Hit Up Larriland Farm And The New Town Grill -- BBQ And Smoked Meats Come To Ellicott City

Sliced smoked lamb with chips and coleslaw at the new Town Grill in Ellicott City

Some things keep getting better -- and one of those is a trip to pick-your-own fruit and then to feast on barbecue and smoked meats.

Larriland Farm in Woodbine is one of my favorite places in Howard County.  I've been going for more than a decade, and it truly gets better each time.  They've got delicious fruit -- and vegetables and flowers.  Plus credit card machines in the fields.  What else do you want?

Lil' Chow and I drove out I-70 Saturday, and we hit the blueberry fields at the end of the opening rush.  Honestly, we only hit about 10 bushes.  The plants were covered in ripe blueberries.  We worked mostly standing still, and we got three pounds of berries by just reaching out.

I was pleased to see that Lil' Chow could mostly identify the ripe fruit.  Our cardboard box had a few purple berries, but this seemed like an idea field for kids because even a four-year-old could reach the bushes, see the ripe blue ones, and avoid crushing them like we did with strawberries a few year ago.

Apple Picking And Pulled Pork -- It Would Be Tradition If It Weren't All New This Time

Apple picking at Larriland Farm

I have been to Larriland Farm in many roles, and you should really check it out this week as some gorgeous weather offers you apples, pumpkins and carnival fun.

Larriland -- in Woodbine -- a true Howard County gem.  Pick-your-own fruits and vegetables all summer, then a fall festival with apple fritters, hay rides, barbecue and more through this season.

Hayrides

We picked apples Saturday with a family who first met me at Larriland.  That was years ago when I went as "guy who Ms. HowChow is dating."  I have gone as a couple.  I have gone in groups.  I have gone as "guy who has bought a diamond ring."   I went Saturday as Dad.

Every trip was wonderful, and I can't suggest it enough. Sun-warmed peaches are so delicious that you should put them now on your calendar for next summer. But the pumpkin-apple season takes a splendid second place, and Larriland augments with all kinds of kid-friendly activities like animals to check out and a hay bale maze to run through. On weekends, they have hay rides and food like apple fritters and hamburgers.

Lil' Chow just wanted an apple. I have been serving him diced apple since he came home. A few times, I went wild by making two-bite apple sticks.  So this rookie Dad had to laugh when Lil' Chow took a small apple from a tree and proceeded to chomp off bites. Apparently not the choking hazard that I had expected -- although he did feed me the skin.  I think it is too tough for his teeth.

Sweet potato fries and pork at Town Grill

One lesson for 2014:  Larriland's pumpkins are growing on another farm that they manage.  It's on the right side of the road before the main Larriland complex.  So drive a little slow and turn right into that farm when you see a field of pumpkins.

After our apple picking, we squeezed into a table at Town Grill in Lisbon for a lunch.  The pulled pork sandwich continues to be one of my favorites, and Mrs. HowChow pulled off a new hit by ordering sweet potato fries.

Town Grill is just off the traffic circle between I-70 and Larriland.  It's a barbecue joint inside a gas station, and it's really worth checking out -- as I have written many times in the past.

One more lesson from our folly:  You don't need to squeeze into an indoor table like we did.  Town Grille has enclosed their patio with screens and a plastic that should keep it comfortable even with a slight chill in the air.  They have several tables out there, and we could have spread out.

Mark Your Calendar Now For A Day At Larriland; Cherries Were Magic, But You Can Get More

Yellow and red cherries from Larriland Farm

You need to mark your calendar now for a day at Larriland Farm, and you can only hope for something as glorious as last weekend.

Larriland will have a flow of great "pick-your-own" fruits and vegetables through October.  But this weekend they had cherries.

Larriland knows how to handle crowds

That's almost a miracle.  Among the trees, we talked to one of Larriland's owners who described years and years where the cherry trees don't fruit because the weather doesn't cooperate.  This year filled the grove with cherries, but this last week's rain threaten to cause them all to burst.  So the Larriland crew had been applying calcium four times a day to keep everything firm.

That's how we ended up standing inside magical trees on Saturday morning.  Mrs. HowChow had gotten a Larriland email saying the cherry trees would be open on Saturday.  We arrived before the fields open, and there were already dozens of people parked and picking.

