1/4 cup lemon juice
5 1/2 cups crushed strawberries (about 3 quart boxes strawberries)
1 package powdered pectin
7 1/2 cups sugar

Makes 8 cups

To prepare fruit. Sort and wash fully ripe strawberries; remove stems and caps. Crush berries.

To make jam. Measure crushed strawberries into a kettle. Add pectin and stir well. Place on high heat and, stirring constantly, bring quickly to a full boil with bubbles over the entire surface. Add sugar, continue stirring, and heat again to a full bubbling boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; skim.

2 cups crushed strawberries or blackberries (about 1 quart berries)
4 cups sugar
1 package powdered pectin

Makes 5 or 6 half-pint jars.

To prepare fruit. Sort and wash fully ripe berries. Drain. Remove caps and stems; crush berries.

To make jam. Place prepared berries in a large mixing bowl. Add sugar, mix well, and let stand for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Dissolve pectin in water and boil for 1 minute. Add pectin solution to berry-and-sugar mixture; stir for 2 minutes. Pour jam into freezer containers or canning jars, leaving 1/2 inch space at the top. Cover containers and let stand at room temperature for 24 hours or until jam has set.

To store. Store uncooked jams in refrigerator or freezer. They can be held up to 3 weeks in a refrigerator or up to a year in a freezer. If kept at room temperature they will mold or ferment in a short time. Once a container is opened, jam should be stored in the refrigerator and used within a few days.

Note: If jam is too firm, stir to soften. If it tends to separate, stir to blend. If it is too soft, bring it to a boil. It will thicken on cooling.

2 cups ripe strawberries
1/2 cup sugar
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 tsp butter

Rinse, hull and Crush the strawberries. Stir together the strawberries, sugar, lemon juice to taste and butter into a 2 quart casserole. Microwave, uncovered at high for 4 minutes. Stir well. Microwave for 4 more minutes and stir again. Test the jam by dropping a small amount into a saucer, the droplets should be thick. If the jam is too thin, microwave for 1-2 more minutes.

4 Cups Strawberries, Raspberries or Blackberries
1 Pkg.Powered Fruit Pectin
1 Tbsp.Lemon Juice
3-4 Tsps.Liquid Artificial Sweetener

Crush berries in saucepan. Stir in powdered fruit pectin and lemon juice. Bring to a boil: boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add sweetener.

For immediate use: Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to four weeks.

To freeze: Continue to stir about 2 minutes. Pour into freezer containers, leaving 1/2-inch head space. Seal. Chill in refrigerator and store in freezer. Keep in refrigerator after opening.

To can: Pour hot jam into hot sterilized jars leaving 1/4-inch head space. Seal and process in boiling water bath for 5 minutes. Cool and store in cool, dry, dark place. After opening, store in refrigerator. Makes 3 half-pint jars; 1 tablespoon has 5 calories.

Note: Jams made from pectin and less sugar use a higher proportion of pectin to fruit to make a firm-jellied product. Low-sugar or “light’ pectins are high-grade pectins that require less sugar to form a more satisfactory jelly or jam. Sure-Jel Light is a brand requiring a third less sugar than regular pectin. Recipes are available in the package. Brand name mentioned for clarity - no endorsement intended or implied.

Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup sliced strawberries
1 teaspoon finely minced fresh ginger
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon salad oil
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

Glazed Almonds:
1/2 cup sliced almonds
2 tablespoons sugar

Salad:
2 bunches spinach, stemmed, washed well and spun dry (about 8 cups)
2 cups strawberries, stemmed and halved or quartered, depending upon size
1/2 cup thinly sliced sweet white onions, such as Walla Walla Sweets, if in season

Makes 6 servings - Vinaigrette recipe makes 1 cup

To make dressing:
In a blender combine the white wine vinegar, strawberries and ginger. Process until it is a smooth puree.

In a bowl place the Dijon mustard and the honey. Whisk in the pureed strawberry mixture and then slowly whisk in the oil, emulsifying the dressing until smooth. Stir in poppy seeds. Refrigerate until needed.

To make the glazed almonds:
Lightly pan spray a baking sheet and set aside.
Place almonds and sugar in a non-stick skillet on high heat. Start stirring with a wooden spoon. Sugar will start to dissolve and then caramelize. Stir continuously to lightly toast almonds and coat with the sugar. When almonds and sugar are the color of dark amber and golden brown, quickly remove from the pan onto sprayed baking sheet.

Spread out with spoon and let cool totally before using. Break up before serving.

NOTE: Do not touch sugar or almonds with fingers when cooking or immediately after cooking. It is molten sugar and very hot!

To make and assemble the salad:
Place the washed and dried spinach leaves in a large salad/serving bowl. Toss with the strawberries, onions and about 1/2 cup of the vinaigrette. Sprinkle almonds on the top of salad. Reserve extra vinaigrette for another use or serve extra on the side for those that desire more.

2 cups frozen strawberries
2 frozen bananas
½ cup orange juice
½ cup yogurt

2 large or 4 small servings

Blend ingredients in processor until smooth. Pour into glasses.

2 6-ounce cans frozen pink lemonade
1 6-ounce lemonade can water or ice cubes
1 6-ounce lemonade can rum
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 pint skagit sun fresh sliced strawberries
1 pint strawberry ice cream (2 cups)

Makes 6 servings

Place lemonade, water, rum, and sugar in blender and mix. Add strawberries and mix. Add ice cream and mix slightly.

