Pick Local: Strawberries Edition
Where to pick?
Two of the biggest farms in our area are the Flanagan Family Farm and the Brookdale Farm! Below you will be able to find a little more about each of them!
Flanagan Farm is located ½ mile south of the Pungo stoplight in southern Virginia Beach, on what is commonly called Pungo Ridge. Pungo Ridge is home to some of the most prime soils for vegetable farming in Virginia Beach. The farm where Flanagan Farm is located is currently farmed by the fourth and fifth generations to consecutively produce crops on this farm. They have two acres of you-pick strawberries grown utilizing plasticulture to enhance the plant growth and keep the berries clean for harvest. Available late April through early June. They also grow a variety of fruits and vegetables starting in the Spring and going all the way through fall.
Brookdale Farm grows the Chandler variety strawberries which are known for their great taste and forgiveness for not being picked totally ripe. They also grow the Camerosa variety which is known for it’s lasting berries and great taste if picked totally ripe. Lastly they also have Ruby Junes again this year, which are a great size and taste amazing. Please note that weather can always affect varieties differently! On their website they also explain that they have made some changes to picking this year. They are allowed to have picking within State guidelines.Keeping everyone healthy is the driving force behind their changes. They want to keep their fields open so compliance is necessary. For more information about how they are compiling with the ever-changing guidelines check out their website here.
Why pick?
Picking your own strawberries is great for so many reasons! The first is that it is an opportunity to get out of the house and get outside! Just outside of Sandbridge there are many different farms which are offering a U-pick system and have place strict guidelines in order to accommodate for coronavirus concerns. Another great reason is by picking at our local farms, you will be helping support small business! Many of these farms also have delicious baked goods and fresh vegetables pre-picked and ready for pick up! The last reason we at Siebert Reality love picking our own strawberries is they taste so much sweeter after all your hard work!
Bucket on buckets of strawberries… What to do now?
So now that you’ve done all of the hard work what now.. you could just eat them straight out of the bucket or you can start cooking! Below I’ve shared some of our staff’s favorite strawberry-based recipes!
Try one of these delicious recipes!
Breakfast!
Classic Strawberry pancakes
Fancy up your classic Sunday morning pancakes with strawberries! This is a simple but delicious recipe, just make your favorite pancake batter. Following dice up some of your fresh strawberries and place them in a bowl. Pour your batter like normal and sprinkle a few diced berries on top before flipping! We like to finish them off with butter and powder sugar!
Main dish!
Substitute strawberries for tomatoes in the delicious Strawberry Caprese
Toast some sourdough bread lightly. While the bread is toasting, slice some fresh mozzarella and strawberries and place to the side. On one piece of sourdough spread some pest. Then top with strawberries and a couple piece of mozzarella. To finish it drizzle a balsamic glaze and top with your other piece of sourdough! And enjoy!this dish was inspired by one of Virginia Beach’s local coffee shops: Sawdust!
Side dish!
Strawberry Salsa is the perfect summer dish to serve with chips or a fun way to top fresh tacos! For this recipe you will need:
- 2 cups strawberries slice and cut into small pieces
- 1/2 cup red onion diced small
- 2 Tbsp jalapeno pepper seeded and diced small
- 1 Tbsp cilantro chopped
- 1 tsp lime zest
- 2 Tbsp lime juice
- 2 Tbsp white balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Blend it all together & refrigerate until ready to serve.
Dessert!
Fresh strawberry bundt cake served with vanilla ice cream…might be heaven. We don’t need to talk this one up, here’s the recipe!
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice divided
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 8 ounces Greek yogurt, plain or vanilla
- 12 ounces fresh strawberries diced
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
-
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan (10-15 cup pan). In a large bowl, sift together 2 1/4 cups of flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix in the lemon zest and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Alternate beating in the flour mixture and the yogurt, mixing just until incorporated.
- Toss the strawberries with the remaining 1/4 cup of flour. Gently mix them into the batter. Pour the batter into the Bundt pan. Place in the oven and reduce the temperature to 325 degrees F. Bake for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Allow to cool at least 20 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely. Once cooled whisk together the remaining 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and the powdered sugar. Drizzle over the top of the cake.
Drinks!
Strawberry mojitos the perfect way to cool off after a long summer day! For two servings you will
need:
- 1 cup of sliced strawberries
- 12 fresh mint leaves
- 1/8 cup of simple syrup
- Juice from 1/2 of a lime
- 4 ounces of light rum
- Club soda
- strawberries, lime wedges and/or mint sprig to garnish
Instructions:
-
- In a cocktail shaker, muddle strawberries, mint leaves, simple syrup and lime juice with a muddler (use the back of a wooden spoon if you don’t have a muddler).
- Pour in two glasses over ice (equal amounts). Add 2 ounces of rum to each glass and top with club soda. Garnish with a strawberry, lime wedge and/or mint sprig if desired.