The fruit is really fun.  Sweet cherries in deep red and dark yellow.  Trees with hundreds of ripe cherries hanging in arms length.  We picked like maniacs.  We stopped only because our boxes seemed ridiculous, and we ended up with almost 20 pounds.  I should have spent all Sunday putting them away.  I'll need to plan one project -- freeze, jam, bourbon cherries -- for each night this week.

Larriland is one of my favorite places in all of Howard County.  The family-run farm in Woodbine is an easy 30 minutes from most of the county.  They just do everything well.  Signs take you to the fields.  People direct traffic, give you bags, help you know what to pick, and check you out right next to the fields.  They were packed Saturday for cherries and strawberries, and everything was friendly and smooth.

Challah rolls from The Breadery

The cherries will disappear, but you should pencil in a day or two now to make a trip to Larriland.  Blueberries and peaches, then apples, tomatoes and pumpkins.  I post similar advice almost every year after we have a magical day.  Can tomatoes.  Go for the weekend festival atmosphere before Halloween.  It's great for a date, for taking kids, or for meeting friends out in the country.

If you do, don't miss stopping at the big barn in the main part of Larriland.  They sell all kinds of vegetables and fruits, along with some sodas, candies, and the dried fruit candy that you need to try at the register.  They also sell breads from The Breadery in Oella -- including challah rolls that looked like cousins to hot dog buns that I have deemed "the best hot dog buns you'll find anywhere."  I bought two bags in preparation for our next ground meat purchase from Laurel Meat Market.

For years, I have championed the barbecue and smoked fish from the Town Grille in Lisbon.  That's a half-block out of your way from Larriland, and you'll have a terrific lunch there.  Now, I'll add some alternatives with posts later this week.  Jeff from Southern Skies Coffee Roasters turned me on to Sykesville, and I heartily recommend a short detour for lunch and shopping.

Mark Your Calendar Now For Town Grill's Barbecue And Pick-Your-Own Fun At Larriland

Brisket and BBQ chicken sandwiches at Town Grill

This week is a gift.  Don't waste it.

Instead of sweating through late summer, you can enjoy some 80s over the next few days to pick-your-own peaches and enjoy your barbecue sandwiches.

Larriland peaches

Larriland Farm in Woodbine goes into overdrive between mid-July and Halloween.  You'll be able to fill your trunk any day.  Right now, there are peaches, blackberries, and beets along with the last blueberries and the first tomatoes.  Soon, apples and other vegetables will start up and run into the season when you can make a day of pumpkins, hay rides and fried apple fritters.

But for now, you should pair your farm visit with barbecue from Town Grill in Lisbon.  We broke new territory and ordered chicken and brisket on our last visit.  We each got a great sandwich.  Tender, moist meat.  Fresh basic rolls.  A good pickle.

My brisket was perfect.  Tender without being soft, the slices of meat were delicious, especially dipped in a little container of extra sauce.  Mrs. HowChow relished her chicken.  It looked like white meat cooked in Town Grill's barbecue sauce.  We gave up our usual pulled pork to try the new sandwiches, and we were pleased to see that everything lives up that high standard.

Town Grill is a really special spot.  It's literally in a Citgo station, and its kitchen takes part in Restaurant Weeks.  No joking around.  They smoke their own trout and salmon, both of which are worth taking home.  They have also run Thursday night specials for Restaurant Weeks -- topped off on August 1 with local lamb kabobs served with seasonal vegetables and rice pilaf for $11.13.

Throughout the year, Town Grill offers a deep menu of breakfast specials, sandwiches and platters.  On summer Saturdays, they make ribs.  They suggest calling ahead to reserve a rack.  I don't know if that's necessary, but I know the ribs are worth a phone call.

Not ripe!  Even the black ones!

Truly, you should mark your calendar for a day spent out in the western county.  Larriland is beautiful.  You can pick your own, then shop in the large barn full of produce, drinks, candies and canning supplies.  Larriland  can host anything from a romantic date to a child's adventure to an extravaganza of fruit and vegetable canning.