8 large sweet strawberries
2 cups crushed ice
2/3 cup bottled sour mix or margarita mixer
1 tbs orange juice concentrate, thawed
2 tsp bottled sweetened lime juice

Makes 2 - 12oz drinks

Place all ingredients in blender and mix until consistancy is a thick slush. Rim glasses with coarse salt. Garnish with fresh strawberry and lime slice.

Cocktail Additions:
1/4 cup tequila and replace orance juice with Triple Sec or Grand Mariner.

Variation:
Use 15 raspberries in place of strawberries.

3 cartons, 8oz each, low fat vanilla yogurt
1 cup fresh raspberries
3 cups fresh strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and halved
2 cups fresh blueberries
2 tbs cream sherry
1 sponge, angel food or pound cake

Place a strainer lined with cheesecloth over a bowl. Spoon the yogurt into the strainer. Drain for 1 hour. Spoon the yogurt into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate.

Puree the raspberries in a blender until smooth. In a large bowl, mix together strawberries, blueberries, and pureed raspberries.

Line a 2-3 quart glass bowl with one third of the cake cubes. Drizzle with 1TB sherry. Spoon half of the berry mixture over the cake cubes. Spoon one third of the yogurt mixture over the berry layer. Repeat the layers of Cake, sherry, berries, and yogurt and drizzle with the remaining sherry. Spoon the remaining yogurt on the top in an even layer.

Cover and refrigerate for 4-24 hours.

Garnish with fresh berries before serving.

8 sheets phyllo dough, thawed according to package instructions
3 cups pastry cream, at room temperature
3 cups thawed fresh-frozen strawberries, sliced
Confectioners sugar for dusting

Pastry Cream:
3 cups low fat milk
2/3 cup sugar
3 eggs (2 whole eggs, 1 yolk)
4 Tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 Tablespoons vanilla

Makes 16 Napoleons

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick vegetable spray.

Spray a sheet of the phyllo dough with nonstick spray, fold in half and spray again, then fold again and spray again. Cut the folded dough in quarters to make four even rectangles. Cut each rectangle in half. Repeat the process with the remaining sheets of phyllo.

Place the rectangles on the baking sheet and bake until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Watch carefully, as they burn easily.

For each napoleon, spread three of the rectangles with 1 tablespoon of the sauce each, then 1 tablespoon of the berries each. Stack the three layers, then top with the remaining rectangle. Lightly dust with confectioners sugar. Repeat until all sixteen napoleons have been assembled.

Pastry Cream:
Using double boiler, heat 2 1/2 cups milk until steam rises from the surface.
In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, remaining 1/2 cup milk and sugar. Sift in cornstarch, and whisk until well blended.

Remove milk from heat, and gradually whisk in egg mixture. Return pan to top of double boiler and whisk constantly over medium heat until thickened and smooth, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Transfer to bowl, press plastic wrap onto pastry cream surface, and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

1 Tablespoon safflower oil
1 ½ cups plus 2 Tablespoons sugar
12 egg whites
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

Vanilla-yogurt sauce
1 ¼ cups low-fat milk
1 vanilla bean
3 egg yolk
2 Tablespoon sugar
1 cup plain low-fat yogurt

Strawberry sauce
1 cup thawed strawberries
1 T sugar
½ T fresh lemon juice

Serves 12

Brush the inside of a 9-inch springform pan with the oil. Sprinkle in 2 Tablespoons of the sugar.
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

To prepare the meringue, put the egg whites, vanilla extract and cream of tartar into a bowl. Begin beating the whites at low speed, gradually increasing the speed to medium as the whites turn opaque. Add the remaining 1 ½ cups sugar a tablespoon at a time, increasing the beater speed all the while. When all the sugar has been incorporated, continue beating the whites on high speed until they are glossy and form stiff peaks when the beater is lifted from the bowl.

Transfer the meringue to the springform pan. Smooth the top of the meringue with a long spatula or the dull side of a knife. Bake the pie until it has risen and is lightly browned- about 40 minutes. It will be moist throughout. Remove the pie from the oven and let it coo to room temperature in the pan.

While the pie is baking and cooling, make the sauces.
To make the vanilla yogurt sauce, heat the milk, vanilla bean, egg yolks and sugar in a small heavy-bottomed, nonreactive saucepan set over low heat. Cook the mixture, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Strain the sauce into a bowl and set it aside; when it has cooled to room temperature, whisk in the yogurt.

To make the strawberry sauce, blend in processor all the ingredients until smooth. Set aside until ready.

Just before serving the pie, remove the sides of the pan. With a wet knife, cut the pie into wedges; present them with the vanilla-yogurt sauce and the cranberry sauce poured around them. If you like, swirl the two sauces together in a decorative manner.

10 oz frozen strawberries in syrup
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup fresh orange juice
3 Tablespoons orange liqueur
1Tablespoon egg white

Makes 8-10 servings

In a blender or food processor, puree the berries with the lemon juice until very smooth. Blend in the orange juice, orange liqueur, and egg white.

Pour the mixture into divided ice cube trays and freeze solid.

Several hours before serving, or up to a day ahead, place one third of the frozen sorbet cubes in the food processor work bowl and pulse the machine on and off until the cubes are evenly chopped to the texture of coarse snow. Then run the machine continuously until the sorbet turns several shades paler and is creamy-looking. If the mixture is too hard to move freely around the bowl, allow it slightly or add a few drops of water or orange juice.

Process the remaining sorbet cubes or save them for another time. Pile the sorbet into 1-to 3-pint containers. Cover and freeze.