[1] Fresh strawberries (photo © InHarvest).

[2] Strawberry lemonade (photo © La Cocina Color Lila).

[3] Strawberry milkshake (photo © Friendship Dairies).

[4] A flowering strawberry plant. The fruit grows from the flower (photo © John-Mark Smith | UnsplashUnsplash).

[5] Strawberry plant (photo © Chris Yang | UnsplashUnsplash).

May is National Strawberry Month. Is there anything more delightful than a sweet, low-calorie strawberry (4 calories per medium strawberry)?

California and Florida are the principal U.S. strawberry-growing regions: Florida for winter berries, California for spring, summer and fall fruit.

Florida strawberry growers began hand-harvesting the first fruit of the winter strawberry season in late November; and while there are imports, Florida is the major supplier of strawberries in the U.S. from November through early spring.

Today, the strawberry is the leading small fruit crop in the U.S.

But where did the strawberries come from?

They’re originally from Europe, but wild strawberries grow in many locations, including the United States.

The fruit dates back to the Roman Empire, and possibly to the Greeks before that. Fast forward a couple of millennia: The first American species of strawberry was cultivated about 1835.

The strawberry got its name from the common practice of growing the berries under straw to protect them from frost.
 
 
A RELATIVE OF THE ROSE

The strawberry is a member of the rose order and family*, which is why the strawberry plant sometimes gives off a rose-like aroma.

A greenish-white fruit (see photos #4 and #5) grows from the flower and eventually ripens into a deep red berry.

Before modern refrigeration, the fruits were picked and consumed in short order; as fresh fruit, in pies, tarts and shortcake.

The berries were preserved as jam, jelly, sauce, strawberry vinegar and strawberry tonic, a medicinal drink.

And to enjoy them year-round, the fruits were dried on flat rocks for several days, to be used throughout the fall and winter in breads, cakes and puddings.

Today, many different varieties of strawberries are cultivated. Each has a specific color, flavor and texture (firm flesh is needed to ship long distances, for example).

The particular climate and soil dictate which variety of strawberry will grow best; and different varieties were bred to thrive in different soils.

Some varieties grow early in the season, some later.

Strawberries must be picked at the peak of ripeness for optimum flavor, as they do not continue to ripen after they’re picked.
 
 
STRAWBERRY TRIVIA

The strawberry is the only fruit to carry its seeds on the outside. There are 200 seeds on the average strawberry.

Each of these seeds has the genetic potential to become a new variety of strawberry since no two seeds are the same. This is how plant breeders develop new varieties of strawberries.
 
 
HOW TO BUY STRAWBERRIES

 
 
USING STRAWBERRIES

 
 
STRAWBERRY NUTRITION

Strawberries are rich in antioxidants. Studies have found that the berries inhibited the development of oral, esophageal and colon cancers.

Strawberries are nutritious.

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*Order Rosales, Family Rosaceae, Genus Fragaria, Species F. × ananassa.
 
  

We prefer French toast to pancakes and waffles. The texture and the flavor of good bread, as opposed to the wheatiness of the latter.

For Mother’s Day, we’re making this recipe from DeLallo: Raspberry Mascarpone Stuffed French Toast with Balsamic Glaze.

That’s a mouthful, and so is the three-decker French toast napoleon or sundae.

The triple-decker stuffed French toast is layered with creamy mascarpone and fresh berries, drizzled with a rich balsamic glaze.
 
 
RECIPE: RASPBERRY MASCARPONE STUFFED FRENCH TOAST WITH BALSAMIC GLAZE

Ingredients For 5-6 Servings
 
 
For The Filling

 
For The Creamy Balsamic Glaze

 
For The French Toast

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the filling. Combine the mascarpone, crushed raspberries, honey and sugar in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.

2. MAKE the finishing glaze: Mix mascarpone, half and half, sugar and balsamic vinegar in a small bowl and set aside.

3. MAKE the French Toast: Whisk together eggs, cream, vanilla and cinnamon in a separate bowl. Using a paring knife (we used a large serrated knife), cut a pocket into each thick slice of bread. Start on one side of bread and cut 3/4 of the way through. Evenly distribute the filling between slices, carefully filling bread pockets.

4. MELT a spoonful of butter in a large skillet over medium heat, and coat the pan. Dip the filled slices of bread into the egg mixture and place them in the pan. Cook 2-3 minutes per side, until brown and crisp. Repeat this process with remaining slices.

5. DUST with confectioner’s sugar, drizzled with the balsamic glaze, and serve immediately.
 
 
> THE HISTORY OF FRENCH TOAST <

[1] A French toast napoleon or sundae, a new way to serve stuffed French toast (photo © DeLallo).

[2] Mascarpone and raspberries (photo © Good Eggs).

[3] Confectioner’s sugar, also called 10x and powdered sugar (photo by Katherine Pollak, © The Nibble).

[1] A slice of Humboldt Fog goat cheese and seeded crisps broken into “croutons.” An idea from Lazy Dog Restaurants (photo © Lazy Dog Restaurants).

[2] Salad with shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (photo © Upland Restaurant | NYC).

There are standalone salads, like Greek salad, that incorporate cheese.

French homes and restaurants have often served the cheese course, served after dinner with salad.

