See the fresh fruit stands on the side of the road this time of year?
Picking your own strawberries at a local farm?
Why not!
It's strawberry season and here are two ways to make the most of them.
Canning Strawberry Preserves
1 Basket of Fresh Strawberries (A.K.A. 4 Qts)
7 Cups of Sugar
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
6 Tablespoons of Pectin (or one box)
1. Hull strawberries, don't chop
2. Prepare jars
3. Place strawberries, lemon juice, and sugar in a large pot. As they begin to cook, break them down with a potato masher. Do not break everything down into a puree, you want some large pieces still in the jelly.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil, add the pectin, and skim off the foam as needed. Boil for about 15 minutes.
5. Ladle into prepared jars.
6. Process in boiling water: 10 minutes for 1/2 pints, 15 minutes for pints.
7. Let them cool for 24 hours before storing.
A Make-Ahead Method for Emeril Lagasse's Strawberry Pie
I am making two batches of this filling and freezing it. Ready to go dessert for later this summer!
5 Cups of strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and halved
1 cup of sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon water
3 tablespoons brandy
1. In a saucepan, combine berries, sugar, and vanilla. Stir over medium until sugar dissolves.
2. Combine cornstarch, water, and brandy in a cup. Add to berries. Cook until it thickens about 5 minutes. Remove.
3. Save (Freeze)
4. Thaw, (heat if needed to make spreadable), pour into pie shell and refrigerate for 6 hours before serving.
My strawberry bed is producing 4x the strawberries that it did last year (not saying much since I only got about 10 strawberries last year), but we still took advantage of living close to Patterson's Farm and picking from their field, visiting the petting zoo, and buying ice cream! We all had so much fun and will make it a yearly event. We went Friday afternoon after work and then I cooked and canned on Saturday. Here are some pictures from last night!!!
