4:45 - still have berries, recipes, freezing

Hi gang,

We're still hanging in there today! I made it to 6:00 yesterday..... a personal goal of mine. Many of you have asked about our days and hours. Here it is:

Daily 10 - 5:30/6:00 (I'll stay till 6:00 if I have berries)
Closed Tuesday

Freezing berries

Lots and lots of you have mentioned you never thought of freezing the berries. A customer suggested I share my freezing tips once again so here goes....

Method #1
I don't even wash them before freezing. Cut the tops off, slice a few times and place into a freezer container. I use the Glad or Ziplock kind with the blue lids. I pack them really tight to push out as much air as possible. They will come out a solid brick so choose the size container you wish to defrost. I use them all winter long on pancakes, waffles, shortcake, making jam, smoothies, etc. Expect them to be soft and have lots of liquid. Some folks will ONLY make jam from frozen berries.

Method #2
Puree them first then pour into freezing sizes you desire for smoothies. This way saves the most space.

Method #3
Take the tops off, place whole berry on cookie sheet, wait until frozen, put in bags or containers. You can take these out individually or use them like berry ice cubes. Some kids enjoy eating the frozen berries.

Method #4
Make berry ice pops for the kids. Puree berries. Place in pop molds. Kids love them. Sometimes I add yogurt and banana. Get creative.

That ought to keep some of you busy for awhile!!! Think like a squirrel and stock up for the winter. It's never to early AND many folks miss out by waiting until the last minute in September. It can be a LONG winter gang :)

Cheers!

Sally Strawberry

Strawberry Streusel Muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 1/4 tsp almond extract
1 cup sliced (fresh) strawberries

Streusel Topping:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup flour
2 Tbsp melted butter
1/8 tsp almond extract

Instructions:
Combine first four ingredients in a large bowl; make a well in the center of mixture. Combine egg, milk, butter and almond extract; add to dry ingredients, stirring until moistened. Fold in strawberries.

Combine streusel topping ingredients in a small bowl; stir well. Spoon batter into paper-lined or greased muffin pans, filing 3/4 full. Sprinkle streusel topping evenly over batter. Bake 350 degrees 20-25
minutes.

Yield: 1 dozen.

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 pound fresh rhubarb, chopped
2 pints fresh strawberries
1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie
2 tablespoons butter
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons white sugar

Preheat oven to 400° F.

In a large bowl, mix flour and sugar. Add strawberries and chopped rhubarb. Toss with sugar and flour and let stand for 30 minutes.

Pour filling into pie crust. Dot top with butter, and cover with top crust. Seal edges of top and bottom crust with water.

Apply yolk to top of pie, using a pastry brush. Sprinkle with sugar. Cut small holes in top to let steam escape.

Bake at 400° F., for 35 to 40 minutes, or until bubbly and brown. Cool on rack.