Real Strawberries Are Sublime In Their Short Season

I wonder what it would be like not to know what real strawberries taste like.  If you were alive before global produce, you might remember there was once a time when fruits and vegetables were not overblown like bodybuilders on steroids and when they were only eaten in season. In my neighborhood an old Italian man in a beat up farm truck with an operatic voice cruised the streets calling  into an old fashioned megaphone a long drawn out, “straw--berries, straw--berries for sale”  every day of that short luscious season in early June. 

As much as I love progress and as much as I love mangos in January and avocados year round – those oversized styrofoam-like California berries that pack the supermarket produce shelves all year long are not real strawberries. Those giant fake ones seduce the eye but don’t fool the tongue. The real ones are smaller, redder, juicier and sweeter. Happily, for us in the Northwest Corner, we can pick our own. 

Here are some tips from Dr. Diane Wright Hirsch, the food safety professor from University of Connecticut, about picking and storing strawberries:

Pick only the bright red berries, the green ones will not ripen after picking and the dark red ones are overripe and must be consumed immediately.

Refrigerate the berries immediately after picking but do not wash them – washing them may cause them to get moldy sooner. However, always wash before eating. 

If you have picked too may to eat there are lots of things to do with them.

Freezing is a good option:  While many people think its best to freeze without sugar for health reasons, for best results, packing in sugar is better. Unsweetened strawberry packs do not have the plump texture and good color of berries packed with sugar. But if you are freezing berries to make into jam at a later date or if your diet prohibits sugar then of course you can always freeze without sugar. 

Unsweetened 

Dry Pack 

(for making jam later)

Simply pack the washed and drained fruit into a container, seal and freeze. A tray pack is an alternative that may make the fruit easier to remove from the container. Spread a single layer of fruit on shallow trays and freeze. When frozen, promptly package and return to the freezer. Be sure to package the fruit as soon as it is frozen, to prevent freezer burn. Use bags or hard plastic containers made for use in the freezer.

If you want to make strawberry jam, visit the National Center for Home Food Preservation.  You will find a tested recipe for strawberry jam as well as many other canning recipes.  It is now recommended that all jams and jellies be processed in a water bath canner.  This means that you must use glass jars with two piece canning lids.  The five minute process will minimize the chance that molds and yeasts will spoil your jam.  Shelf life will improve and you won’t waste all your hard work and precious berries.

Local picking 

Ellsworth Hill, 461 Cornwall Bridge Rd, Sharon, CT (860) 364-0025 has lots and lots of pick your own in their fields.

McEnroe Farm, 5409 Rt 22, Millerton, N.Y. 518-789-3252 is having a Strawberry Festival on June 16, 12-5.

On Thursday, June 21, from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. the American Indian Archeological Institute in Washington, Conn.,will celebrate the summer solstice.  Participants on this adventure will learn about the significance of the summer solstice in various cultures and how it has been celebrated around the world. A special strawberry treat will be served.  As one of the first fruits of summer, Native Americans believe that strawberries represent life and good health.The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington, Conn. www.iaismuseum.org 860-868-0518.

For more information about safe handling of fresh-picked strawberries, contact the UConn Home and Garden Education Center at 877-486-6271 or www.ladybug.uconn.ed or the National Center for Home Food Preservation for canning and freezing information at www.uga.edu/nchfp.