If you're not going to use it before it goes bad... FREEZE IT.
Have a peach getting on the soft side? Cut it up and freeze it for a future smoothie.
Not going to get through your tomatoes before they go bad? Dice 'em up and freeze 'em. Use them with a little salt in recipes that call for canned diced tomatoes.
Grapes starting to shrivel? Take them off the stem and freeze 'em. Kids love snacking on these.
Don't need that whole can of tomato paste? Bag what's left and freeze the living daylights out of it! (Okay. So, maybe I'm a little TOO enthusiastic about all this...)
With few exceptions, (leafy greens, peanut butter, etc.) nearly all of what you eat can be frozen. This is good news when food sales hit, and I want to stock up... particularly where fresh produce is concerned. It's also good news for people (me) who aren't great canners. I have great intentions to become a better canner... just ask my husband! (Well. On second thought... maybe don't ask him. He'll just laugh.) Even if you are a canning whiz, sometimes having a few extra peaches around isn't worth breaking out the canning gear.
Many times, I'll buy a LOT of something, and automatically prepare it for the freezer, leaving out ONLY what I'm going to use over the next day or too. Freezing your food as soon as you buy it will keep it fresher longer than putting it all into the fridge, and WAITING to freeze it when it becomes obvious you aren't going to use it before it goes bad.
Many times, I'll buy a LOT of something, and automatically prepare it for the freezer, leaving out ONLY what I'm going to use over the next day or too. Freezing your food as soon as you buy it will keep it fresher longer than putting it all into the fridge, and WAITING to freeze it when it becomes obvious you aren't going to use it before it goes bad.
So... Don't throw out the food! Freeze it instead. You'll be pleasantly surprised by how much money you'll save.
I'm totally going to try this! I've always just bought what I planned on using over the next few days, or bought it already frozen, because I didn't want to see good food wasting away in my fridge.
ReplyDeleteFreezing foods helped feed my family when hubby was out of work and my tiny pay checks weren't cutting it. Your blog has inspired me to start back up!
ReplyDeleteI've been consuming green smoothies this year and consequently purchasing more organic greens. To combat the Dr. Wilt Nastily :) I started blending my greens (kale, mixed greens, spinach, cilantro etc) and even my lemons (I juiced them and froze the juice). Considering they'll only be used to blend further, it works perfectly. As for other uses, simply pulse in a food processor so that small portions of the leaf are left intact and freeze. Then you'll still be able to see the beauty of the cilantro leaf in your homemade cilantro lime rice. PS. Be certain to use silicone trays for freezing; they release your green cube like magic! PPS. This is Ron's wife, Erica :)
ReplyDelete