Posted by Michael Stern on November 17, 2007
Most people who drive along Highway 59 towards the Gulf Coast know Burris Farm Market as a fabulous farm stand. It is definitely that: a spacious, open-sided building lined with hampers of Alabama-grown goodies that range from asparagus and broccoli to watermelons and zucchini. Throughout the summer, you’ll find gorgeous vine-ripened tomatoes, plump local strawberries, and the sweetest sweet corn, plus shelves of put-up jellies, pickles, and relishes.
For Roadfooders who don’t have time, patience, or a mobile kitchen to take advantage of the bounteous harvest, Burris has recently added a bakery to the back of the market. Here you can buy delicious strawberry bread as well as loaves of regular bread; but more important, you can buy dessert to eat immediately at one of the few random tables in the bakery and market area. The warm desserts include apple dumplings and peach cobbler, available with ice cream melting on top, as well as fresh strawberry shortcake and key lime pie. Delicious!
And if you notice a fetching toasty aroma coming from behind the market, that means they are currently roasting goobers to become the favorite road-trip snack for all true southerners, the boiled peanut … or as it is pronounced by many locals, the "bald peanut." Boiled peanuts, by the way, are nothing like the crunchy ones most of the world knows as cocktail companions. They are soft, seasoned, luscious and, for many of us, an acquired taste. However, once acquired, a taste for boiled peanuts tends to be insatiable.
Overall: Worth planning a day around
13 out of 13 people found the review helpful. Was it helpful to you?
Reviewers "Must Eats" List
apple dumpling
($4.00)
strawberry shortcake
($4.00)
boiled peanuts
($2.00)
"These berries are the basis for the excellent strawberry shortcake made in the backroom bakery."
Michael Stern
"The desserts were so good, we had to get several slices of pie to go. The one we enjoyed the most was the peanut butter pie. Not overly rich, the pie is creamy with a strong peanut buttery taste."
buffetbuster
"So sweet, you can eat one like an apple ..."
Michael Stern
"Tomatoes, or as our Alabama roadfood friends refer to them: 'maters"
Michael Stern
"When one of the friendly ladies at Burris Farm Market asks if you want your apple dumpling heated, you definitely want to say "yes"! Immediately after this photo was taken, I had a scoop of vanilla ice cream placed on top."
buffetbuster
"This photo is deceptive; the strawberry shortcake portion is huge and plenty for two to share! "
buffetbuster
"We loved the fresh peaches used in the peach cobbler, our favorite of the Burris desserts we sampled."
buffetbuster
"The Burris Farm Market sells not only fresh fruit and ready-to-eat desserts, but also a wide assortment of relishes, jellies, honeys, and pickles."
Michael Stern
"We spotted this sign on Highway 59 a few miles from the Burris Farm Market Bakery. It led to a small roadside peanut stand that happened to be closed. But at Burris, the boiled peanuts were fresh, warm, and ready to eat!"
Michael Stern
