A Jubilee

Yesterday our playdate got cancelled, so Boylee and I went cherry picking. (Dad has to work.) First, we drove about 60 miles away to a place called the Leona Valley. Then we found the specific orchard we were looking for -- there are many in that valley. The helpful greeters armed us with two big buckets, pointed us in the direction of the most heavily-laden trees, and off we went.

It was very, very hot, but it didn't take us too long to find a tree just bursting with hundreds and hundreds of Ranier cherries. And other trees laden with Bings. Boylee got a bit knackered, and we probably stayed in the orchard for less than 45 minutes. But we emerged with 5.3 pounds of mixed cherries. (No stems -- we were shown how to pick them without plucking the stem from the tree, the loss of which could damage next year's crop. I guess professional cherry pickers know how to pluck the stems properly without injuring the tree.)

The 5+ pounds of cherries only cost us $16, which is a huge bargain...except that 120-mile round trip's worth of gas. But it was fun.

Last night I made a clafoutis, in the authentic French way -- which means you don't pit the cherries. But we probably still had 4.5 pounds left. As of now? I'm estimating 1 pound left. We love cherries!