Today we got peaches and about a pound of blackberries.  The blackberries are delicious, but it's always tough to find the truly ripe ones.  Black isn't ripe.  The ripe ones almost fall off in your fingers.  We watched people fill containers with black berries they were wrestling off the vines, and we worry those weren't sweet.  Check out all the Larriland posts.

Seriously consider Town Grill's smoked salmon if you can talk yourself out of a barbecue sandwich.  They were making "BLTs" with salmon and bacon.  If you go, notice that there is lots of parking around the gas station.  There is a lot across the street and another just east of the station.

Apple Fritters And Fun At Larriland Farm

Apple fritters

Start planning now.  Last weekend was perfect, and the perfect place to be was Larriland Farm in Woodbine.

Now, you need to hope for beautiful weather next week and start planning your trip for apples, pumpkins and Halloween fun.

Enterprise apples -- sweet, all purpose

The apple fritters alone are worth the drive.  The irregular cousins of donuts pop out of the fryer filled with apple chunks and then shower in powdered sugar.  Get a hot cider and munch down watching the crowd.

The October visits still focus on the big three:  apples, pumpkins and hay rides.  On Saturday, we walked across two hills of pumpkins, just having fun with the views until we realized that the best pumpkins were the first few that we had found.

But no problem.  We had an equally beautiful walk to fill two bags of apples, then returned to the farm where Larriland gets better every year.  They bulked up on food this year.  Those apple fritters plus separate stands with kettle corn and barbecue.  The barbecue comes from Town Grill is Lisbon, so we highly recommend it.  (Great sandwich: Pulled pork.  Awesome visual:  Kids chomping turkey legs.)

Plus, the Larriland folks actually make the farm better as well.  The stand stocks all kinds of product, along with apple cider, canning supplies and candy.  They expanded the parking and added a second road past the farm out to the apples.  Even with a packed house Saturday, the traffic flowed.  People smiled in line.  Go this weekend.  You can't have this much outdoors until April.

Larriland has also added fields of broccoli, cauliflower, beets, and spinach to go with the standby pumpkins.  Cool to me, but no one clicks when I post about "Pick-Your-Own Vegetables." So I'll tart this up with apple fritters and lure down here to know you can select your own brassica.

Pumpkin fields

Blueberries And Beets At Larriland

Blueberries from Larriland

Our Larriland Farm season started a month earlier this year when we actually got there for blueberries.

Out in the fields

Often, we arrive in peach season.  But we got a canning book on Saturday, so we went out Sunday afternoon to pick some things to preserve.  First, we went to the blueberry fields.  Remember our lesson: Walk to the far part of the field.  We slogged a long time on plants that other people had been picking all week.

I had to laugh when we finally go to the far end and found plans with more than three or four ripe berries.  At th far end, you could just stand and pull handfuls.  By the end, we had 10 pounds of fruit.  I canned some.  I hope those will become a base for drinks and ice cream sauce.  We'll freeze the rest and make sorbet over time.

Larriland is spectacular.  If you haven't been, you need to plan on blueberries now, tomatoes, peaches, and blackberries in the summer heat, then apples and pumpkins in the fall.  The fruit just tastes better.  I have been popping handfuls of blueberries, and they're absolutely perfect.

Honey sticks!

And that's not even taking in the beets.  Beets are the easiest pick-your-own field.  Just pull them out of the ground.  We got 20 pounds in minutes, and I roasted them all.  I turned some into pickles.  I need plans for the rest.

Larriland is a great activity with kids.  It's a project for a serious picker who wants to cook or can.  Don't miss their expanded barn where they sell already-picked produce and some other treats.  We always get dried fruit candy for the ride home.  We also bought McCutcheon's sodas -- black cherry and sarsaparilla -- and some of the honey sticks.

The vegetables are still a deal, but beets were more than we paid last fall.  It was 99 cents a pound if you buy 20 pounds.  That was 79 cents last fall.  Remember the beet rule: Bring a knife to slice the stems.  Keep the greens that you'll saute with garlic and dress with a little oil and vinegar.

If you want to try Larriland, remember that you can get food for a picnic out there.  Harvest Fried Chicken is just north of U.S. 70.  Town Grille in Lisbon sells barbecue almost between U.S. 70 and the farm.

