Sweet, juicy, and studded with tiny seeds, strawberries are both a quintessential summertime fruit and a surprisingly nutritious superfood. The first cultivated strawberries were grown in France during the 1500s after plants were brought in from the forest and introduced to village gardens. But most of the berries in our supermarkets come from a hybrid variety that combine Chilean strawberries with a wild Virginia strawberry from North America. This well-traveled fruit has also been studied extensively for its health benefits, including research on heart disease, diabetes, weight gain, and immunity.
Despite their dense, colorful appearance, strawberries are actually 91% water. This helps them keep their low-calorie status (32 kcal/100g) while still providing 2g of dietary fiber. Eating just eight strawberries will give you more vitamin C than an entire orange. And as vitamin C is both an antioxidant and immunity-enhancer, it packs a double punch for health and wellness.
Like other brightly colored fruits and vegetables, the compounds responsible for pigmentation also work as antioxidants and help dispel free radicals. Even more impressive, considering that all of these nutrients are concentrated into just 9% of the fruit!
Cooking with strawberries
Filled with natural sugars, strawberries are a popular choice for desserts and breakfast dishes. They’re best when freshly harvested during the summer, but can also be stored in the freezer or bought freeze-dried and used in recipes year-round. Layering berries with cream and meringues in a tasteful Eton mess makes a simple yet classic summer dessert for any gathering.