What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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featured dining guide story Advertorial Feature SPECIAL TO NWA DEmOCrAT-GAzETTE 42 What's up! august 11-17, 2019 Freeze fruits and vegetables now and enjoy them all year So much summer goodness, so little time H ere in Northwest Arkansas it's peak season for many fruits and veggies, but we know the bounty won't last. It's time to look to your freezer. All those yummy fruits and vegetables can be frozen to enjoy throughout the year. It's easy! Just follow these tips to preserve summer's goodness for months to come. Quick Tips: How to Freeze Fruits and Vegetables • Choose produce that's ripe and unblemished. • Before freezing vegetables, blanch and shock vegetables by boiling them briefly, drain, then plunge into ice water. Dry thoroughly. • Freeze fruits and vegetables quickly by spreading them in a single layer on a rimmed sheet pan. • Store in air-tight containers or freezer bags. Be sure to date the packages. • Fill containers to the top and remove as much air as possible from freezer bags. • Vegetables that hold up well to cooking (corn, peas) generally freeze well. • For better texture, use frozen fruit in recipes before it's completely thawed. • Fruits and veggies freeze best at 0-degrees F or colder. • Store frozen fruits for about a year; vegetables, about 18 months. (Storing longer is fine, but the quality may decline.) Freezing Fruits • Wash fruits and sort for damaged fruit before freezing. Some fruits do best with a sugar or sugar-syrup preparation. Blueberries, currants, and cranberries do fine without sugar. • Here's a trick for freezing delicate berries like strawberries or raspberries: Arrange them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Once frozen, transfer to a plastic freezer bag or container. You can also prepare delicate berries with sugar or sugar syrup. • For fruits that tend to brown, like apples, peaches, nectarines and apricots, treat with ascorbic acid (Vitamin C). Look for the powdered form in health food stores, drugstores, and some grocery stores in the vitamin aisle. To make an ascorbic acid wash: Dissolve 1/2 teaspoon of ascorbic acid powder (or finely crushed vitamin C tablets) in 3 tablespoons water. Sprinkle this mixture over the cut fruit. An acceptable substitute: Slice the fruit and dip the slices in an acidulated water bath — about one quart water plus a tablespoon of lemon juice — before drying and freezing.