If you want to try to can, I recommend buying a canning pot from Amazon.  Ball sells jars all over the place, including Kendall Hardware in Clarksville.  But the price of the big pots makes that a deal.

Western Howard County -- A First Step In Restaurants, Markets And More West of Rte 32

South Mountain Creamery

The Howard County of Columbia and Ellicott City may be sprawling compared to big cities, but they're the big time compares to Howard County west of Rte 32.  Out in the western county, there are fewer options, but that doesn't mean you need to settle at all.

I'm not an expert on the western county, but people have joined in before with comments that collect places like J&Y Tokyo Market in Eldersburg and Town Grill in Lisbon.  Babs dropped her list on a post next month.  Now Annie of the AnnieRie Unplugged blog has offered up an entire guest post of joints for locals to try.  Annie posts regularly about food, especially local sourcing, and she has started an entire series about living out in the western county.

For HowChow, she stepped in with a primer on food in the west county -- where to eat, where to shop: 

We ate out quite a bit more when we lived in Columbia and commuted to DC, than we do now that we live in west county, mainly because it is less convenient to go out. More of that is from being retired. We may run around all day so lunch is usually the time we eat out, and if we are home all day, we don't feel like getting all dolled up (in other words, changing out of our farmer jeans with dirt, grease or whatever on the knees) and fighting rush hour traffic to get to a restaurant.

Pick Your Own Tomatoes At Larriland, But You Don't Have To Pick Between The Barbecue

You need to mark your calendar now for a trip or two to Larriland Farm because the pick-your-own fields are hitting their peak.

Peaches, blackberries, raspberries and tomatoes are available now, and the next few weeks start the rush towards apples and pumpkins.  Go fill your bags, and keep room for lunch out in Woodbine.  In July, I recommended a fried chicken picnic with the main dish from Harvest Fried Chicken. Yesterday, we stayed out of the heat by eating a late barbecue lunch at the Town Grill in the Citgo station.

After so much time picking produce, I didn't want to just pick one of Town Grill's barbecue options of pork, chicken, brisket, pitbeef, etc.  So I ordered sliders -- three small, soft buns that came with a half-cup dollop of meat.

Yesterday, we went for peaches and tomatoes with a plan to lay them away for winter.  I even bought some Balls quart canning jars as part of my bumbling effort to learn to pickle and can.
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Harvest Fried Chicken in Woodbine -- Perfect For A Pick-Your Own Picnic At Larriland Farms

Now is the time to plan your fried chicken picnic to go with an afternoon of picking your own fruit.

Larriland Farms is kicking into high gear.  Peaches, plums and blackberries are coming out in the heat, and the next three months run through raspberries, tomatoes, apples, and the Halloween events.

You have to get out there, and you should pair a healthy excursion with a fried chicken picnic.  Get your chicken at Harvest Fried Chicken -- a counter-service spot at the same exit off Rte 70.  Their chicken comes crisp and moist even out of the display.

I devoured a breast and wing as takeout.  There's a salty punch to the skin.  They're bulky pieces.  Even the wing had real meat, and the breast had that perfect ratio of chicken to coating.  On a Sunday afternoon, the customers flowed through, so I feel like the chicken hadn't sat long under the heating lamp.  I tasted a touch of oil obviously, but it's fresh, not greasy or tired.

For me, you can't beat homestyle chicken, especially because I don't have the appetite to coat my kitchen in oil by frying at home.  Harvest has a dining room, but it's an uninspired spot.  I recommend takeout and picnicking at Larriland -- just from your car or sitting on the edge of an orchard.

Personally, I would bring my own sides to the picnic.  Christian L. talks up the coleslaw and baked beans on Yelp, and they look homemade.  But I like something lighter where the main course is fried.  I made sauteed cucumbers from Growing Up In A Korean Kitchen that would contrast nicely.  Or I'd look for a salad with vinegar or a touch of spice.

Of course, I might try a piece of Harvest's pie.

Harvest Fried Chicken is in a shopping center just north of I-70 at the same exit as Larriland.   The alternative to fried chicken is a picnic of pulled pork and barbecue.  The Town Grill in Lisbon is just south of I-70 off the same exit.  They smoke and grill meats -- including pulled pork, ribs, and smoked salmon that you could bring home.


