May is National Strawberry Month and every May 20th, National Pick Strawberries Day encourages us to pick some strawberries. This time of year, these delightful red berries are really in the height of their season. And there is just something special about the taste of a sun-warmed strawberry picked straight off of the vine.
Strawberry picking time is usually between late April and throughout the summer, depending on what part of the United States you live. When harvesting strawberries, you want to look for the bright red, firm, and plump ones.
Strawberries are best fresh, but they also make delicious desserts, like strawberry shortcakes, fresh jams, and strawberries and cream. Yum! Speaking of Strawberries and Cream, National Strawberries and Cream DAY is the day after Pick Strawberries Day, May 21st! So, pick your berries today and serve ’em up with some cream tomorrow!
More Reasons to Love Strawberries (and eat them)!
They’re Good For You. Strawberries offer amazing nutritional value. One cup of strawberries is only 55 calories. If your kids eat just eight strawberries a day, they’d consume 140% of their recommended amount of Vitamin C. Strawberries also give your body high levels of polyphenols, an antioxidant, as well as folic acid, vitamins and fiber. Added bonuses? They’re also fat, sodium and cholesterol free. They also help fight bad cholesterol and reduce inflammation. Now that’s beauty on the inside and out!
You Can Find Them Everywhere. That strawberries are grown in every state in America? It’s true! But California may just be the strawberry king, because it produces over 1 Billion (yes, with a B) pounds of strawberries a year.
They’re Very, Um, Stimulating. The French are convinced that strawberries serve as a powerful aphrodisiac — so much so that it’s a tradition in a French countryside to serve cold strawberry soup to newlyweds.
Did you know…?
- Strawberries are members of the rose family.
- They are the only fruit with their seeds on the outside, and an average strawberry has 200 of them.
- The first strawberries were grown in France in the late 18th century. Prior to the 18th century, wild strawberries were collected and commonly used as a fruit source.
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Photo Credit: Michal Urbanek / Shutterstock.com