Strawberry fields are bursting with flavor

Local strawberry fields have started blushing with berries.

And we have a pail-full of prizes that could make you blush, too. Pick your own or buy a pile at the farm stand and enter our recipe contest, which runs throughout the month of May.

Each week, my blog and the Flavor section will feature one reader’s winning strawberry-based recipe, selected by a panel of professional and home cooks.

We’re craving recipes that fit the following categories:

Week 1 Liquid refreshment – alcoholic or not. Deadline is today.

Week 2 Appetizer or side dish. Deadline: May 5

Week 3 Main course. Deadline: May 12

Week 4 Dessert. Deadline: May 19

To enter, send your recipe to Lorraine Eaton at The Virginian-Pilot, 150 W. Brambleton Ave., Norfolk, VA 23510. Or e-mail your recipe to taste.test@pilotonline.com and write “strawberries” in the subject line.

Be sure to include the number of servings your recipe makes, the source of the recipe and a phone number and e-mail address, if you have one.

Weekly winners will receive a cookbook, a Virginia Grown tote bag, a Virginia Grown apron and a gallon of local strawberries, courtesy of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (and if you click on the name, it will bring you to a search engine for local farms).

In addition, the grand prize winner, selected from the weekly winners, will have a basket brimming with Virginia Grown produce delivered to him or her in July.

COMMENTS ADVISORY: Users are solely responsible for opinions they post here; comments do not reflect the views of The Virginian-Pilot or its websites. Users must follow agreed-upon rules: Be civil, be clean, be on topic; don't attack private individuals, other users or classes of people. Read the full rules here.
- Comments are automatically checked for inappropriate language, but readers might find some comments offensive or inaccurate. If you believe a comment violates our rules, click the report violation link below it.