U-Pick Shuksan Strawberries

Picking berries is one of my favorite summer traditions. It satisfies two of my requirements for a good thing: it's cheap and involves eating delicious things.

Last year, I didn't let a swollen baby belly get in the way of fresh picked berries. I used a skateboard to scoot myself down the rows.

This year, the baby joined me. He wasn't very helpful. But he wasn't particularly un-helpful either.

These u-pick strawberries are called Shuksan. Foodies grow crazy for them. Going by the buzz on Twitter, you'd think they invented them. Shuksans are not meant to sit around on a store shelf, their sugary goodness goes from ripe to drunken mush in less than 24 hours.

You have to use them or lose them. Quickly. I baked buttermilk shortbread, made whipped cream, and ate gobs and gobs of berries for dessert last night. I made a low-sugar jam with what was left.

Now I am waiting for raspberries.

If you want to pick your own, head out to the Duvall-Carnation area, where you will find many U-Pick fields. I went to Shuksan-growing Harvold Berry Farm (425-333-4185) this year. Remlinger is another great place for berry picking. Their farm themed amusement park, and ice cream shop, turns berry picking into an all-day family activity. Remlinger is not organic, but they do boast of their Integrated Pest Management practices, which reduces the amounts of chemicals used, and makes the berries safe to eat in the field. Their fields are large, and make for good picking.

While you are in the area, consider swinging by the Armadillo BBQ in Duvall, to refuel after your stint in field work. I was greeted by the most enthusiastic server I have ever had the pleasure of ordering from, and their pork ribs were so tender! They sell their spicy BBQ sauce by the bottle, and we took one home. 

(If you are a quilter, Duvall also has a sweet little quilt shop with a nice assortment of novelty fabrics. I picked up a few more cuts for my canning cupboard quilt)