundry’s Blackberry Cobbler.  If you’re not familiar with the Summer Supper program that offers Southern meals in great settings — like farms, historic homes, etc. — just click here for more information.  We love these events! 

Here’s Cynthia Moxley’s blog, The Blue Streak, on one we just attended:    Four Centuries, Four Visionaries, Four Blocks. A great progressive dinner in four different downtown locations!

And now for the recipe for this cobbler that was served at Strong Stock Farm in 2009.

Foundry’s Blackberry Cobbler

1/2 cup butter

3 cups sugar

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 cup milk

24 oz. blackberries

Melt butter in a 9 x 13 glass baking dish.  Mix together 1 1/2 cups sugar, flour, and baking powder.  Add milk and lightly whisk.  Pour batter on top of melted butter in baking dish.  On medium heat, cook blackberries and remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar until mixture begins to boil.  Add blackberry mixture to top of batter and bake at 350 degrees until batter browns.  Cool and top with vanilla ice cream.

It’s worth it!

If you want to go to The Fruit and Berry Patch (Please do!), here’s what we suggest:

• Call ahead to see what’s available and in what abundance: 865-922-3779.
• Dress appropriately — cool clothing, sunscreen, hat.
• You don’t have to bring your own container unless you’re planning to pick a lot.  Buckets and cardboard trays are available.
• Be prepared to buy something else — the apple cider, fried pies, honey, and preserves are hard to resist!

Enjoy the day!

The Fruit and Berry Patch

Owners: Dennis and Judie Fox

Co-owners: Jeff and Sandy Fox

4407 McCloud Road

Knoxville, TN 37938

865.92.BERRY

www.thefruitandberrypatch.com

Ayden’s favorite flavor? Chocolate, of course!

Ask almost anyone from Knoxville to Athens what color jug to look for if you want Mayfield’s milk, and they’ll answer YELLOW!  It’s the same with ice cream cartons, frozen novelties, even campaign posters for Mayfield Dairy Farm president Scottie Mayfield who’s running for Congress!

Mayfield is a brand we know and love — not just for building strong bones and cooling us off in this brutal summer heat but also for an iconic brand that we’ve grown up with in school cafeterias and grocery stores throughout East Tennessee.

So, for my fifth in a series of Cool Off 2012 blogs, I ventured to Mayfield Dairy Farm in Athens where I watched kids on a summertime field trip and then toured the Visitor Center. Afterwards, I treated myself to a cold, creamy cup of my favorite flavor!

It was 1910 when T. B. Mayfield bought 45 Jersey cows and delivered milk to people in his hometown of Athens, Tennessee.  Today, Mayfield milk is distributed in Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. In 1981, Time  named Mayfield’s the “World’s Best Ice Cream”!

A mom and daughter from Fairfax, Virginia, wait for the Mayfield tour to begin.

But not much of that mattered to the more than 100 kids I saw on the Factory Tour, ready to see how a real dairy works.  We first went into the Moovie Theater where films are sometimes shown, but not today.  Instead, we did a little meet and greet and got to know our guide better.

At the guide’s request, we donned lovely red hairnets before embarking on our adventure. (Lots of giggles, as you can imagine!)

A happy family from Sevierville, TN model the red hairnets

Since we couldn’t take pictures inside the processing areas, you’ll have to take my word for it: fascinating!  First, we watched as rows of yellow jugs were created from bits of plastic, melted and molded into shape.  Then, the machines punched out the tops and handles, dumping the scraps into a bin to use later to make more jugs. (Ultimate recycling!)  The third area — the filling room —  featured parading jugs ready, willing, and able to receive delicious Mayfield milk.  The jugs then moved on to be capped and stored. Last, we viewed the clean-up area and the section of the plant where pint and half-pint cartons are filled. When school’s in session, Mayfield’s can fill two million half-pint cartons of milk each week!

Where is all this milk coming from?  Mayfield’s receives over 120,000 gallons of milk a day (weekends, too!) from over 150 area farmers!

You can’t tour the ice cream factory yet, but in the near future that part of the dairy will be open, too.

