Strawberries

This is a wonderful time of year for enjoying strawberries, and remarkably, this is one of the limited produce items I am able tolerate since having gastric bypass surgery. Have you tried them since your surgery?

Strawberry Facts:
-One-cup sliced berries has 50 calories, 3.8 grams protein, 157% the RDA of Vitamin C and 24% RDA of Manganese
-In the USDA’s assessment of the antioxidant power of various fruits, strawberries placed second, after blueberries
-Strawberries contain respectable amounts of folate – a heart-healthy B vitamin and potassium

At the Market:
-Look for strawberries that are plump, colorful and most important, sweetly fragrant
-The leafy caps should look fresh & green
-Check the packaging for signs of mold or rotting

To clean: place berries in a colander (Or leave in the plastic container if it has holes) and rinse under cold running water. Place on paper toweling to dry.


When I was a child, growing up in a fat household, I learned the only way to eat strawberries was the famous strawberry shortcake. The strawberries were cleaned & sliced, bathed in sugar (lots of sugar) then served atop a giant hunk of cake with a gravity-defying mound of whipped topping. Second helpings were encouraged. Hmmmm – now how is that all the members of the household were overweight?

Today I know better.

-Strawberries are wonderful without added sugar eaten right of the stem
-To sweeten under-ripe berries ½ teaspoon of sugar per cup of sliced berries works perfectly fine
-Strawberries soaked with a splash of balsamic vinegar and a pinch of sugar are outrageously good
-The cake and whipped topping a superfluous and counterintuitive to the healthy antioxidant benefits of fresh berries.

The following is a recipe from the Reader’s Digest cookbook: “Eat Well, Stay Well” page 338. It looks a little crazy at first glance, but we tried it last night and it was fabulous. I encourage you to give it a try. Remember that fresh greens are pretty hard on the gastric-bypass system, so measure a small quantity (1/4 cup) and cut the greens to small pieces, then chew chew chew! I think you’ll enjoy this taste of spring!

Strawberry Salad

¼ cup pecan halves (or walnuts)
4 cups cleaned, hulled strawberries
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
¼ teaspoon each salt & pepper
6 cups baby salad greens
4 ounces mild goat cheese (or cheese of your choice)

In a large salad bowl mash ½ cup of the strawberries. Thickly slice the remaining strawberries and set aside.
Whisk the vinegar, oil, brown sugar, salt & pepper into the mashed strawberries. Add the lettuce & toss to coat.
Measure ¼ - ½ cup lettuce and place on a salad plate. Top with sliced strawberries, a crumble of cheese and tablespoon of nuts. Enjoy!

If you are making this salad for one I suggest preparing the dressing, then topping the measured portion of lettuce with the dressing, strawberries, nuts and cheese. The dressing will store in the fridge for up to a week.

If you have problems tolerating greens, just skip them and top a serving of sliced berries with the dressing, nuts and cheese. This combination would be good served atop cottage cheese as well.