Strawberry Fields Forever

Let me count the ways I love my berries. Strawberry shortcake, strawberry pie, strawberry sundaes, strawberries and whipped cream. Then there's strawberries with cereal and milk for breakfast or topping custards, puddings, and tapioca. Who can resist Belgian waffles or a yummy fruit salad? Strawberries with bananas, pineapple and sliced kiwi.

Strawberries also make a handsome garnish for salads and fruit punches. Garnish tip: Leave the caps and stems on. Slice sideways not quite to the caps and gently fan the berry slices for a pretty display.

Try a simple fondue dessert by arranging the berries on a dessert plate with a variety of dips like sour cream, melted chocolate, whipped cream, coconut, and chopped nuts. The more elegant French version is to serve the berries with a small bowl of Marsala wine and a mound of granulated brown sugar. The berry is dipped into the wine and then into the sugar and popped into the mouth. Washed down with a sip of the wine. Yum.

And strawberries are more than a way to satisfy your sweet tooth -- low in calories (1 cup is about 55 calories) and full of Vitamin C (that same cup fulfills your daily requirement. But treat your berries gently, they bruise easily. Don't clean them until just before using them. Store the berries uncovered in the refrigerator in a shallow container. When ready to eat them, wash quickly in cold water. Don't let them soak. Drain them well before you hull them.

It's strawberry season and luscious, ripe berries are yours for the picking -- well, after you pony up at the weigh station. Some farms charge by the quart, others by weight. If you don't fancy a Saturday morning in a strawberry field, you can simply stop at the farm stand, plunk down your cash and buy a couple of quarts all ready picked. Either way you'll be headed for strawberry Nirvana!

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