Berries Berries Berries

I love summers in Seattle for a multitude of reasons: the sunny (unhumid) weather, the plethora of outdoor activites, the beautiful nature all around us. But another aspect of Seattle that I can't get enough of is its bounty of fresh produce. I love berry picking: in June, it's strawberries, in July it's raspberries, and in August, it's blueberries! The sun came around pretty late this year, so we didn't get our strawberries until early July---but better late than never!!! It was a great crop this year, and totally worth the wait. We found these beauties in Marysville at the Beringer Farms.

Everytime I would pick up the leaves, I'd find plenty of these beautiful berries calling my name. It was like hitting a jack-pot every time. I am not sure which species of strawberries these are, but I am still on my quest for the Hood species which grows well in the Pacific Northwest. If anybody knows where I can find this variety, do tell! Hood varieties have a unique fragrant taste and are much sweeter than the typical commercial strawberries we're used to.



There are a few tricky aspects to strawberry picking, so you do have to go into this prepared. First of all, you'll be squatting or bending over for several hours, so do expect to have sore glutes and hamstrings the next day. Freshly picked strawberries have a much shorter half-life than store-bought kinds, so you have to pick with a timeline and agenda in mind. Typically, they last in the fridge for no more than 3-4 days. If you plan on making pies, desserts, or jam, you should try to accomplish that within 3 days from your picking date. If you plan on using them w/in a day of picking, then I would suggest that you "hull" them in the stawberry patch rather than coming home and laboriously hulling as an additional step. But if you want them to last longer, then keep a small stem on it. I always get carried away, and the next thing I know, I've picked in surplus.

So this year, what did I do with over 15 pounds of strawberries???

Lots and lots of strawberry jam. Somewhat of a laborious science project, but totally worth the effort to have it year-round. Each jar reminds me of the wonderful strawberry fields in the spectacular Seattle summer sun----even when I crack a open a jar in January....