We learned a lot about Mayfield ice cream from watching a video and listening to our guide. I’m going to wait ’til the end to tell you the best-selling flavors she named for us, but be thinking now.  I want to see if you can guess which one is Number One!

She’s serving my favorite flavor? Can you guess what it is?

Meanwhile here’s what the guide told us those busy Mayfield folks produce:

• 50,000 gallons of ice cream per day!
• 10,000 ice cream sandwiches per hour!
• 9600 sundae cones per hour!
• 11,500 Brown Cows per hour!
• 3600 pint containers per hour!
• 3600 48-ounce and 56-ounce containers per hour!
• 400 three-gallon tubs per hour!

When Mayfield technicians first pour ice cream that has never been frozen (still in soft serve stage) into the cartons, they quickly place it into freezers at 45 degrees below zero where it hardens in 90 minutes! Then, the ice cream is moved to freezers set at 20 degrees below.   A lot of work to keep that ice cream creamy and cold!

Memorabilia and collectibles on display at the Mayfield Tour

We left the Factory Tour ready to look around and, of course, sample the goods.  The Mayfield Gift Shop offers almost everything bovine you can think of like udder bowls and spoons and cow-shaped scoops.

An Udder Bowl and an Udder Spoon!

Cow Ice Cream Scoops

 And t-shirts with slogans like “Love at First Bite” and Mayfield branded items!

T-shirts from Mayfield’s Gift Shop

Tervis Tumblers with the Mayfield logo

The real treat, of course, is the ice cream. Young and old file into the dining area to order their favorites.

Cooling off with Mayfield’s ice cream

Outside, these big porch rockers don’t stay empty for long — lots of folks want that Southern experience — rockin’ on the porch with a cup of Mayfield’s ice cream!

Rockin’ on the porch!

So, have you guessed the best-selling flavors yet? Just look below this picture of Jordan Hope and Jillian Boreing for the answer.  They confirmed what I suspected.

Jordan and Jillian – great Mayfield scoopers!

The Most Popular flavors of Mayfield ice cream are (drum roll, please):

1st Place: Vanilla

2nd Place: Moose Tracks

3rd Place: Homemade Vanilla

Did you guess correctly?

Now, for those of you who haven’t had Moose Tracks, here’s how Jordan described it: Vanilla ice cream base with Denali fudge swirl and chunks of chocolate cups filled with peanut butter! Yum!  I had to order that one, for sure!

A cup of Moose Tracks makes my day!

If you’re thinking of going to Mayfield Dairy Farm to cool off OR take your relatives OR herd a group of cute kids through the process, go to the website to confirm this schedule:  Monday -Friday: 9 AM to 5 PM and Saturday: 9 AM to 2 PM. Closed on Sunday. Or call 1-800-MAYFIELD.

What’s to Like: Mayfield Dairy Farm

• Interesting tour of actual plant production (Red hairnets NOT optional.)
• Knowledgeable, patient tour guides with data points fully memorized
• Gifts galore — from yellow Mayfield souvenirs to cow-related must-haves
• Outdoor seating and cows (not real) to climb on
• Delicious ice cream, shakes, and other goodies served with a smile!

Mayfield Dairy Farm

4 Mayfield Lane

Athens, TN 37303

1-800-MAYFIELD

It’s a great place to cool off!

For more information, take a look at the Mayfield Dairy Farms Visitor Center page of Tennessee Vacations: http://www.tnvacation.com/vendors/mayfield_dairy_farms_visitor_center/

Mayfield Dairy Farm is a point of interest on the Tanasi Trail of Tennessee Highways and Byways.

Note: If you’re making a day of it with kids, you might consider going to Sweetwater Valley Farms (17988 West Lee Highway, Philadelphia, TN) to see a working farm and cheese production on the same day as your visit to Mayfield’s.  The two sites are approximately 25 miles apart. You’ll love ‘em both!

Four other Cool Off 2012 blogs await you — hope you’ll take a look:  Original Freezo, Coolato Gelato, Bruster’s, and Razzleberry’s.  And there’ll be one more.  Or maybe two.  It’s a hot summer, after all.