Berry season is officially upon us. I don’t know about your neck of the woods, but our long, wet, cloudy spring delayed the ripening of those beautiful berries. It was torture. I even got pissed off and made shortcake with oranges.

But now they’re here. They’re ripe. And we picked ‘em.

Happiness is lifting a tangle of vines to find a family of blood-red strawberries underneath.

For every berry she put in the basket, one went into her mouth. She had a ball. And when we got home we made freezer jam and pie with our bounty.

Local berries are tricky that way—you have to use them immediately. But for others, I have a little trick to keep them fresh longer.

Take blueberries, for instance. They come in those easy plastic containers, and it’s tempting to just rinse them and stick the whole thing in the fridge. But doing that will shorten the life of your berries.

First, give them a good rinse.

Then spread them out on a clean towel and let them air dry. They should be completely dry to the touch.

Next, put them in a container that has a tight-fitting lid.

Place a clean, dry paper towel over the berries, close the lid, and store in the refrigerator. Change the paper towel daily as it’s there to soak up moisture that likes to rot the fruit. Your berries will stay fresh much longer!

What are you going to make with summer berries?

-RDG