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“Strawberries are happy, fresh in a field, baked in a pie, tossed in a salad, sweet in a shortcake, alone on a plate, or bundled up in chocolate coats. How many ways can l eat strawberries? I will find out, I will tell you.”

-Amy Ludwig VanDerWater

 

Linda: If it’s May, it must be time for strawberries. We know summer is arriving when strawberries start appearing at the farm markets. I love to just taste a red, ripe strawberry fresh from the basket. There are many ways to use this precious berry, but I never knew what to make first.

Lucy: I’ve been reading about strawberries, learning some history and other interesting facts. Apparently, the French, having discovered berries in Chile, were the first to try cultivating them in home gardens. They were a favorite of Louis XIV and were grown at Versailles. The variety from the new world, F Virginia, began to spread around Europe. Native Americans used a name that meant seeded heart berry. Since they usually ripened in June, the first full moon in June was named the “strawberry moon.”

Linda: It’s always so interesting to learn the history of different foods that we just take for granted. I know there are various varieties of berries, some sweeter than others. I recently read that China is now the top producer of strawberries, and California produces the most berries in the US.

Lucy: I really prefer locally grown berries. In Florida, Plant City was a big producer. There are many farms here in South Carolina producing berries. I always plan a trip to Strawberry Hill to enjoy their homemade strawberry ice cream. 

Linda: I recently discovered an easy Strawberry Muffin recipe. I love to start my day with a muffin for breakfast, and what could be better in the morning than enjoying a strawberry muffin? The recipe stated it would make eight muffins, but I actually had plenty of batter for ten.

Lucy: I still use the recipe from my old Better Homes and Gardens cookbook for fresh strawberry pie. We’ve featured a frozen strawberry pie in our column but never a fresh berry pie. A dollop of whipped cream on top of the pie or a scoop of vanilla ice cream adds a finishing touch.

Linda: I love New York Crumb Cake, so when I found a Strawberry Crumb Cake recipe, I couldn’t wait to try it. This recipe has three different layers. It’s not difficult, but when I have a recipe with different steps, I like to assemble all my ingredients before I start cooking. It makes the process flow more quickly. 

Lucy: I know our readers will enjoy some new recipes for this delicious berry. I think I’m ready to make another scrumptious Strawberry Pie.  

 

Strawberry Muffins

Yield: 8-10 muffins

 

These strawberry muffins can be made with fresh or frozen strawberries. If using frozen berries, thaw slightly, then chop with a knife.

 

Ingredients

½ cup milk

¼ cup canola oil

1 large egg

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup white sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped strawberries

 

Directions

Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F  Line 8-10 standard-sized muffin cups with foil liners. Lightly beat milk, oil, and egg in a small bowl. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Toss in chopped strawberries and stir to coat with flour. Fold in the milk mixture until just combined. Divide batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups. Bake in the preheated oven until the tops bounce back from the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes in the pan before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

 

Strawberry Glaze Pie

Servings: 8

 

Ingredients

4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and cut in half

1 (9 inch) pie crust, baked (Marie Calendar frozen piecrust is easy to use; follow instructions for one crust pie)

1 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

¾ cup water

½ cup heavy whipping cream

 

Directions

Gather all ingredients. Arrange 1 ½ cups of fresh strawberries in baked pastry shell. Place one cup  strawberries in a medium saucepan. Add sugar to the strawberries in the saucepan; place over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Whisk cornstarch and water together in a small bowl. Gradually stir cornstarch mixture into boiling strawberry mixture. Reduce heat and simmer mixture until thickened, about 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Strawberries will be soft and mushy and easy to mash. Pour ½ cooked strawberry mixture over berries in pastry shell. Add another 1 ½ cups of fresh berries and then pour the last of cooked berries over all. Refrigerate until chilled and set, at least 3 hours. Before serving, whip cream in a medium bowl until soft peaks form. Serve each slice of pie with a dollop of whipped cream. Enjoy!

 

Strawberry Crumb Cake

 

Ingredients

 

Crumb Topping:

¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

¼ cup granulated sugar

2 Tbs packed light brown sugar

6 Tbs salted butter, melted 

 

Cake Batter:

6 Tbs unsalted butter, melted

¾ cup granulated sugar

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs at room temperature

⅓ cup sour cream

1 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

⅓ cup milk

 

Strawberry Layer:

3 cups chopped fresh strawberries

1 ½ Tbs all-purpose flour

1 Tbs granulated sugar

 

Directions 

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease 8×8-inch metal baking pan. A glass baking dish might require extra baking time.

Crumb topping: Combine flour, both sugars and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to blend evenly so that there are no lumps of brown sugar. Add melted butter to the dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until evenly combined, then toss with your fingertips to form large crumbs. Cover with a tea towel and set aside.

Cake batter: Combine melted butter, sugar, vanilla in a medium mixing bowl and whisk until pale and fluffy-looking. Whisk in eggs one at a time until very light and creamy. Mix in sour cream. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a small bowl and whisk to blend evenly. Add it to the wet mixture and fold it in by hand with a spatula until mostly incorporated. Pour in milk and fold it in until batter is evenly combined. Spread batter evenly into prepared pan.

Strawberry layer: combine flour with sugar and then sprinkle it over the strawberries. Toss it all together until strawberries are evenly coated and scatter evenly over the batter. Then, scatter clumps of crumb topping evenly on top to cover the strawberries.

Bake for 40-50 minutes (maybe 60 minutes if using a glass pan) until the crumbs are lightly golden and the cake feels firm to the touch. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out without any wet batter. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.