I can’t get enough of these sweet little berries! I patiently waited this year until the really ripe, really wonderful local strawberries were ready, and now I’m enjoying every minute. We received a mouthwatering quart from our CSA last week, and they were gone in a flash. I’ve been putting them on salads and in yogurt and soups, eating them with chocolate, and my favorite—enjoying them all by themselves.
Strawberries are healthy and packed with nutrition, so everything you add them to becomes more nutritious: oatmeal, muffins, smoothies, even ice cream!
And thanks to the cooler spring and early summer temperatures we’re having, we get to enjoy fresh, local berries a bit longer this year…with pleasure!
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Selecting and Storing
- Pick berries in the early morning. Select berries with a shiny, deep red color from the tip of the berry to beneath the green cap. Grasp the stem and gently pull with a slight twisting motion.
- Store unwashed berries in the refrigerator for about three days. (A colander will help circulate air around them.) Wash just before eating and remove the green caps after washing.
- To freeze whole berries: Wash and drain berries, remove caps, and place in a shallow pan. Place in the freezer overnight, then transfer berries to plastic freezer bags or containers, and return to the freezer for later use.
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Fun Facts
- The strawberry belongs to the rose family, along with apples and plums. The scientific classification for this plant family is Fragraria, which was derived from the Old Latin word for fragrant. The modern Italian word for strawberry is "Fragola".
- Medieval stonemasons carved strawberry designs around the tops of pillars in churches as a symbol of perfection.
- A member of Napoleon’s court, Madame Tallien, was famous for bathing in the juice of fresh strawberries! She used 22 pounds per basin.
- Strawberry juice combined with honey will reduce inflammation or sunburn. Rub the mixture into the skin and then rinse off with warm water and lemon juice. .
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Nutritional Information:
- Strawberries are high in iron and Vitamin C. Just eight berries will provide 140 percent of the recommended intake of Vitamin C for kids.
- They are also a good source of folic acid, fiber, potassium, and cancer-fighting antioxidants.
- There are about 60 calories in a cup.
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Recipes:
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Sources/Links:
www.michigan.gov
www.gardenguides.com
www.pickyourown.org
For a list of farms in your area and more recipes, visit www.localdifference.org.
Taste the Local Difference is a project of the Michigan Land Use Institute’s Entrepreneurial Agriculture Project, which works to grow jobs, save farmland, and build healthier communities with food that’s thousands of miles fresher.
