Summer and Strawberries

It is safe to say between pregnancies, newborns, internships, classes, and extreme stress this is the first year I feel like I have had a Summer (at home, it always feels like Summer when we stay on the lake visiting VT) and we're just getting going. 

I finished my classes a week ago, and have spent all the time since playing catch up.  Catch up at work, catch up on sleep, catch up on house work, but I have taken a few moments here and there to just enjoy the time that I now have to be with my family.  We started our weekend early last week by going to a concert in the park.

It was fabulous.  I ran home and packed up a picnic of Korean BBQ beef, edamame, sliced peppers, hummus, tabouli, pita chips and lemonade.

We listened to jazz and I caught up with a friend from Yoga I hadn't seen since we both had babies.  We walked home in the hot Summer evening and walked into a cool house and it was fabulous, but even more fun was Strawberry picking for Father's Day.  Little did I know that my husband had never in his life tasted a fresh strawberry.  Never been strawberry picking, nada.  If I had known we woudl have gone sooner.  Everyone had a blast.

The only one who complained at all about the heat was little Miss here.

After an hour or so we had our loot

and away we went

Home again home again jiggity jig....

Now what to do with them?  We had about 6 pounds of strawberries because it was the end of the season and they were pretty  much picked over and the remaining ones were small, but that is okay I am a fan of the little ones.  I prepped and froze about 1.5 pounds, prepped another pound to be inhaled by the husband and son while playing in the baby pool in the back yard, gave some to the daughter, have some held over for strawberry shortcake tonight, and then made this super simple, and ridiculously delicious dessert last night.  These are suppose to be served with whipped cream but since I cannot have dairy, we are on a mission to lose baby weight, and it was such a relaxing day I didn't want to deal with leaving the house we ate them as is... .minus the frozen waffle that was busted out at the last minute to suck up the sauce.... oh the sauce... I wish I had taken a photo of my son after he licked his plate clean.  Here's the trick... do not tell your kids what is in the sauce, they don't need to know.  Bla, bla... honestly and all that... they don't need to know.  If they grow up and need therapy because you didn't tell them there was vinegar in their dessert, you come send them to me. I will be happy to tell them to get over it.  PS... if you're spouse is picking... don't tell him either.

Start with your slightly sad looking strawberries

Clean and hull them (which just means cutting off the stem, is it necessary to have an entire word for that process I mean really).

Add 2 tablespoons sugar (avoid getting any onto your computer... the draw back of using your computer as a travelling cook book)

Add 2 tablespoon red wine vingar (it's good just do it).  Now let sit at room temperature for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. The first time I made this I used balsamic vinegar, but this one is based on Raffy's Strawberries in Vinegar from Giada, not sure if it's better because I can't remember I just remember it works, and it's yummy, yummy, yummy.  Now you can make whipped cream here or serve as is.

That is what they look like... I have no photo program on the new computer yet.  That is just a plain ol' photo.  Looks good doesn't it?  It is... promise.