07 July 2009

Off-the-vine goodness


I’m a sucker for fresh taste. So the idea of off-the-vine strawberries was enough to lure me to a pick-your-own place this week. We go through a lot of strawberries round this place. Our Vita Mix gets used most days to make smoothies. So, I figured not only would I be satisfying my craving, but I’d also be saving the family money. Right?

Well, I’m not sure I did that, but the berries I plucked from the vines at Rob’s Berry Farm midway between Cambridge and North Branch off County Road 5 sure are sweet and tart. The worker who walked us to the fields and then weighed our heavy boxes later told us that the owner had feared he wouldn’t be open more than a week and one half, given the heat earlier in the season. But they’ll make it three weeks. This is the last one, and the fields are full of small to mid-size berries. Cost was $1.50 a pound.


I brought them home Monday night, saving the washing and freezing for Tuesday. Of course, we did make smoothies right away! Delish.

I did the washing in my sink, putting the berries on a towel to dry off. Then I popped them in a single layer on cookie sheets to fast freeze for an hour. Once they were hard and wouldn’t easily crush each other, I put them in gallon Ziplock bags. Any bets on how long these 4 gallons will last?

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