local strawberries

If you live in an area that grows local strawberries, make sure to take full advantage!  They’re not cheap, by any means, so you may not save money by making jams and turning it into every preservable item.  But this is a bounty to enjoy and splurge on all your favorite strawberry dishes.  There’s no comparison between fresh, local strawberries in June to store bought, California grown strawberries.  The local ones are picked at the peak of their ripened state and held at room temperature, until sold in farm stands and farmers markets.  The California version has to be picked before they’re ripe in order to make it to your grocer before it starts molding and rotting.

I bought half of a flat for $22.50 from our local strawberry farm.  Here are a few things I’ll be doing with my berries:

• Strawberry Flaugnarde I’ve never made a flaugnarde, but I came across the recipe on a French blog and really wanted to try it.  It’s a classic French dessert – a custardy baked flan nestled with seasonal fruits. It’s tender and creamy in the center, with satisfyingly puffy and chewy rims.
• Strawberry Ice Cream I have made a number of batches, mostly of vanilla ice cream, but it’ll be fun to make this summer classic.
• Yogurt, Strawberries, & Granola Just straight up taking advantage of the fresh strawberries on hand and topping my morning yogurt and granola with fresh berries.
• Freeze them whole I’m trying to be more intentional about buying perishable food items in season and then freezing them raw or using them in a recipe that can be frozen.  There’s only 2 months of the year that strawberries taste this good!