Strawberry Picking

I look forward to strawberry season all year. Who doesn't? So this spring I counted down the days until the local strawberry farms opened. When they finally did open I found myself too busy to go. Week one of May went by and I was too bogged down with chocolate orders to make it strawberry picking. Week two went by and the days that I was free it rained and rained. Week three went by and the day that I could go picking was picked out by the time I called. I was beginning to fret that I wouldn't be picking strawberries this year. Finally the last week of May I made it!

It was a beautiful day at Middle River Farms when I arrived at 8am. They said to come early, since they are normally picked out by noon. (Good to know for next year.) I boarded the tractor ride with my two pails to fill and we headed out to where the berries where. When we got there it was row after row of gorgeous green strawberry bushes. I started slow mainly because I was sure that if I picked too quickly I would be finished before I was ready. I wanted to thoroughly enjoy my experience. After the first pail though, it became hot and sunny and my legs were aching from squatting while picking. All of a sudden I wanted to be done, but I still had another pail to go! The last pail was picked with less diligence, but I still got a good bounty. My end of picking total was 20 pounds, cool!

One large plan I had for the strawberries was to make jam out of them to use for future truffles. It is very important to me that my ingredients are as fresh and local as possible. Strawberries may not be fresh in November, but they will be from a local farm and made into a jam by me that will then get used in the truffles. I am excited to be using my own homemade jam in upcoming truffle recipes! My thoughts for truffles are maybe a white chocolate with strawberry and lime, or maybe dark chocolate with strawberry and port...the options really go on.

Of course, a lot of strawberries were just dipped into chocolate and consumed right away. Only the best way to eat a fresh strawberry as a chocolate lover! Strawberry crisp was also made to be enjoyed with chocolate ice cream. There are also some frozen strawberries that will come out later in the summer. Oh how I love strawberry season!