Category Archives: Seasonal Food Tips

Frozen Shouldn’t Mean Lack of Action

I have a confession to make. No, it’s not that I’ve been silent on this blog site for 11 months. Our followers know that, and I am sorry.  My confession is that despite my teaching others to manage their inventory of frozen foods well, it turns out I am not a good example this month.

IMG_1781For the past few weeks I’ve had to clean out some freezers in our food preservation lab. Some foods were missing labels and dates and others obviously had been poorly packaged (but just a few of them, really!).  I am sure the intent of our workers had been to take care of an immediate need cleaning up after a workshop or late night experiment. But the outcome was that no one had gone back very quickly and corrected the situation.  And that chest freezer, where there was not a great demand on the space, had become quite unorganized and full of really old and some freezer-burned food near the bottom.

Now I want to clean out my home freezer so I can buy a new one. The labeling of packages is in much better situation at home. However, I am finding some that “got lost” and pushed to the back of this upright.  They are older than should still be in there.  So here is my message for beginning of summer.  This article starts a short series on freezing of foods.

Freezing is a great food preservation method, especially for being able to store uncooked, or barely cooked, foods that can be used in many ways when thawed. I am dreaming of the fresh strawberries now in our fields, and the blueberries, blackberries and other fruits to come this summer.  If frozen without sugar and tray-frozen before packaging, I know I can decide later whether to make jam, syrups, cobblers or pies. However the quality of foods in the freezer will deteriorate over time.  Certain practices can better preserve that quality.

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Choose packaging (e.g., bags, wraps, boxes or jars) that will prevent moisture loss from the food. Moisture and oxygen can pass through some packaging material itself and of course through poorly connected lids and seals. Drying of food surfaces (i.e., freezer burn) results in poor quality texture and taste. Best packaging also prevents transmission of odors within the freezer. Most people prefer bags and wraps, although glass jars and rigid plastic freezer containers with tight seals keep food quality very well. Choose plastics and foils that indicate freezer quality and weight (versus just those marked “food storage”). Not all plastics and foils are the same in the way they allow or block transmission of moisture and oxygen.

Whether you choose boxes, bags or wraps, make sure all seals and folds are very tight and prevent air loss or entry. Boxes with snap-on lids and jars with twist-on lids are not all the same, either. Snap-on lids should have a deep and tight overlap of the lid channel for sealing and the top rim of the bottom part.  Twist- or turn-on lids should have some type of gasket to prevent air gaps.

freezerheadspaceThe shape and type of package, as well as type of food, can also influence how much headspace is needed. Headspace is empty space between the food and top of the container (or bag) that allows room for expansion as water in the food freezes to ice.  But, too much air left in the package is not good for food quality.  See guidelines for headspace at our website.  More about packaging  is written here.

After packaging your food, label it with the food type and date. Then, actively manage your inventory. One option is to make a table or chart of foods going in your freezer by date that can be checked off as your remove items. Paper and pencil work as does one on a tablet or computer. (Some of you may be lucky enough to have built-in computer technology on your newer freezer!)  If you are not a person to keep up with lists, at least re-organize your inventory when you add new foods. Put the newest foods toward the bottom or back and bring older foods toward the front or top.  Labels should be easy to read and follow.  Find a system that works for you.  It’s a shame to waste good food, let alone the time and expense of packaging you put into preserving your food.

In my next article, I’ll cover some other tips for successful freezing. You can also read more at the National Center for Home Food Preservation website, under “How Do I…..Freeze.”

Oh, and actually, that lab freezer still will be storing some of that freezer-burned food. I need those example for the next class I’m teaching or photos!  But your own, real food supply, like mine, shouldn’t include those items.

It’s Berry Season!

Some of us are in the middle of it, some have seen strawberries come and go for this year, and some of us are still waiting for blueberries. Berries are a favorite for jams, whether a full flavor using one berry, or in combinations that allow our creative streak to show.  Strawberry-raspberry, blueberry-blackberry, or even 3 or more berries in combination.  Yum! As I write this, I’m past my morning breakfast decisions but now my mind is thinking ahead to what I can stir into my yogurt at lunch.

Another way to preserve our delicate, hand-picked berries is by freezing. Now we can start thinking about future pies, cereal toppings, or a quick, refreshing smoothie.

A dry pack is simply placing clean berries in freezer containers, sealing the container, and freezing. Unless they are tray packed (see below), they might clump together and be difficult to separate into individual berries.  Note:  If you do wash blueberries before freezing, dry blueberries completely after rinsing, or else the moisture on the blueberry skin will cause tougher skins.

A tray pack works well to help maintain the shape of each individual berry and keeps them easy to remove from the container and separate from each other. This method is called a tray pack because after rinsing the berries, you spread them in a single layer on a shallow smaller_Blueberry tray close-uptray (like a cookie sheet), then carefully lift the tray into the freezer without causing berries to touch each other.  As soon as they freeze, seal the berries in an airtight container and place them back into the freezer so they don’t get freezer burn.

