May 27, 2024
Strawberry Daze
by Linda Dansbury

Strawberries are here!! One of the most anticipated crops of the year, and so delicious. New crops will be showing up each week so enjoy the diversity!

Strawberries - everyone knows how to eat them, but just a couple of words on storage. Store berries dry in open containers in the refrigerator. If your berries are wet when you bring them home, place them on a kitchen towel and allow to dry before putting them in the fridge. Do not rinse them until ready to eat - wet berries rot very quickly. Some years, depending on Mother Nature, the harvest is very large and you may wonder how to freeze some for use later (think ice cream, smoothies, strawberry crumble, frozen strawberry daiquiri). Simply cut the little green top off, place in a single layer on a cookie sheet and place in freezer. Once frozen, place in freezer bag or plastic container where berries will keep well for months.

Swiss chard - is in the same family as spinach so has a similar nutritional profile and can be used in many of the same recipes. Small leaves can be eaten raw, but it is mostly enjoyed cooked. Saute or stir fry it up alone or with other greens and aromatics. It makes a great Creamed "Spinach" as well. The stems and leaves need different cooking times, so remove the stems and cook those longer. One easy and delicious way to enjoy chard is to saute. Heat oil in a large saute pan. Add sliced or chopped onion, chopped chard stems, and a dash (or more) of red pepper flakes or a chopped up chili pepper. Once starting to soften add chopped green garlic or garlic scape (coming soon). Add chopped chard leaves to pan, stir constantly until desired doneness. Add salt and pepper and any chopped herbs you like. If you choose a recipe that you don't want to use the stems, place in plastic bag in freezer to use later in making veggie stock. There are several Swiss chard recipes on this site.