Or is that the after-dinner salad course with cheese?

A plate of green salad is graced on top or the side of the plate with cheese.

The salad plate is served with baguette slices, crisps, crackers crostini, or toasts on the side.

Today, that slice of cheese has evolved to include options on top of the salad, such as:

 
Popular cheeses for salads are:

 
Of course, you can use any cheese that goes with your salad.

Consider it an opportunity to have good cheeses more often.

May 6th is National Crêpes Suzette Day. If you know classic French cuisine, you’ve likely familiar with Crêpes Suzette.

Crêpes Suzette are sweet crêpes made with a sauce of butter, sugar, orange juice, orange zest and an orange liqueur, such as Grand Marnier. You can serve then for breakfast, brunch or dessert.

Crêpe is the French word for pancake, and in France the pancakes/crêpes are light and paper-thin. They can be made from plain or sweetened batter. Savory recipes are almost as popular as sweet ones.

In the U.S., in the fine French restaurants of yore*, the mâitre d’hotel or captain would make them at tableside. They were typically ignited and, thanks to the flame-inducing liqueur, made for a dramatic presentation.

Who was Suzette?

There are different stories, but the most popular concerns the Café de Paris in Monte Carlo. The story goes that in 1895, a 14-year-old Henri Charpentier, a young kitchen apprentice who later become chef to John D. Rockefeller, created a dessert for the Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII, eldest son of Queen Victoria).

The Prince loved the flambéed crêpe with its zesty orange sauce, and at once named the dish after one of his dining companions, a certain Suzette (sourcesource).

Based on their royal association, Crêpes Suzette quickly became a classic French dessert.

The following recipe is a simplified version from Betty CrockerBetty Crocker, that uses Original BisquickBisquick mix.
 
 
RECIPE: CRÊPES SUZETTE

Ingredients

[1] Crêpes Suzette (photo © Betty Crocker).

[2] Thanks to their advertising, Grand Marnier is the best known orange liqueur. Here are the other main brands (photo © Grand Marnier).

1. BEAT the Bisquick mix, milk and eggs in small bowl with a whisk, until blended. Lightly butter an 8-inch skillet; heat over medium heat until the butter is bubbly. For each crepe…

2. POUR 2 tablespoons of batter into the skillet; immediately rotate the skillet until the batter covers the bottom. Cook until golden brown. Run a wide spatula around the edge to loosen; turn and cook other side until golden brown. Stack the crêpes, placing waxed paper between each; keep covered for warmth.

3. HEAT the butter, the orange peel, the orange juice and the sugar to boiling in 10-inch skillet, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. HEAT the liqueur in 1-quart saucepan, but do not boil.

5. FOLD the crepês into fourths (see photo #1). Place them in the skillet, in the hot orange sauce, and turn once. Arrange the crêpes around the edge of the skillet. Pour the warm liqueur into center of skillet and carefully ignite with a long match. After the flame dies, place 2 crêpes on each dessert plate; spoon the warm sauce onto the crêpes, and serve.

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*For example, Cointreau, Curaçao, Grand Marnier, Gran Gala, Triple Sec.
  

Hummus is a Middle Eastern spread or dip made from chickpeas, tahini, lemon, garlic and other spices.

America has gone hummus-crazy as any trip to a supermarket will tell show you: numerous brands and flavors.

Tahini is combined with chickpea puree in a proportion of 1:6. There are more chickpeas, but tahini, which looks like natural peanut butter with separated oil on top, gives tahini the nutty flavor of ground sesame seeds.

Tahini is a paste made from ground sesame seeds and it makes the hummus taste incredible. You can buy tahini at the store or you can make it yourself. To make hummus that’s 100% from scratch, we use homemade tahini.

If you want to make your own tahini, here’s a recipehere’s a recipe. It’s essentially toasted sesame seeds with a little oil in a food processor.

What if you want a simple dip of tahini, no chickpeas?

Try this recipe is from Einat Admony, chef-restaurateur of Balaboosta, a James Beard Award-nominated Middle Eastern restaurant in New York City, and her other restaurants; Taim, a falafel restaurant; and Bar Bolonat.

Serve the tahini dip as you would hummus: with crudités, pita, falafel, as a sandwich spread, on a veggie burger.
 
 
RECIPE: TAHINI DIP

Ingredients For 2 Cups

 
Preparation

1. ROAST the bell peppers in a broiler. Place an oven rack 6 inches from the broiler element; preheat the broiler. While the broiler heats…

2. LINE a baking sheet with foil. Place the peppers on the baking sheet and broil until the peppers are charred black on all sides, turning them with tongs as needed.

3. TRANSFER the peppers to a heatproof bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap to let the peppers steam. Once they are cool enough to handle, rub off and discard the charred skins, the stem and seeds. Cut the remaining flesh into chunks.

[1] Tahini dip, spread and sauce (photo and recipe © Einat Admony | Balaboosta NYC).

[2] Red bell peppers (photo CC0 Public Domain | PX Here.

[3] Garlic (photo © Tijana Drndaski | Unsplash).

5. ADD the roasted peppers along with the salt, sugar and paprika. Purée until smooth. Then, with the motor running, gradually add the tahini to form a thickened, creamy sauce or spread.