Throwback Thursday – Lessons Learned – Strawberry Season

Its Strawberry season, and I happen to live in one of the “Strawberry Capitals” of the world here in middle Tennessee. We just had our Strawberry Festival this past weekend, and it is always a big deal.

There are a lot less strawberry farmers in my parts than there used to be. Everybody used to sell strawberries; we even had an official Strawberry Growers Association.

The photo below is a picture of my grandmother, an aunt and my mama selling strawberries from their strawberry stand in 1952.

My sweet Nanny is on the left (in her bonnet), my mother (the small girl sitting on the counter), and one of her older sisters is trying to get her to try a strawberry. My mother does not look too excited about that, does she?

My mother always cooked large garden suppers. Okra and squashes were common side dishes to our dinner. My parents always required me to eat at least one bite of my vegetables. While it did not taste good at the time, it did develop my palate over time. Funny thing is, a vegetable that tasted terrible at age 7 became a craving by age 9. I am glad they made me try vegetables. As a result, vegetables are some of my favorite foods. Honestly, I can’t think of one vegetable I dislike. However, I can tell you that I never did acquire the taste for liver and onions, which my parents tried to tell me was country fried steak and gravy.

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which [is] upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which [is] the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. Genesis 1:29

Years ago my aunt submitted my mother’s strawberry freezer jelly at the county fair for judging, and it won! So in the spirit of Strawberry season, I thought I would take this opportunity to share my mama’s award winning strawberry freezer jelly recipe.

Prep work:
Pick or purchase 2 cups of strawberries.
Wash and dry canning jars and lids.

Directions:
Wash, stem and slice strawberries.
Mash berries with potato masher.
Pour 2 cups of prepared strawberries into a 6 qt. pan
Add 3 cups sugar and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
Let stand for 10 minutes after stirring.
In a small sauce pan add ¾ cups water and 1 package of Sure Jell
Bring to boil for 1 minute.
Stir into berries for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
Pour into jars
Let stand for 24 hours at room temperature.
Then store in freezer.

Enjoy!

Yields 5 8oz. jars or 5 cups of freezer jelly.

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Author Gina Duke is a wife, mother and Director of Women’s Ministry at her local church. With a B.S. in Organizational Leadership, she is able to bring a clear word for authentic Christian living. Through her book, “Organizing Your Prayer Closet: A New and Life-Changing Way to Pray” (Abingdon Press), she imparts 1 Peter 4:7 with the gift of structured prayer journaling. Ms. Duke also blogs and offers numerous videos and resources at GinaDuke.com. You may also follow her on Twitter and Instagram @TheGinaDuke.

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