Strawberry Season!

I know everyone's probably fed up with me and my weird food dislikes (mustard? coffee? egg salad?), but here's another for you, albeit a mild one: I don't really like strawberries. I mean, I don't hate them (they're not cilantro, for heaven's sake!), but they're just never my first choice. If they're in a fruit salad, I will eat them, but I certainly don't seek them out.

Steph, on the other hand, adores strawberries. I mean, this is a kid whose lunchbox often contains a strawberry yogurt, a strawberry cereal bar, and a container of fresh strawberries. All of which blends nicely with her strawberry shampoo and conditioner, body wash, toothpaste, and lip balm.

You know that I'm all about eating local, but the strawberry season here in New England is woefully short. We buy as many freshly picked local strawberries as we can, but most of the year is spent waiting for summer produce. And, much as I try to emulate my hero Barbara Kingsolver, I can't get through the winter on just rhubarb and preserves. So we buy non-local produce, and plenty of it. And that means that for most of the year, our strawberries come from California. What must it be like to live in California, where you can get the full spectrum of fresh, local produce year-round? I can't imagine.

Strawberries are on the "dirty dozen" list of fruits that retain pesticides no matter how much you wash them, so I buy only organic. If I can't find organic strawberries, I buy something else entirely. The brand most often available at my local Whole Foods and Trader Joe's stores is Driscoll's from Watsonville, CA, and usually they offer both organic (green label) and conventional (yellow label).

I wish I liked strawberries more, because they're always featured in those articles that rave about getting the most bang for your bite in terms of antioxidants. You can read all about the wonders of antioxidant-rich strawberries here. And, if your kids are nearby, take them over to Strawberryville, where they can play games and learn about healthy eating. There are tons of kid-friendly recipes there too. I wish the site would let you know what you're clicking on before you click on it, but it's pretty easy to navigate once you get started. You'll want to nix the volume though. Trust me on this one.

(By the way, I'm sure I don't need to tell you that I didn't shoot that gorgeous photo above—it's from the California Strawberry Commission, and I'm receiving an Amazon gift card from Mom Central for blogging about California strawberries. Since I seem to be doing more of things than I used to, let me set a few things straight: I don't agree to review every product offered to me, and I would never in a bazillion years post anything but my true opinions here on my blog. If I don't like or support a product, I might decline to blog about it, but my posted reviews—be they positive or negative—are always 100% honest. And I will always let you know when I'm being compensated for a review.)

Comments

[beastmomma]

I am going to be moving to New England next summer and I am nervous about the adjustment. I love strawberries and will certainly end up eating them off-season!

[Susan]

I agree on the strawberries. Don't hate them and will eat them but don't love them. But when I was in Santa Barbara wine tasting, "The Berry Man" came through the restaurant we were eating in and my daughter, who loves strawberries, got me to buy some. They were the sweetest, yummiest strawberries I've ever eaten and if that is what they tasted like from the store I would eat them everyday.

[the nag]

I am, like you, not particularly fond of the strawberry but will eat them from time to time. Strawberry recipes often appeal to me but the main ingredient often ends up rotting in my fridge because the theory appeals more than the practice.

[Elena]

This is very timely because I just bought the most delicious strawberries yesterday. And yes, they were Driscoll organic strawberries (Yay! I didn't even know!). They were a little pricey, but absolutely sublime. So do I get a gift card now too??? =)

[Risottogirl]

The "California" strawberries that make it here are positively pathetic compared with buying them THERE at a Farmer's Market. Whole 'nuther animal.