More Strawberries

We found some strawberries on sale yesterday. $1.00 a pound. Not a bad price. So I had to get some. I only bought 5 pounds. I guess I'm hoping to find better deals before the strawberry season is over. Today I'm freezing most of the berries. But who could resist to just eat them when they're at their best.
Two in the freezer, one in my mouth. Or something like that.
I remembered a fruit dip I haven't had in a long time. That would go so good with these strawberries right now.
You need 8 oz. of cream cheese and a 7oz jar of marshmallow cream.
Let the cream cheese come to room temperature. Just put it in the microwave for a few seconds.
Then add the marshmallow cream. Beat until smooth.
You can also add a little vanilla for flavor.
There are many variations of this recipe around, just look around on the Internet.

I found this picture of me in my grandmas garden.

That's my younger sister Petra I'm holding. I had a terrible time copying this picture. It was in an album. The picture has been in this album for so long that I couldn't get it out. I was afraid I was going to rip it. So I just scanned the whole album page through the plastic cover. I guess it didn't come out too bad.

Strawberries

                                                              I love strawberries.

My grandma had a big garden with a large strawberry patch. Every summer us kids would look for the reddest and biggest berries. We'd pick them, rinse them off and eat them.  They were so delicious. When I was pregnant with my oldest daughter I was graving strawberries like you wouldn't belief it. Fresh, frozen, canned. It didn't make any difference.
I wish I had a garden to grow some. But since I don't I patiently wait for strawberry season every year. Yes, I know, you can buy strawberries year round. But they just don't taste as good as fresh strawberries that are in season.
My favorite way to eat them is with a little bit of whipped cream.

A few years ago I found a recipe for strawberry-banana jam in a magazine. I have made it every year ever since.

Here is the recipe:

4-3/4 cups prepared fruit (about 2 quarts fully ripe strawberries and 3 fully ripe medium bananas)

3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 box SURE-JELL Fruit Pectin
1/2 tsp. butter or margarine
6-3/4 cups sugar

Stem and crush strawberries thoroughly. Measure 3-1/4 cups prepared strawberries into 6- or 8-quart sauce pot. Mash bananas thoroughly. Measure  1-1/2 cups  bananas. Add to pot. Stir in lemon juice. Stir pectin into fruit in sauce pot. Add butter. Bring mixture to full rolling boil  on high heat, stirring constantly. Quickly stir in all the sugar. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skin off foam.Ladle into hot, sterilized jars. Close and set upside down for 5 minutes, then turn upright. After jars are cooled, check seals.

Or, after cooling off a little, pour into freezer containers and freeze.That's what I did last time I made this, and the jam came out great.  

Recently I also  found this recipe here: strawberry-banana jam.

You may want to look at it if you prefer the water bath canning method.

I always buy extra strawberries during the summer and freeze them. I just wash, slice and freeze in containers or bags. And then  I can use them in winter for smoothies. Or I put some sugar on them, microwave for a few minutes and pour them over pancakes. Better than pancake syrup.

I don't think I could ever get tired of strawberries. And thank goodness the season is just starting.

April

It's already April. I haven't done too much lately. I had several ideas of things to crochet, but for now I have to put the crochet hook down. Last fall I started to get this rash on my arms, just around the time I started to knit and crochet again. But at first I didn't think much of it, because I get odd rashes at times from the sun. After a couple of months the rash was still there and it was itchy. My doctor gave me a cream and that seemed to help some. I also took a brake from crocheting and knitting. My arms were almost back to normal. And then I decided to make me another swiffersock. The rash came back.
So for now the yarn has been put away. And I'm waiting for the rash to disappear. It is getting better, but very slowly.
After some time I will probably pick up the yarn again and see what happens. If the rash comes back, then I will know for sure that the yarn caused it. Right now I'm just guessing.
So I will spend my time looking for yummy recipes at my kitchentable.