If you want fried chicken in the more-developed part of Howard County, check out Chick 'n Friends in Columbia, which now delivers to offices.


Harvest Fried Chicken
710 Lisbon Center Dr
Woodbine, MD 21797
(410) 489-5870

NEAR:  Harvest is in a shopping center with a Food Lion.  It is behind a gas station and a Pizza Hut.  Take the Rte 94 exit off I-70 and turn northbound.  The shopping center is right after the first traffic circle, so you can turn right at the circle and drive through the gas station or go through the circle and then turn right at the next driveway.

Larriland Farm 2010: Pick Your Own Peaches And Blackberries, Then Get Ready For Pumpkin Season

Larriland Farm in perfect.  I said that two years ago, and the pick-your-own farm in Woodbine has only gotten better as they expand and improve.

August to October are the feast months at Larriland.  We went for blackberries and peaches on Saturday, and our boxes were overflowing as we rolled home.  Overflowed as in 40 pounds of peaches.  Smaller boxes for the blackberries, but you can't get heaps of ripe blackberries like this anywhere.

Heaps that Mrs. HowChow has turned into blackberry sorbet and used for a blackberry-peach pie.  That was the second pie.  Even discounting the slices that we shared with friends, we have split more than a pie between us since Sunday.

The farm is about 30 minutes from the more-crowded part of Howard County.  You can stop for a barbecue lunch before or after at Town Grill in Lisbon.  Although you pick in the fields, check out Larriland's expanded store at the main parking lot.  Get the dried fruit candy.  Try one of the McCutcheon's brand sodas like birch beer.  Or pick up some of the vegetables and fruit that you didn't pick yourself.

Last weekend, they were talking about several more weeks of peach picking, and the blackberries were still pretty thick.  We also paid $7.50 for a large plastic cup, and Mrs. HowChow created a bouquet from the cutting garden.  She actually created three bouquets from all the flowers that fit in her cup.  You can also pick plums, potatoes, leeks, and tomatoes.  Soon there will be apples, then pumpkins in October.

Take my advice about blackberries:  You can't pick them based on sight.  You have to pull gently on the blackest berries and only take the ones that pop off.  Some super-black berries are still tart.  If you have to pull the berry off the bush, then it's tart.  Just move on.  Get the ones that you can almost brush into your tray.

Larriland Farm

2415 Woodbine Road

Woodbine, MD 21797

410-442-2605

NEAR: This is off I-70 west of Rte 32. Take I-70 West to Exit 73. Turn left at the end of the exit ramp. Then follow that road through a circle and then along a road of farms and new developments. Larriland is on the left, although there are some fields across the road.

Town Grill in Lisbon: BBQ At The Citgo

The Town Grill in Lisbon is the place to go when you want counter service for barbecue and self-serve for gasoline.

One of Howard County's best spots for grilled and smoked meats is inside the Citgo station on Rte 144 just off I-70.  It's a classic joint, but don't let the basic spot fool you about the food.  The Town Grill serves food with real flavor and skill.  This isn't retro spot to go just because it's a quaint or unique.

Instead, this is a place where the BBQ starts strong and the side dishes deliver country flavor with modern freshness and ensure that you have a terrific meal.

On Saturday, we enjoyed the inspiring pairing of Town Grill with pick-your-own fruit at Larriland Farm.  We parked a car packed with peaches and ate a late lunch of ribs and pulled pork.  The pork was juicy with a good flavor.  I ordered horseradish, which Mrs. HowChow liked, although next time she'll order extra barbecue sauce on the side.

The ribs come on the firm side, which meant they were perfect for me because we have a Jack Spratt thing going between firm, smoked meat and the fall-off-the-bone variety that Mrs. HowChow loves.  The half rack was huge.  The exterior was crisp, and the meat inside was moist and tasty.  Lots of meat on each bone.

