Suomen mansikat

There are many things to celebrate in the short Finnish summers, and I discovered my favorite a couple of days ago. It is the Finnish strawberry, or Suomen mansikka (SUO men MAHN seek kah). The outdoor markets livened up again sometime in early May with the earliest produce: some local produce, most of it grown indoors, and some imported fruits and vegetables. The strawberries at this time were imported from Spain and Portugal. It had been months since I last ate a fresh strawberry, and I pounced on these giant, deep-red beauties. They tasted good, definitely strawberry, but they were giant, their skins were a little tough, and it took a few days for them start making juice. Nothing out of the ordinary from the grocery store variety that I was accustomed to in the U.S. In a conversation with friends, the Finns began discussing when strawberry season might start. Kindly, they turned to me and said, "Do not make the mistake of buying the strawberries from Spain, they just do not compare to ours." Too late! I had just enjoyed a heaping spoonful on my oatmeal this morning! Could they smell it on me? I kept my mouth shut to prevent a confession and to obscure any seeds that my toothbrush might have missed. 

And so I lived for a few weeks, enjoying sliced Spanish strawberries with my breakfast. Until one day in early June, our local produce stand had a small section of mansikat with Suomi written below it. They were 2€ more expensive than the Spanish berries, but I thought a little splurge was probably worth it. That and the Finns had complained about the higher price of their strawberries, but said that would never stop them from buying local berries over imports. As soon as I got home, I popped open the box and selected one for washing and devouring. I knew in an instant that consuming strawberries from Spain had indeed been a mistake. The Finnish berries were smaller, maybe the size of a ping pong ball at the largest, bright red, and with just a faint citrus taste. 

Strawberry season started as a trickle of berries and they have peaked early, I am told, thanks to the heat wave we experienced in early June (P.S. The weather is still better here than on the continent!). The strawberries are harvested mostly by migrant workers from Estonia and Russia, however they are scheduled to arrive in early July. So it shamefully seems that many berries will be left in the fields. The Finnish berries are at a season low price now and people are scooping them up by the kilo. Conveniently, the berries come in 5 kg (~11 lbs) box for your preserving.

What to do with so many berries? Freeze them, make them into jam, and eat a few, of course! It was very convenient that the forecasted sunny afternoon had turned rainy. My hands are still tinged red, and we are thankfully no longer at risk of having to eat Spanish strawberries again until next spring when we have forgotten just why not to buy them.