Recipes with strawberry tree fruits

How to eat strawberry tree fruits?

How to cook strawberry tree fruits

Strawberry tree fruits are mostly eaten raw, during excursions, especially when it is mushroom picking season and the forests are filled with all kinds of fruits: strawberry tree fruits, rose hips, junipers, blackthorns, etc. It can be said that, of all these autumnal forest fruits, strawberry trees are the tastiest and juiciest.

Eating raw strawberry tree fruits

Raw fruits should only be eaten when they reach ripeness. These fruits take a year to ripen on the tree and coincide with the following year’s flowers. For this reason there are trees with flowers and fruits at the same time.

It is known that the fruits of the strawberry tree are ripe and ready to eat when they are deep red in colour and soft in texture. They have a very sweet flavour and a starchy texture.

Strawberry tree fruit jam recipe

Jams are the best way to take advantage of the surplus of strawberry trees that autumn brings us. The difference between homemade jams made from wild berries and industrial jams is that the latter are much richer in antioxidant flavonoids, although logically, due to their sugar content, they should not be used in excess.

Preparation of strawberry tree fruit jam

• The proportions for the jam are twice the weight of fruit than sugar.
• Put the cleaned strawberries with the sugar in a pot over a medium heat and add water just to cover everything. It is necessary that the strawberry fruits are all equally ripe, otherwise all the jam will not be cooked at the same time.
• When they have boiled for a while, reduce the heat and continue to mash them so that they break up (some berries are more stubborn), without turning off the heat.
• You should get a floury dough without water, with the texture of a compote. In about 20-25 minutes on the heat you will achieve this, depending on the degree of ripeness of the strawberry tree fruits. If you want to store it in jars, boil them in a bain-marie.

Strawberry tree fruits, the cherries of autumn

Eating strawberry tree fruits raw or making jam with them are the most typical preparations for this fruit. But strawberry tree fruits have a very wide range of possibilities in the kitchen: why not use them in cakes? These fruits are “the cherries of autumn”, as they can be used in the same recipes as these.

Strawberry tree fruit cake recipe

The recipe presented below is actually a variation on a type of cake that is widely prepared in France and some regions of Switzerland, and is called “clafoutis“. It is a type of cake that is made simply by pouring a dough made from flour, sugar and egg (similar to a crêpe batter) directly onto a baking dish, which is filled with fruit.

Ingredients for strawberry tree fruit cake:

• Half a kilo of strawberry tree fruits
• 4 eggs
• 100 gr. of ground almonds
• 100 gr. of corn flour
• 100 gr of sugar
• A small glass of milk or vegetable drink
• 25 gr. of melted butter
• A lemon
• A handful of raw almonds

Preparation of the strawberry tree fruit cake

• Spread the strawberry tree fruits out on a baking tray. They should be tight and close together.
• In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, mix the sugar, almonds and corn flour.
• Mix well, and finally add the milk, lemon zest, butter and yeast.
• Spread all this mixture over the strawberry fruits, so that they are well coated. Spread the almonds over the top and bake for about 45 minutes at 180ºC.
• If the almonds are toasted too much, put a piece of silver foil on top until the end of cooking. Check that it is cooked by pricking it with a knife.

Apple crumble with strawberry tree fruit recipe

Ingredients for two cupcakes:

• 4 large apples
• 300 grams of strawberry tree fruits
• A handful of raisins
• 200 gr of sugar or panela
• 200 gr of fine oat flakes
• 50 gr of cold butter
• A teaspoon of cinnamon
• A lemon
• A sheet of shortcrust pastry or pie dough

Preparation of the strawberry tree fruit dessert

• Peel and finely cut the apples and arrange them on a platter, sprinkle with cinnamon and a portion of the sugar and bake for 10 minutes.
• Spread the shortcrust pastry on a baking dish, pricking it on the base.
• Place the baked apples on the baking dish, chopped and well structured on top of the shortcrust pastry, together with the strawberry tree fruits and raisins. Everything mixed.
• Sprinkle with squeezed lemon. Knead the oats with the butter and sugar by hand until it become granular and sprinkle it on top of the fruit.
• Finally, crush the almonds so that they are in somewhat large pieces and scatter them over the fruit.
• Bake for about 25 minutes at 180ºC, or until the almonds have a toasted color.

* Recipes courtesy of Montserrat Enrich, a great connoisseur and promoter of cooking with wild plants and author of the blog Gastronomia salvatge.

Written by Montserrat Enrich Journalist specializing in edible wild plants and plant uses.

10 February, 2025