Strawberry Season - Decorating & Recipe

Sunday, April 17, 2016



Strawberry Season is upon us down south in the Tarheel State.

And although I'm not particularly fond of artificial strawberry flavor,
the actual sweet, juicy red berry itself, I love!



How lucky for me,
Chadbourn, NC, where strawberries are king!

I headed over Saturday for several quarts of fresh, locally grown berries.



Just like any good southern town, Chadbourn has a festival celebrating "something."

 Chadbourn has been paying homage to the strawberry since 1926,
hosting The NC Strawberry Festival the first weekend of May, annually.
Over the years, it has evolved into the largest agricultural festival in the state.

And as fate may have it...
When I was fifteen, I ran for The NC Strawberry Festival Princess.

A long-weekend competition,
all the princess and queen contestants took part in each of the festival's events.

One activity being the parade, having to arrange for our own transportation.

It just so happened,
 Mr. Ramblings had a gorgeous blue corvette with t'tops...
 perfect to ride atop through the crowded streets,
doing a one handed queen wave, with a smile pasted in place for several miles.
You get the picture, right?  :)

But being that Mr. Ramblings was a few years older,
 I was much too shy to speak to him.

My dad knew his dad, and after my persistence, 
he called to inquire if Mr. Ramblings would drive me in the parade.

He did, ...we barely spoke two sentences to each other...
and about eight years later, we met up again and have now been married 23 years!

Modern day love story, huh?


Look at the size of these beauties! 



...perfectly paired with vintage Strawberry Fair plates, by Johnson Brothers.



I also have fond memories of picking Strawberries.

I went often with my parents.
My dad would tease, that I ate so many strawberries while in the field,
that the owners were going to weigh me in, ...and out!  
 I fear I ate as many as I put in the buckets.

Now I take the easy route, and buy berries from the stands,
but when Ashley was a toddler, we carried on the tradition of berry pickin'.





The strawberry inspired vignette, below, happened quite by accident.

When taking down my Easter decor,
I ran across the vintage strawberry plate below tucked in the old icebox.



I did notice the plate had a little blue in it,
but without a much thought, I grabbed it to add with the Mid-Century blue vases.




  
I found the blue vases at Carolina Country Peddlers Mall,
in a booth across from my previous one, several years ago.

They rest in the perfect spot to catch the morning light,
giving them a "happy illumination."









After searching through Pinterest for a low-carb Strawberry Dessert,
I came across two that I combined.

The filling and topping originated from Joy's, Jots, Shots, & Whatnots',
The crust was derived from Ketorach's, Keto Strawberry "Pretzel" Salad.

It's very much like a Strawberry Pretzel Salad,
without the carbs and calories, and turned out really well!


















I suppose I should have warned ya"ll this was going to be a long post...
forgive my lack of manners!  :)

And thanks for hanging in til the end!
I'll be taking a little trip for a few days, mid week.
My birthday is Wednesday,
and Ashley and I will celebrating in "the city that never sleeps!"

Hope you all have a great week!
Be back soon!
~Rhonda



_______________________


Sharing Post At:
Dwellings - Amaze Me Monday
Nifty Thrifty Things - Nifty Thrifty Sunday
Coastal Charm - Show & Share
StoneGable - The Scoop
Sadie Seasongoods - Talk of the Town
DIY By Design- Swing Into Spring
Woods of Bell Trees - Party In Your PJ's
Life on Merlin - The Alder Collective Link Party
Between Naps on the Porch - Met Monday
Julie's Lifestyle - Cooking and Crafting with J&J
Savvy Southern Style - WOW Us Wednesday
Poofing the Pillows - Thoughts of Home
McCall Manor - Your Inspired Design

________________________


Thanks for the Feature,
Linda @ Coastal Charm... Show and Share Link Party
My Show and Share Party


15 comments:

  1. You made this beautiful and delicious! I made strawberry pretzel salad last week for the first time. I made the somewhat fattening kind but my mind was spinning with ways to reduce the fat and calories. It's so delicious!

    Hope you have a wonderful birthday week.

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  2. Strawberries are my favorite..and I love any dessert made with these pretty red berries...xoxo

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  3. Rhonda, I love strawberries and I love this post! What a sweet story about meeting your husband! The vintage strawberry plates are perfect and all your photos are lovely! Happy birthday and NYC is one of my favorite cities to visit over and over!

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  4. I loved this post about strawberries, Rhonda! They are such a sweet and tasty berry. I enjoyed reading about you being in the parade and you future hubby driving you; so cute. Your daughter is adorable in her sweet dress. Kathi

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  5. oh yum! thanks for the recipe. I have to tell you that I love strawberry season! I love to take fresh sliced strawberries and put about a tablespoon of vanilla ice cream over them to melt. My low cal approach to strawberries and cream. ha! Love your red print plates. sheila

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  6. Hello from another NC gal! Those plates are perfect with those gorgeous strawberries.

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  7. Happy Birthday, Rhonda! Hope you have a wonderful trip to the big city! The strawberries look luscious, and I love your strawberry love story!

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  8. Oh your wee darling girl! I want all the strawberries in my mouth right now.

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  9. Really good, natural tasting strawberries are so hard to find now. Usually, they all taste like plastic, or rot within a day of bringing them home! Your berries look amazingly fresh and good. And that sweetie with the strawberry dress is the most precious thing of all!

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  10. HAPPY BIRTHDAY Rhonda! Wow I love your story and the strawberry dessert looks so amazing and I bet tastes yummy. I hope you have a wonderful week.
    Thanks for sharing this at Cooking and Crafting with J&J.
    Julie xo

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  11. Happy Be-lated Birthday, Rhonda! That strawberry plate is just precious, and the dessert sounds delicious!

    Thank you for stopping by and leaving a sweet comment....always truly appreciated!

    Warm hugs,
    Carol

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  12. Happy birthday!! :) What neat ideas you have here!

    I would LOVE for you to share this with my Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/pluckyrecipescraftstips/

    Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!

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  13. I have never seen that Johnson Brothers pattern- it is lovely.
    I am so easily influenced- should I be doing low carb? :)
    Weight Watchers isn't working- or could it be me?
    I love strawberries.

    This comment is all over the place!

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  14. I have enjoyed this post so much, such pretty pictures and oh your tiny tot!
    Love your style and I pinned this very berry recipe!
    Thanks so much for joining us at TOHOT!
    Jemma

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  15. Oh I cannot wait to try this dessert! I am a bit late to the TOHOT party this week due to my college semester finals but I'm so glad that I didn't miss this. Have a wonderful week.

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