With the ribs came sides that absolutely made the meal.  Coleslaw that was fresh and light.  Cornbread that came out hot, light and tasting of a home kitchen.  (Or maybe better than home.  A young guy sitting behind us called out, "This cornbread is better than my grandmother's.")  And the best was a huge dish of baked beans -- thick and flavored with meat and something that gave it a spicy kick.  None of the sugar rush that makes me skip most beans.  The side dishes paired beautifully with the meat, and they're way better than I'd expect at even a good BBQ place.  We sat outside, and the grill guys plied us with extras -- a little starter of grilled corn, potatoes and squash, then a taste of fresh pickles.

This is a "hole in the wall" kind of place.  It is literally in the Citgo, so you might have friends who don't want to eat in a gas station.  But they're missing out.

Town Grill does a year-round business with barbecue along with a full grill menu from breakfast to burgers, fried chicken to onion rings.  They also cater.  On summer weekends, they pull out grills for the ribs and other treats like turkey legs that some little girls were gnawing when we arrived.  They also smoke salmon and sell it by the ounce to take home.  At $16/pound, the salmon isn't cheap, but it's spectacular.

How does Town Grill compare with Kloby's, the Johns Hopkins Road spot that sets the BBQ standard around here?  Mrs. HowChow actually preferred Town Grill's pork.  I'd need to taste test a little more to pick a winner on the meat, but Town Grill wins hands down on the side dishes.  Better and probably twice as big.  Normally, I just buy pork at Kloby's and get my own bread and sides.  At Town Grill, I'd buy the full platter every time.

Town Grille (in the Lisbon Citgo)
15943 Frederick Road (Rte 144)
Lisbon, MD 21797
410-489-5016

NEAR: Town Grille is in "downtown" Lisbon.  We kid.  There is no downtown, but it's literally minutes off I-70 so it's super easy to reach.  Take the exit for Rte 94 south, the same one you'd take for Larriland Farm in Woodbine.  Then go east on Rte 144 at the traffic circle.  (You go three-quarters of the way around the traffic circle.)  Look for the Citgo station about a block down on the right.  You can park at the station or across Rte 144 in a small lot.

Larriland Update: Swing Seasons

Larriland Farm is kicking off two seasons of pick-your-own fun right now -- the peaches and blackberries are still producing and the first apples (Galas!) are available by the bag.

Sunday's beautiful weather convinced us to cancel our plans on a whim and head up to Woodbine off I-70. Twenty pounds of peaches is always a pleasure, but we were actually glad that we hadn't bothered our friends Magda and Holly, who had said they wanted to join our next trip. Picking on Sunday afternoon was scarce. Truly ripe blackberries were almost impossible to find. And the trees that dripped with ripe peaches a month ago had definitely been searched by many hands over the weekend.

Despite the work, Mrs. HowChow pulled 20 pounds of peaches in maybe a half hour. All glowing yellow and a few ready to eat in the car. Larriland also had fields open to pick tomatoes, apples, leeks and flowers. Even on a day of slim pickings, Larriland is a beautiful place -- the smell of peaches and the warmth of the sun. It is also beautifully run with people working in the all the fields and the barn full of produce, canning supplies, loaves from Ellicott City's Breadery, and those dried fruit candy. I'm already thinking about an October weekend when we can go for apples and pumpkins.

One new arrival is root beer and sarsaparilla from the McCutcheon's brand. The Frederick company has sold jellies and other items for decades, but I had never seen the soda before. Sarsaparilla was great fun. We both remembered birch beer that we drank decades ago.

Parting advice: Think twice about the blackberries for sale in the barn. They look beautiful, and they're a bargain compared to grocery store blackberries. But they're picked tart. I don't pick a blackberry if it resists at all. That is how you get sweet, plump berries. Dark, firm berries aren't sweet, and those tart berries dominated the pint that we bought. Still good for a blackberry & peach pie.

Peaches and Blackberries at Larriland Farm

Summer is falling off the trees at Larriland Farm -- peaches that smell delicious in the orchard and taste even better if you pair them with blackberries.

Take my advice: You only want blackberries that pull off with two fingers. If you need any pressure, leave the berry on the bush. Last weekend, the blackberry bushes and the peach trees were so heavy with fruit that you didn't need to take anything but the perfect fruit.

