Easy Way to Keep Strawberries Fresh Longer

How many times has this happened to you? You purchased some delicious looking strawberries on sale and before you can enjoy them, they are a fuzzy science experiment.  It is such a waste of money, you hesitate to even buy them at the store. I tried those Green Bags that promise to keep produce fresh longer. I didn't find they worked at all. I found a cheap and easy trick to keeping your strawberries good for up to eight (8) days! The pictures of the strawberries in this blog post are eight days old. They were delicious!

• First, purchase quality berries. I like Driscoll berries. I have tried this trick on many brands and find that the Driscoll berries seem to last the longest.
• Second, any water will hasten spoiling. Wash them in a vinegar and water solution. Pat the berries with a paper towel to ensure they are all dry.
• Third, inspect each berry. If there is one with a rotten part, take it out of the carton.
• Fourth, put a layer of paper towel at the bottom of the strawberry clamshell container you purchased your berries in. Add a layer of dry berries. Add another layer of paper towels. Add berries. Continue this process until all the berries are used up. Cover with a final layer of paper towel. The top may not close, but this doesn't seem to affect it.

That's it! Now you can enjoy your berries for a much longer period than normal.

What to do with all these delicious strawberries? Never fear... Frazzled Mom is here! OK, that was really corny! Anyway, here is an easy recipe to use up those strawberries!

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

Fresh Organic Spinach

Strawberries (sliced)

Feta Cheese (small container of crumbled)

Poppy Seed Dressing (recipe below)

Arrange a handful of the spinach in a bowl. Sprinkle with sliced strawberries and then a small amount of crumbled Feta Cheese. Top with Poppy Seed Dressing! This salad is so refreshing on a hot day!

Poppy Seed Dressing

1/2 cup of white sugar

1 tsp. dry mustard

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. onion powder

1 c. vegetable oil

1/3 c. vinegar

1 1/2 tsp. poppy seed

mix sugar, mustard and salt. Add oil and vinegar, beating constantly in blender. Add onion and poppy seed last. If dressing separates after it is cold, put back in blender and beat hard. Makes one pint. Can be kept for 2 weeks in covered jar in fridge.