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We love produce, we are always just working a bit harder to figure out what we can do to save more in this area!
So, we want to share what produce prices are going to be the best this month (and most of the fall months) and information on how to stretch your buck on these foods!
Most all of the information is contained in this infographic above, but we will elaborate on it!
When it comes to preservation, there are certain things you need to do!
If you plan to freeze or can the broccoli or spinach this month, you will first need to blanch them. It is quite easy to do! First, you are not fully cooking these veggies. They should stay “bright green” in color too!
Also, spinach shrinks in size very dramatically! So you can blanch tons of it and still end up with a small amount! As a general rule, one pound of spinach will cook down to about 1 cup.
How to blanch broccoli and spinach:
- Fill a large pot with 2/3 full of water and start to bring to a boil
- Add 1 tablespoon of salt to the water and cover the pot until it boils
- In the meantime, wash and pat dry your spinach and wash your broccoli and cut broccoli into desired floret sizes
- Also, in another bowl, fill with water and ice for “ice water”
- After the water has boiled, you will put in your veggies: boil spinach for 30 seconds and broccoli for about 60 seconds
- Strain the water and then dump the slightly boiled veggies in the bowl of ice water for 30-60 seconds
- Then freeze in airtight container, freezer bag or seal-a-meal (please note, squeeze the excess water from spinach before sealing)
Next is how to make a puree out of pumpkin and a puree out of other squash. The steps are different for a pumpkin than squash, so we will share those below, but for the squash, see our previous post HERE on our Butternut Squash Pie recipe – these would also be similar steps for sweet potatoes too!
For pumpkin puree:
- Set oven to 350 degrees
- Wash the outside of the pumpkin
- cut out the stem and cut the pumpkin in half
- Scoop out seeds and strings
- Drizzle a little bit of olive oil on the flesh side of the pumpkin
- Place halves down on a baking pan (you want a lip of 1-2 inches)
- Pour water in the bottom of the pan to create the steam for cooking as well
- Bake for 45-90 minutes (depending on size) until the flesh is very soft
- Let is cool
- Once cool, scoop out the flesh
- Then stick it in a blender/food processor and blend on low to get a smooth puree
- Freeze in an airtight container
To freeze apples and pears:
- Peel the skins and slice like you would for pie baking
- Get a bowl of cold water and add salt to the water (the salt keeps the fruit from turning brown)
- As you slice the fruit, drop into the bowl of cold water and salt
- After you are done slicing, drain the water and thoroughly rinse the fruit
- Lay waxed paper on a cooking/baking sheet
- Then lay flat on a baking sheet in one layer
- Place in the freezer for a few hours until pretty solidly frozen
- Then transfer to a freezer bag or seal-a-meal bag and freeze long term
To freeze grapes, pomegranate seeds and cranberries
- Throughly wash and rinse your grapes and cranberries
- De-seed your pomegranates. You are going to freeze the seeds, not the whole fruit!
- Lay waxed paper on a cooking/baking sheet
- Then place one layer of fruit evenly on the sheet
- Pop in the freezer for a few hours
- Then transfer to freezer bag or seal-a-meal and freeze long term
For dehydrating, just follow the instructions on your dehydrator! For canning, follow the instructions recommended from your canning cookbook or canning set.
Be sure to use the “How Long Will It Store” guide in the infographic above! Always label and date your frozen, canned and dehydrated foods and use the oldest first!
Enjoy your great tasting, more affordable October Fruits and Veggies and enjoy them beyond October too!
See more information related to fruits and veggies on our Produce Savings Page
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