White Alpine Strawberries are a wild strawberry with a light-lime-green leaf and white berries. The taste is exquisite and sweet and can be used in any recipe that calls for red ones. Common images of the strawberry are red. This red color is caused by a primary ripening protein called FRAa1. Berries containing this protein ripen into a bright red. Those without that protein remain white. FRAa1 is often thought to be the source for strawberry allergies so those with allergies to red berries may not have the same reaction to the white.
Wild strawberries are raised the same as the hybrids and benefit from shady areas with rich soil. The wild plants will replicate through off-shoots, which are the fruit-producing plants for the next year. Once the mother plant has produced, it will diminish in vigor. It becomes a lovely groundcover in a shady area, but produces little to no fruit after the first year. Alpine strawberries are often hardier than the hybrids and require less moisture to thrive in the landscape, but all strawberries require adequate moisture to produce fruit. An added benefit of white berries is that the birds seem to ignore them!
Besotted Strawberries: Wash and clean 2 cups of white strawberries. Sprinkle 3 tbsp of sugar or sugar substitute and mix onto the berries. Let sit until you can no longer see the sugar. This takes a couple of minutes. Mix 3 tbsp of lemon juice and 2 or 3 tbsp of orange liqueur. Mix into the sweetened berries. Allow the berries to absorb the liquid before eating. Excellent on angel food cake or a topping for yogurt.
Wild strawberries are raised the same as the hybrids and benefit from shady areas with rich soil. The wild plants will replicate through off-shoots, which are the fruit-producing plants for the next year. Once the mother plant has produced, it will diminish in vigor. It becomes a lovely groundcover in a shady area, but produces little to no fruit after the first year. Alpine strawberries are often hardier than the hybrids and require less moisture to thrive in the landscape, but all strawberries require adequate moisture to produce fruit. An added benefit of white berries is that the birds seem to ignore them!
Besotted Strawberries: Wash and clean 2 cups of white strawberries. Sprinkle 3 tbsp of sugar or sugar substitute and mix onto the berries. Let sit until you can no longer see the sugar. This takes a couple of minutes. Mix 3 tbsp of lemon juice and 2 or 3 tbsp of orange liqueur. Mix into the sweetened berries. Allow the berries to absorb the liquid before eating. Excellent on angel food cake or a topping for yogurt.