Strawberry Season

Here in Greenville, it's that time of year when the strawberry stands come out. Last year we discovered the sweet tasty goodness that are local strawberries. Months after we purchased a couple gallons from up the road, we bought some from our local grocery. Not nearly as tasty, what a difference! It was obvious they had been picked before ripe and then ripened en route to the grocery. But not those guys up the street. So we've been making our plan ever since.

I've bought some at various places and even picked my own. My favorite are the Strawberry Hill ones sold at the roadside stands just north of Travelers Rest. At $13 a bucket they aren't the cheapest, but they taste the best to me. So this season I've come home with four buckets.

This past week we've dried a batch for my favorite granola. Frozen a whole lot for smoothies and strawberry shortcake. And for the first time, I've tried making strawberry preserves. My first attempt didn't gel so I attempted to fix that batch with an online remedy of more pectin, sugar and lemon juice.

These berries are hardly cheaper than frozen ones from the store. But they taste much better. And they're local which is always a plus to me. And I figure my homemade preserves cost less than $1 for a half pint each which is a great deal. I made 8 half pints, enough to last us at least a year.