Mrs. HowChow turned out a peach and blackberry pie on Sunday night. I made a savory peach gazpacho on Monday from Mark Bittman's new book. We cut down from our 2008 purchases because I carried the box through the rows. (Last year, we got a wagon, and there was nothing to stop us as we went from tree to tree. We had 40 pounds of peaches in 20 minutes.) They're nothing like supermarket fruit. They ripen -- all in a few days -- into sugary orbs that burst with juice. Don't worry, we left weeks of fruit -- green peaches and red blackberries -- for you to pick for yourself.

Larriland is a real treasure off I-70 just west of Rte 32 in Woodbine. Right now, you can pick beets, potatoes and the end of the blueberries. Soon, you'll have tomatoes. Then comes fall with apples and the best pumpkin fields where you can harvest your own jack-o-lantern. The new barn store carries more already-picked vegetables than they had in previous years. I got beautiful baby eggplants and squash that we grilled up with some burgers (along with the dried fruit candies).

Larriland Farm

2415 Woodbine Road
Woodbine, MD 21797
410-442-2605

NEAR: This is off I-70 west of Rte 32. Take I-70 West to Exit 73. Turn left at the end of the exit ramp. Then follow that road through a circle and then along a road of farms and new developments. Larriland is on the left, although there are some fields across the road.

Delicious: Dried Fruit Candy at Larriland

Don't think that Larriland Farms is all healthy. You go to pick your own fruits and vegetables, but the store in the Larriland barn has an even-sweeter side.

If you go out for apples or pumpkins this fall, check out the dried fruit candy at the checkout. They're coconut-coated sticks that come in six flavors. The sign says they're made of dried fruit. They're slightly chewy and taste like real fruit, maybe made from pulverized fruit and sugar? Lemon is our top choice. Mrs. HowChow says she would never have thought to eat one, but I sample my way through the strange items whenever I can. Now, she is the one who gets a bag and picks them out for herself.

Also look on the checkout counter for honey sticks. You cut off one end and squeeze the flavored honey into your mouth. Delicious.

Larriland Farm

2415 Woodbine Road
Woodbine, MD 21797
410-442-2605

NEAR: This is off I-70 west of Rte 32. Take I-70 West to Exit 73. Turn left at the end of the exit ramp. Then follow that road through a circle and then along a road of farms and new developments. Larriland is on the left, although there are some fields across the road.

Larriland Farm - Blackberries, Peaches and Tomatoes

The peaches and the blackberries at Larriland Farm were as delicious and as abundant as I have ever seen them.  We went Saturday and picked so much that we ran out of cash.  (It's okay.  They take credit cards in the fields.)

I'm sunburned.  Mrs. HowChow spent the weekend baking pies and making batch after batch of sorbet and ice cream.  We love Larriland (and went for blueberries last month), and even we were surprised at how wonderful the picking was this weekend.  You just need to walk past the picked-over areas hugging the road.  A few hundred feet inside, there were yellow peach trees with two dozen ripe peaches on a single tree.  Each peach glowed yellow under the red cheek.

Larriland is one of the great food adventures around.  Nothing beats the taste of a peach still warm from the sun.  We passed 

one back and forth as we drove away, and it's the flavor of summer.  Plus, it is great fun to stop at a friend's house with a bag of glowing gifts to share.

One bit of advice:  Don't judge blackberries by color.  They turn color before they get sweet.  Mrs. HowChow and I only picked engorged berries -- black and each sphere swollen with juice.  I pulled with the lightest possible pressure and left behind anything that didn't come off.  Some of the ripest fell apart in our hands.  But I overheard a couple talk about the blackberries and comment on how tart they tasted.  Oh, no!  They were picking beautiful black berries.  But those weren't ripe yet.  The best picking was deep in the bushes.  We pushed aside vines -- thornless, so it's a pleasure -- and found bunches inside.  It takes patience to pass the smaller berries, but Larriland's bushes were so full that it wasn't a hardship.  We picked more than 7 pounds by working two 

rows and we couldn't have walked more than 30 feet.  

In mid-August, the flowers remain a great deal -- $7.50 for a chance to walk the field and fill a huge plastic cup.  Stems droop a bit on the drive home, but they perked up once we got them in vases.  Larriland's tomatoes are about to become wonderful.  There were thin pickings last weekend, but the plants are covered with green fruit in many different varieties.  I got three nice ripe ones, plus an equal number of green ones to fry up one night this week.  In a few days, you'll be able to fill bags on a single row.

