Favorite Places: The Apple Barn

Autumn is absolutely, hands down, my favorite season of the year.  I love the weather, the leaves changing colors, the start of school (really, I do), apples, pumpkins, cider, Thanksgiving…

My in-laws came up to visit yesterday and Brian and I decided we should check out The Apple Barn and Country Bakeshop in Bennington, Vermont.  It’d been greatly praised by friends of ours and seemed like a perfect outing for the first sunny day in a long time.

The Apple Barn was everything I’d hoped for (and a serious danger to my wallet):

The store was bigger than I’d expected and featured all the fall/Vermont/farm products I could dream of: several varieties of apples, maple syrup, jarred preserves, cider, fresh baked breads and donuts, plus a coffee shop.  Heavenly.  I ran into a friend of mine while I was there.  “This place gives me heart palpations,” she told me.  Completely understandable.  I love places like this: local, fresh, delicious.

With full knowledge that we’ll probably head back to the Apple Barn before the season is over, Brian and I purchased the following:

Yes, those are apple cider donuts…there used to be six of them…but that’s not important now.  And yes, I have plans for all of those apples.  Did I mention we really like apples?  But I was most excited about the little box:

Single serving “tea” bags of mulling spices for cider.  Hot cider is amazing and I’m so excited that I can add spice to individual cups instead of making a whole gallon’s worth.

Clearly, if you find yourself in the Bennington region in the near future, you need to visit The Apple Barn.  If you’re as passionate about fall and fall foods as I am, you won’t be disappointed.