We enjoyed a visit in late Fall to the Hitscherhof Farm Fest, which is located in between the villages of Thalweischweiler Froeschen and Rieschweiler, southwest of Frankfurt, Germany. Jared’s Aunt and Uncle often go to this festival in late September, so we were excited our visit coincided with the festival!
The festival has a Farmer’s and Craft Market with more than 80 participants. A lot of pumpkin and Fall-related foods are available to purchase, as well as many photo opportunities to get your “Fall Fill”.
There were German, as well as French, specialties—due to the close proximity of the French border.
There was fantastic wood craftsmanship, as to be expected (and appreciated) in Germany:
Baskets and weaving to your heart’s delight:
This special “nougat” hails from Provence, France, but was made German-style with a nuts and chocolate (no milk and no flour).
It wasn’t cheap, but we treated ourselves to a tiny sampling of a few different flavors, including pistachio! Nougat is very chewy, and fairly yummy in small amounts!
There were a few game booths with fun games like shoot the crossbow at the castle:
And since we were still in Germany, of course there was sausage. Lots and lots and lots of sausage…
There was also some beautiful produce for sale, including some things I had never yet tried. I had a fresh fig for the first time (I’ve only ever had Fig Newtons, which I don’t like), and I admired their cone-shaped cabbage!
Can you guess what this is?
That, my friends, is CELERY! But the Germans don’t eat the stems of celery like Americans or some other countries. Germans eat a slightly different variety, and prefer the ROOT! They mash and cream cooked celery root (celeriac) like mashed potatoes, or they sometimes eat it raw. Who knew?!
Another fantastic discovery we made was the Dampfnudel:
Dampfnudels are a sweet bread eaten as a dessert or as a meal (with savory sides), and are typical of Southern Germany. The dough is formed in little balls (with yeast) and left to rise to the size of a fist. They then cook it in a covered pot with milk and butter, until the liquid evaporates and the rolls get a slightly golden crust. For just over $2 apiece, we could enjoy either a plain one, or one filled with vanilla pudding. Either way—it was a BIG winner in our book!
We also enjoyed some photo opportunities with pumpkins, of course!
Do you find these sizes impressive?
The thing I found most surprising was one of my favorite pleasure foods: artichokes (I know, call me crazy). The thing is, I’ve never seen one in full bloom! Did you know they turn into THIS if you don’t cut them early enough?
WOWZERS!!!
I have read online that they are inedible after they bloom (but recommended to use in dry flower arrangements, etc). However, I’d like to know exactly what the Germans do with them. Does anyone know?
Last, but not least, there was a great corn maze that the kids enjoyed trekking through.
Simple pleasures!
If you are near Frankfurt or the Northern border of France in late September, you may want to check out this fun festival!
I’ll warn you ahead of time, though: there are many foreigners here, due to its close proximity to an American military base! You will hear English!!
