As you know, I am very much interested in the history of food. The stories and history of the things we eat and the fruits and nuts I use in my recipes very much captivate me. Today I have come accross a book about the history of strawberries and have taken very interesting notes on it. If you are interested, The Strawberry by George M. Darrow can be found online. George M. Darrow is truly a strawberry expert.

Strawberry is mentioned as a regular berry in ancient Roman and Greek sources. It spreads through Europe in 14th century and starts being cultivated in gardens. It is also very common in the religious depictions of the monks. Strawberry  becomes a constant in royal tables at first: For example there is a record of King Henry the 8th of England paying 10 schillings for a small basket of strawberries. There is also a record of it being cultivated in French gardens in 16th century.

However the most important event of its history takes place in 18th century: the bringing of giant strawberries to Europe (who only had small ones) from Chile. The discovery was made by Frezier, the spy of Louis the 14th. He is so impressed by the strawberries that he cultivates them for 6 months in addition to his original duty of making notes on Indians, guns, fortresses and routes. He brings them to Europe on his way back. This how the modern strawberry is born and spread throughout the World.

As for the recipe, I know that it is a classic and definitely anonymous. But it’s practical, healthy and delicious. This is why I had to have it on my archive. Nearly all kind of similar recipes instruct cooking strawberries with refined sugar for the ice cream to be tastier but since mine are small, delicious field strawberries, there’s no need. The choice is yours.

Honey and Strawberry Popsicles

Prep Time: 10 min

Serves: 2 servings

Ingredients:

100 gr field strawberries

1 tablespoons honey

½ lemon juice

Instructions:

1-Wash the strawberries and make sure all ingredients are on room temperature.

2-Place all in your food processor and blend until smooth. Pour in ice cream molds, freze for at least 5 hours. Serve.