It's Strawberry Season!

6/21/17 Chatterbox
Betty Kaiser

Strawberry season crept up on me thanks to our soggy June weather. My first clue was when I saw that Laura at Eden Valley Farm was looking for pickers. Yikes! That means it’s time to take inventory of leftover freezer jam, buy some berries, mix up some smoothies and do a little baking.

Nothing can beat fresh Oregon strawberries. Fresh, huge, perfectly formed out-of-state strawberries are available all year long at local super markets but there’s just no taste comparison to Oregon grown berries. They aren’t big or perfectly formed and don’t last very long but they are red, sweet, juicy and taste like….strawberries!

It’s our wonderful Oregon weather that makes the difference. We have the best growing conditions for sweet, juicy berries. That means lots of rain, cool nights and (hopefully) warm, sunny days. It allows the berries to stay on the vines longer and the sugar to develop before the berries are harvested. It also means that their shelf life is short so we need to get them while we can.

We have already had our first strawberry shortcake of the season, a couple of smoothies and now I’m looking forward to stocking up on freezer jam. In between preparing batches of jam, I’m going to treat family and friends to some simple Strawberry Cheese Tarts for a quick dessert and some Strawberry Nut Bread at coffee break time. Enjoy!

STRAWBERRY KALE SMOOTHIE
(Grandson Josh’s favorite)

2 cups strawberries

2 bananas
1-2 cups chopped kale
½-1 cup apple juice
Ice

Blend ingredients in processor until smooth.  Serves 2-4.

STRAWBERRY FREEZER JAM

2 cups crushed strawberries or blackberries (about 1 quart berries)
4 cups sugar
1 package powdered pectin
1 cup water
To prepare fruit. Sort and wash fully ripe berries. Drain. Remove caps and stems; crush berries.
To make jam. Place prepared berries in a large mixing bowl. Add sugar, mix well, and let stand for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Dissolve pectin in water and boil for 1 minute. Add pectin solution to berry-and-sugar mixture; stir for 2 minutes. Pour jam into freezer containers or canning jars, leaving 1/2 inch space at the top. Cover containers and let stand at room temperature for 24 hours or until jam has set.

Store jams in refrigerator or freezer. They can be held up to 3 weeks in a refrigerator or up to a year in a freezer. Note: If jam is too firm, stir to soften. If it tends to separate, stir to blend. If it is too soft, bring it to a boil. It will thicken on cooling. Makes 5 or 6 half-pint jars.

STRAWBERRY CHEESE TARTS

1 pound low-fat cream cheese, softened

½ cup low-fat sour cream

3 Tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

(12) small packaged graham cracker tart shells (about 3½ inches in diameter)

2/3 cup strawberry preserves (preferably home made!)

Combine cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and lemon peel in small bowl; beat until smooth.  Spread evenly into crumb crusts; refrigerate about 4 hours.  Before serving, spread evenly the strawberry preserves over the filling. Garnish with whipped cream. Serves 12.

STRAWBERRY NUT BREAD

10 ounces frozen sliced strawberries
2 eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
1 cup white all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
½ tsp. Salt
¾ cup chopped, toasted hazelnuts

Thaw strawberries.  Beat eggs until fluffy.  Add oil, sugar and berries, beating until light.

Mix flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and salt.  Blend flour mixture into strawberry mixture until flour is moistened.  Do not over mix.  Stir in nuts.  Pour into greased 9 1/2 by 5 inch loaf pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 min. or until tester comes out clean.  Cool 5 minutes.  Remove from pan.   Finish cooling on rack. Serves 10


Keep it simple and keep it seasonal! 
Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes 
that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.