Strawberry Memories

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

I have a special place in my heart for strawberries. They are the prettiest of fruits, looking like juicy red Valentines. They’re packed with nutrition. And they figure into my early career in public relations.

One of my first accounts when I worked for a big PR agency was the California Strawberry Advisory Board (now the California Strawberry Commission). As the junior member on the account team, I executed a campaign in which America’s ten most wintery weary cities were celebrated with a flat of California strawberries sent to city mayors on the first day of spring. Flats were also sent to their local TV weathermen (no women at the time) and to the weathermen on national TV. This first campaign was so successful, it continued each spring for well past a decade.

May is National Strawberry Month, a great time to rejoice in these luscious gems. Here are some useful tidbits about strawberries:

• Strawberries are high in vitamin C and packed with beneficial antioxidants and nutrients, including potassium and folate.
• One cup of strawberries has only 45 calories, so they’re a guilt-free indulgence for dieters.
• Unlike tree fruits like peaches or nectarines, strawberries don’t ripen after being picked, so select the reddest ones.
• Do not wash strawberries until ready to use; getting them wet will spoil them quicker.
• Store strawberries in their original clamshell packaging in the crisper section of the fridge. For farmers’ market berries, store in a single layer on a plate or paper-towel-lined sheet pan; cover loosely.

Strawberries are delicious in smoothies, on cereal, sliced into salads, made into salsa, or served by the bowlful with yogurt and brown sugar for dessert.

Here are some easy strawberry recipes from the Special Fork database to get you started:

• Healthy Strawberry Milkshake – Marilyn Hunter concocts this healthier milkshake for her boys using strawberries for most of the sweetness.
• Macerated Strawberries with Port – this is a sublime sauce by Ben Mims that takes just a few minutes to make. Spoon over yogurt, granola, a slice of cake, or add to a glass of Champagne for a sophisticated cocktail.
• Watercress, Strawberry and Almond salad with Balsamic-Honey Vinaigrette – this colorful salad is chock-full of healthy ingredients; the flavors are fabulous together.
• Strawberry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast – this decadent French toast is surprisingly easy to make, as Dave shows you in our video.

Happy National Strawberry Month!

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