Definitely check on the apples that are coming, plus the Halloween/pumpkin fun in October.  Larriland is expanding its barn store, and they sell all the vegetables and fruit there -- along with jams, candies, juices and other products.

Pick-your-own runs from late May or early June when the strawberries ripen until the first weekend in November. There are multiple varieties of many fruits -- plums, peaches, strawberries, etc. -- so the seasons stretch over weeks or even months. Check out the Web site, which lists the products and predicts when they'll be 

available. Then check that Web page or call Larriland's (410-442-2605) to find out what they have today. It's a recorded line, updated daily.

If you go on a Saturday, definitely stop at the farmers market on Rte 97, especially for fresh milk from the South Mountain Creamery.  The South Mountain milk improves even a homemade pie.  Bring a cooler if you stop on the way to Larriland so that the milk stays cool.

If you like farm-fresh produce but can't get out to Woodbine, then check out the Columbia farmers markets where the farmers will come to you. Or if you're going to Larriland on the weekend, stop either at the Saturday farmers market or at Jenny's Market -- a family-run produce stand just off Rte 32.

Larriland Farm
2415 Woodbine Road
Woodbine, MD 21797
410-442-2605

NEAR: This is off I-70 west of Rte 32. Take I-70 West to Exit 73. Turn left at the end of the exit ramp. Then follow that road through a circle and then along a road of farms and new developments. Larriland is on the left, although the blackberry and peach fields are across the road.

Larriland Farm: Pick-your-own in Woodbine

Shop right from the bush at Larriland Farm in Woodbine. Fruit and vegetables don't get any more fresh. Blueberries don't get any more delicious than the bagfuls that we picked on Saturday morning.

Larriland Farm is perfect. The "pick-your-own" farm west of Columbia is an adventure, but it's run so smoothly that you're guaranteed to have a good time. It feels personal and family-run, yet professional as well. Fruits and vegetables abound. Prices are reasonable. The fields are clean, well-marked and outfitted with stands so that you can pay in the fields -- crucial if you're traveling with kids and don't want to get in and out of the car an extra time. But, if you can stop, definitely shop in the Red Barn where you can buy any of the active produce, along with cheeses, jams, candies and honeys.

On Saturday, we picked eight pounds of blueberries with family and harvested two giant flower arrangements for $7.50 each. You could have also picked plums, raspberries or beets. Mrs. HowChow and I will return in August when we'll fill the car with peaches and blackberries. The thornless blackberries are a pleasure. Seven-foot-tall plants in long rows, each laden with sweet berries and none of the prickers from my childhood picking. This is a flavor of summer that doesn't survive when you try to ship it. We fill trays, and we eat them by hand or pureed

into a cinnamon-blackberry ice cream.

Then, we'll go back again in October. This is the perfect Halloween adventure, especially if you can bring a kid along. Pick apples. Pick your own pumpkin. Shop in the barn store (especially for the dried fruit candy). Take a hayride and send toddlers through a maze made from hay bales. On a crisp day, there isn't a more beautiful place in the world.

Pick-your-own runs from late May or early June when the strawberries ripen until the first weekend in November. There are multiple varieties of many fruits -- plums, peaches, strawberries, etc. -- so the seasons stretch over weeks or even months. Check out the Web site, which lists the products and predicts when they'll be available. Then call Larriland's (410-442-2605) to find out what they have today. It's a recorded line, updated daily.

(Update: In August, Larriland offers peaches and blackberries that can't be beat.)

If you like farm-fresh produce but can't get out to Woodbine, then check out the Columbia farmers markets where the farmers will come to you. Or if you're going to Larriland on the weekend, check out the Saturday farmers market on Rte 97 or watch for signs on Rte 32 for Jenny's Market -- a family-run produce stand just off Rte 32.

Larriland Farm

2415 Woodbine Road

Woodbine, MD 21797

410-442-2605

NEAR: This is off I-70 west of Rte 32. Take I-70 West to Exit 73. Turn left at the end of the exit ramp. Then follow that road through a circle and then along a road of farms and new developments. Larriland is on the left, although there are some fields across the road.