Strawberry Fields

It’s pick-your-own season and also the start of the school holidays. E was keen to experience picking as she had never tried it before. After a 40 minute drive north, Google Maps led us to the spot and we found that every man and his 4WD had had the same idea. The fields were able to accommodate the crowds; rows and rows of polythene stretched to the horizon. Parts were fenced off for the professional pickers, all Vietnamese I think, so that the holiday visitors wouldn’t trample everywhere.

E hard at work

One of the objectives of our trip was to avoid strawberries with hard white shoulders, which are a feature of those in the supermarkets. 

We picked a nice box full (about 3 kilos), having paid $10 in advance at the entry. I have to say, I found it very hard on my weak hip joint and will leave this activity to the younger generation in future.

Rocky came along for the ride in his comfy bed in the boot. C took him for a walk around the lake just down the road, where they met two other greyhounds doing the same thing. I don’t think they would be welcome in the strawberry fields!

Now the problem is: what to do with all those strawberries? I still have jam made in 2017 at the back of my pantry. I decided to produce strawberry purée, with a squirt of lemon juice and a little maple syrup and all went into the freezer in small containers. They can be added to yoghurt or smoothies or even Eton Mess. C was considering strawberry oatmeal biscuits, but that wouldn’t use much of the crop. E said she would just eat them all, but if she does that she'll never want to see another strawberry!