From fragula, diminutive of the Latin fraga, which was actually plural and therefore indicated strawberries, comes the name of this beloved fruit.
Fragola is closely related to the adjective fragrant: the sweet smell of strawberries speaks of summer and of scrumptious desserts, like gelato alla fragola and fragole con la panna (topped with whipped cream).
If you are in Italy in early June, you can visit the delightful ancient town of Nemi, on the homonymous lake, 25 miles from Rome, and attend the annual Sagra delle Fragole (strawberry fair). Nemi is famous for its production of small strawberries, fragoline, and oversize ones, fragoloni.
Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:
or launch the fragola audio file [mp3].
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My mouth is watering.
The strawberries that are grown locally are coming into season, and I plan to go pick some at one of the farms soon.
I love strawberries. I’d love to visit this fair.
Paz
Picking strawberries sounds like a lot of fun. I make either sorbet or, more frequently, a mousse I got from The Enchanted Broccoli Forest cookbook. I add very little sugar, very little corn starch and yogurt, so it is a tasty and healthy dessert.
I love eating these little berries-they are so sweet and full of taste~