Lovely, plump, red, and heart-shaped strawberries provide visual delight, sweet aromas, and palatable pleasures during the hot days of summer. Strawberries are very healthy fruits full of Vitamin C, fiber, folic acid, and potassium. People who consume strawberries are less prone to hypertension and heart attacks. Strawberries are also known to fight cancer and prevent stroke, minimize constipation, and aid in the glucose management of people with diabetes.
Enjoy summer all year by making strawberry preserves from freshly harvested berries. Some people say it’s laborious but it’s all worth it when the strawberry preserves begin to be a source of delight in the table.
Strawberry Preserves Trivia
- Strawberries were originally wild fruits, first used by the Romans as medicine. Cultivated strawberries were first grown in Brittany, France, and have ever since become an important fruit for ancient European artistry for the German, Italian, and Flemish people.
- Thomas Wolsey love strawberries so much, he invented the famous combination of strawberries and cream for King Henry VIII. The Tudors used this delicate dessert to woo ladies into their courts.
- Strawberries are the State Fruit of Louisiana and Delaware.
Strawberry Preserves Buying Guide
Strawberry preserves are available at the jams, preserves, and condiments aisles of supermarkets and groceries. You can even buy them at online stores. Most of the common commercial brands market their products as all-natural, sugar-free, or even preservative-free, but not all information is accurate. Check the labels for any chemical sugar or preservative components that are disguised in the ingredients.
It’s best to buy strawberry preserves from artisan makers when sweet, plump, and fresh strawberries are in season. They have a better texture, color, taste, and consistency compared to the commercially produced ones.
Strawberry Preserves Production & Farming in Texas
Strawberries thrive in spring with the mild weather of Northern Texas. It’s best to plant strawberries in February and until March 17 as these planting times will yield juicer, healthier, and sweeter fruits.
When choosing a strawberry patch, select a sunny area free from weeds. Use good soil compost and ensure that there’s drainage for excess moisture. Texas Green Sand is also a good source of nourishment for strawberries.
Strawberry preserves as best made during the strawberry season when the strawberries are plump, fresh, and sweet. Although making strawberry preserves always involves using sugar, it’s best to choose rock sugars than artificial sugars. Also, use lemons as natural preservatives instead of readily available chemical preservatives. Let the natural colors of the strawberries shine, as there’s no need to add artificial food coloring.
Preservatives and Chemicals
People are increasingly conscious of their diets and are constantly looking for guilt-free options that will still satisfy their sweet cravings. While everyone would love to eat preserves, commercially purchased strawberry preserves contain preservatives and chemicals that can compromise health when consumed frequently.
Sugar is the main ingredient of any preserves, jams, or jellies. However, there are different sugars with varying toxicity. There are also countless ways to call sugars. Corn syrup, fructose, sucrose, glucose, fruit juice concentrate, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), inverted sugar, maltose, and syrups are both chemical sweeteners and additives used to improve flavor and extend shelf life.
While these may seem harmless since consuming preserves are on a seasonal basis, all these sugars exist in most of the food people consume today. Excessive amounts of sugar can lead to obesity, tooth decay, hypertension, diabetes, osteoporosis, and can increase the growth of cancer cells in the body.
Packaging
Strawberry preserves should be packaged in sterilized glass containers. Both the jars and thongs must be washed and sterilized to prevent microbial and fungal growth. It’s convenient to use tongs to submerge the jars in boiling water for 10-15 minutes. It’s not necessary to boil the lids because modern lid designs are increasingly resistant to rust.
The jars must be filled with strawberry preserves leaving a half-inch space to avoid bursting. Push the strawberry preserves with a small spatula or knife to release the air bubbles. Then wipe the top of the jars to clean any leaked preserves. Boil for up to 30 minutes and cool overnight.
Enjoying Strawberry Preserves
Strawberry preserves are just a delightful summer treat. Serve is with pancakes, butter, and some cream cheese or cottage cheese. Spread it in canapes topped with sprigs of mint and a tiny drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Use it as a filling for sponge cakes, muffins, cupcakes, donuts, and biscuits.
Make a simple tart of puff pastry pie by baking the pre-formed pie crusts with homemade custard. Then top with vanilla ice cream and a dollop of strawberry preserves.
Storage
During the canning process, heated jams inside sterilized lids must be cooled for at least 24 hours. Unopened strawberry preserves must be stored in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight. Frozen strawberry preserves can last up to a year if unopened. If you have already opened your strawberry preserves, keep them refrigerated and consume for 1-2 weeks.
Cooking
OLD-FASHIONED STRAWBERRY PRESERVES
INGREDIENTS
3 pints (0.94 kg) ripe fresh strawberries
5 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
PROCEDURE
- Clean and prepare the ingredients.
- Wash the strawberries in cold water and drain thoroughly. Hull them and discard the caps
- Combine the berries with the sugar in a large stainless steel or enamel-lined pan and let sit for 3 to 4 hours.
- In a medium saucepot, bring the strawberries to a boil slowly, stirring occasionally. Add the lemon juice.
- Cook rapidly over medium heat until the strawberry mixture is clear and the syrup is thickened, or about 15 minutes.
- Ladle or funnel the strawberry preserves into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace.
- Process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath.
- Cool and store in the fridge until ready to use.
