Quips & Anecdotes - Strawberry Festival

Memorial Day is interesting in my hometown because we have our annual Strawberry Festival in this area that looks miniscule when not crowded with carnival games and booths. I realized as my friend and I decided to visit after a Happy Hour out that I didn't have any pictures of it. Of course, it's quite garish, blinding, and generally nothing too special but it's still a tradition.


Throughout high school, since I was very involved in Key Club, I always used to volunteer at the Kiwanis booth which sold funnel cakes. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the booth had moved to a different spot from where I had last remembered and the lines were ridiculously long. I hope they raise a lot of money for their amazing programs.


One of my personal traditions at the Strawberry Festival is to snag a strawberry cheesecake from my high school band's booth. They always stack on loads of strawberries. I bought a slice when I went ($4!) and was sad to discover that though the strawberries were plentiful as always, the cheesecake was terribly chalky, heavy, and small. I actually ended up throwing it away. Bye-bye tradition!


One of the other things I enjoy doing is walking around seeing which booths happened to be in town. I came across a booth that sold balsamic vinegars. Intrigued, my friend and I went over, and the woman running the booth ended up having us sample almost every type she had. They were pretty good and got my gears going on how to use them as marinades or salad dressings. I ended up buying their small 4-pack with their cabernet, six mushroom truffle, raspberry-lime, and chipotle garlic. I hope to post some recipes with those soon!