Recognise this? Yes, as the Wimbledon Tennis Championships return, so do the pots of “no less than 10” strawberries served with a dollop of fresh cream. Over the fortnight, a staggeringly 27kg of strawberries are eaten at Wimbledon, along with a silky-smooth heart-attack of 7,000 litres of fresh cream. Interesting. But was this tradition born into the costly cups of Wimbledon?
The combination of strawberries and cream was actually brought together as early as 1500 by Thomas Wolsey in his home of Hampton Court Palace. While serving Henry VIII as Lord Chancellor and Cardinal, Wolsey’s cooks fed up to 600 people twice a day. One needs little persuading to create a dessert that is quick to dole out. The light fruit course can also be seen as a refreshing antidote to the sometimes up to 44 meat dishes that preceded it.
The Romans, however, were the first to cultivate wild English strawberries. During the 14th century, the little red fruit also became popular in French palaces and was soon recognised as a luxury, with poor children selling punnets by the roadside to the rich.
British strawberries are in season between May and September, reaching their prime at around midsummer. Many farms encourage families to pick their own to take home to turn into tasty jams or to include in fruit tarts and meringues. Supermarkets often place British strawberries on offer, an incentive to help British farmers and to support local produce. Of course, if you’re attending Wimbledon your £2.25 delight will come from Kentish strawberries, picked that very day from the tastiest Elsanta species, arriving in London at roughly 5.30am.
The tradition itself is often compared to being as important as the tennis that takes place over the 13 days. America’s NBC’s “Breakfast at Wimbledon” even serves strawberries and cream on the weekend specials, highlighting the global span of the custom. One can have no doubt that Wimbledon’s hospitality packages will serve up the very best of the fruit and cream, with The Gatsby Club mentioning it specifically as included in their service (one might hasten to add that if you’ve secured hospitality tickets then you may be looking to the other distractions provided than the basics of strawberries of cream.)
But that is what makes this small, seemingly insignificant fruit and tradition just so interesting. And for those of you not going to Wimbledon, here are some tasty tips on how to enjoy your strawberries this year:
- Refreshing: Served plain or with a sprinkling of sugar
- Classic: juicy strawberries dribbled with fresh single or double cream, your choice!
- Tangy: add a bit of Cointreau into your cream for an alcoholic treat
- Devilish: melt a bar of milk chocolate and spear your strawberries with cocktail sticks to dip in – or for finger-licking fun, use your hands!
- A Little Bit More: dip them in balsamic vinegar and serve with slices of mozzarella and prosciutto
scotch pancakes 