Shortcake and Daiquiris

It's strawberry time and the picking is marvelous!  I brought along my stool, as well as the box I bought for $1 a couple of years ago.  I'll be darned if I'm paying an extra dollar every year to buy a box!  

Anyway, I set my alarm for 30 minutes so I know when to stop picking, otherwise I have no idea how long I'm there.  Then, after 30 minutes I look at my box and think "that's not very many" so I pick for another 15-20 minutes, then I look at my box and think "wow, that's way too many strawberries".  I'm going to write myself a note for next year "STOP picking after 30 minutes and WALK AWAY!"

I picked nearly 10 pounds of berries and spent $22 ($2.25/#).  That will make a lot of daiquiris and  shortcake!

A perfect specimen

10 pounds worth

I always joke with Bill that everywhere I go, I'm underdressed.  I rest my case!

My once-a-year daiquiri was good but had a lot of foam, I think it's the new blender.  And I need to remember to add sugar along the rim, before I fill the glass!  

The shortcakes were delicious.

I gave some of the berries to Lori, as well as Wendy & Dan.  I will be putting most of the rest in the freezer.

I stopped to check out the blueberry bushes on my way out.  They are loaded!

At least I know where to go if ours don't produce well.  

Thanks for stopping by...
;o)

It's Strawberry Pickin' Time

WooHoo!  Wendy and I went to pick strawberries today, which we both admitted we hadn't done in a long time.  It was sunny, cool (mid 70's) and windy as Hurricane Arthur had passed by off the coast yesterday.  Unfortunately, it rained, hard, for the past couple of days.  I suspect the picking was better before the rain but we still found plenty to fill our boxes.

half way full

It didn't take long for me to remember how hard picking is on one's back and legs.  Even worse, I worked my legs at the gym on Thursday, so I was already hurting.  

The charge for the box was $1 and the strawberries were $1.80/pound.  In the "olden days" we paid by the quart, so it was easy to know how much we were spending.  Considering how many strawberries people could pile onto a quart container, it only makes sense that they started charging by weight.  My berries totaled about 7 1/2 pounds, the charge being $14.11.  Wendy spent a little over $15.00.  We were back in our cars and headed home in less than an hour.

Knowing it was strawberry season, I have been craving homemade strawberry daiquiris.  Using our old recipe, I enjoyed my first one in a long time.  Here is the recipe for those interested.

In a blender, mix the following...
1/2 can frozen limeade (about 6 ounces)
3/8 cup confectioner sugar (add more or less depending on personal taste preference)
2 cups strawberries
Rum (as much as you like, again depending on personal preference)
fill to the top with ice

Blend till smooth.

This made approximately 4 cups.  I guestimate that each serving is only about 160 calories.  You can keep any extra mix in the fridge for the next few days.

When the kids were small, we made the mix without adding any alcohol so they could enjoy the summer beverage along with the adults.  I didn't add any alcohol to this mix either because Bill doesn't drink alcohol and I wanted him to be able to have some if he wanted and quite frankly, I don't like much alcohol in my alcoholic beverages.  Go figure.  Anyway, I used 1 cup of the mixture and added only 1 1/2 Tablespoons of rum to my glass.  It was perfect and brought back good memories.

Cheers!

Thanks for stopping by...
;o)