Boysenberry Festival at Knott's Berry Farm

It’s Spring in Southern California! Which means it’s time for the Boysenberry Festival at Knott’s Berry Farm.
Knott’s knows berries.
As they should… it’s in their name!

This was our first Boysenberry Festival and we had not idea what to expect… except that it would be fun.

We entered the amusement park with our Boysenberry Festival Tasting Cards in hand and headed straight to the professional Boysenberry Pie Eating Contest!
This thing was legit. Professional eaters ONLY!
And it did not disappoint. Last year’s winner, Joey Chestnut, won again this year after eating 14.5 pounds of Boysenberry Pie in 8 minutes.
That’s a lot of pie.
(About 30 slices!)

During the contest we were making our eating plan with our Tasting Card.
Get the tasting card!
It’s $25 and worth every penny. It will cover your food for the whole day. Four cards was plenty of food for my family of six for lunch AND DINNER!
#familystyleforever

The card includes: 1 Boysenberry BBQ Short Ribs, 2 Spicy Boysenberry BBQ Wings, 3 Fried Alligator Bites with Fries & Boysenberry Aioli, 4 Boysenberry BBQ Meatballs, 5 Boysenberry Panna Cotta with Almond Crumble, 6 Boysenberry Dessert Flautas.

Who knew my kids would love alligator bites?!?

I wasn’t able to get a picture of the Spicy Boysenberry BBQ Wings because we ate them so fast. Those puppies were on point. I even got some of the Boysenberry BBQ sauce to make my own chicken at home. (I’ll share the recipe next week.)

Overall the food was fantastic!
Another fun Boysenberry Festival Event is the Wine and Craft Brew Garden! This was a pleasant surprise! The wine garden was a welcome air conditioned break from rides. And it really made the rest of the day even more enjoyable. It’s $25 for 6 tastings and a cheese platter. Fun to split!
My favorite was the Honeywood Wine in the Boysenberry flavor. A yummy port!
(Don’t worry… Tess is having juice in this picture!)

The Boysenberry Festival at Knott’s Berry Farm will become a new annual tradition for our family!

In-between all the Boysenberry eating we did all things Knott’s! Our kids are at that in-between age now. Eli and Cora Jane still enjoy the Camp Snoopy rides, but they are a tad too big… but they aren’t super into the big roller coasters yet. My husband ~~forced~~ talked them into trying Supreme Scream. Eli was terrified… but so glad/proud he did it!
Check out this sneaky video Brad took during the thrill ride…

Can’t you just feel his terror? Then see his relief and joy at the end?
He can’t wait to go on Supreme Scream again!

We did the Family Rides…

I regret not buying the picture on the right. The look on Cora Jane’s face makes me think of this special trip with Eli. (I still laugh when I look at that picture!)

We did the Camp Snoopy thing…

Can we just focus on Tessa’s face here?!?!

Oh, the many faces of Tessa…

But nothing really compares to the fun that is good old fashion Knott’s Berry Farm.

Like learning how to make yarn…

And picking out geodes before you leave…

Wow, I really am a homeschool mom now!

I want to plan some homeschool supplements for field trips to Knott’s. Wouldn’t that be fun?!?
(Yes, I’m a nerd.)

We finished out the night with the Fun Stick – Cheesecake dipped in funnel cake batter then deep fried and topped with the made-at-Knott’s-boysenberry cream and sprinkled with powered sugar!
It’s good.
Real good.