A sugar pack is like a dry pack but with one extra step – gently mix ¾ cup sugar per 1 quart (1⅓ pounds) berries before filling into freezer containers, sealing, and placing in the freezer. You can view step-by-step directions and photos for a sugar pack by selecting the PowerPoint presentation under “Strawberries” on the National Center’s ‘Freezing’ page.

A syrup pack surrounds the berries in a sweetened liquid, changing the sweetness and texture of the berries quite noticeably. Based on the natural sweetness of the berries and your own preference, you can decide the proportion of sugar to water from very light syrup (10% sugar) to very heavy syrup (50% sugar).  More tart berries may produce the most desirable flavor from using a 40%-50% syrup.  Exact proportions for the range of syrups are listed on this Syrups chart, along with directions to make the syrup and notes about replacing part of the sugar with corn syrup or honey.

Crushed or puréed is an option for berries like blueberries and huckleberries that you might use an ingredient in other recipes. The berries can be crushed, pressed through a fine sieve or puréed in a blender or food processor.  Mix 1 cup (or 1⅛ cups) sugar with each quart (2 pounds) of crushed or puréed berries.

IMPORTANT! If you add sugar to the berries before freezing (as in the sugar pack, syrup pack, or crushed/puréed), then label the container with exactly how much sugar you add, so that you can include that quantity as part of the amount of sugar called for on the ingredient list of your final product recipe.  If you know you want to use the fruit in jam later, you can also measure the amounts of sugar and fruit now for a specific recipe and freeze those together; then use the total contents when thawed to make the jam.

For all types of pack, remember to leave at least ½-inch headspace (more for some styles of pack; see chart for exact measurements) between the berries and the lid of each container so that the containers don’t break open while expanding in the freezer.

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And most importantly, protect your fragile berries with the right kind of packaging for freezing. You don’t want the air inside the freezer to dry out your packs, or for flavors from one food to mingle with others. Freezer-weight plastic bags with good tight seals are a must if going the bag route. Glass jars with straight sides or wide mouth openings, plastic freezer boxes or re-purposed plastic tubs from frozen whipped toppings work well (as long as the seal between the lid and bottom is still intact and not misshapen from use).

Still Yearning to Can in These Winter Months?

If you are still looking for indoor, easy canning options in these winter months, here is a hot sauce that do not require the fresh tomatoes, vegetables or fruits fresh from gardens. It also makes a nice gift to have on hand. Our previous blog was a quick jelly recipe from frozen orange juice concentrate.

Easy Hot Sauce is another option for winter canning if jelly is not your canned food of choice. Easy Hot Sauce is great for spicing things up by stirring into vegetables or chehotsauceese dips, soups and chilis.  This one uses canned diced tomatoes (undrained), chopped fresh hot peppers, vinegar and dry seasonings; the canning process is carried out in boiling water. This recipe yields four half-pint jars. Wear gloves when handling, cutting and seeding hot peppers or wash hands thoroughly with soap and water before touching your face or eyes.

Start by washing and rinsing half-pint canning jars; keep hot until they are filled. Prepare lids according to the manufacturer’s directions. The boiling water canner should be prepared and the process managed as found here.  Follow directions in the recipe for measuring and cooking ingredients before filling jars. Process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes (15 minutes if 1,000-6,000 ft altitude; 20 minutes if over 6,000 ft). Allow hot sauce to cool, undisturbed, for 12 to 24 hours and check seals. You can remove ring bands after the food has cooled if the lids are sealed.

Enjoy this easy way to add some “heat” and spice to your winter days.

Think sunshine and oranges in winter

We do not have a lot of our home canning recommendations that call for commercially processed ingredients in the recipes. However, here is an idea that does not require the fresh tomatoes, vegetables or fruits fresh from gardens. Just in the last week, I have had two people spontaneously say how much they like this recipe; in one case, it was an educator who said her canning class liked it a lot!

Orange Jelly from Frozen Juice  calls for one
12-ounce can of frozen concentrated orange juice and 1 traditional “box” of powdered pectin and creates a delightful, flavorful orange jelly for toast or biscuits on dreary winter mornings or late afternoons. The recipe yields five or size half-pint jars (we never all seem to get the same quantity for many recipes, do we? Or a final amount that just fills all jars exactly….)

For this one, we recommend using pre-sterilized jars and a very short boiling water process time. To pre-sterilize jars, boil empty, washed and rinsed glass canning jars submerged in boiling water for 10 minutes. (That’s 10 minutes after the water comes to a boil over the jars.) The easiest way to do this is to stand empty jars upright on a rack in a clean boiling water canner filled with clean water. Keep jars hot until they are filled. Prepare lids according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Directions for cooking the jelly are specific as to when to add sugar and pectin, and how long to boil. The process time in the canner is then 5 minutes up to 1000 ft altitude (10 minutes if 1,000-6,000 ft altitude; 15 minutes if over 6,000 ft). Allow jelly to cool, undisturbed, for 12 to 24 hours and check seals. You can remove ring bands after the food has cooled if the lids are sealed.

If you don’t want to pre-sterilize your jars, wash and rinse your jars and then keep hot before filling. The process times are then 10 minutes up to 1000 ft in altitude, (15 minutes if 1,000-6,000 ft altitude; 20 minutes if over 6,000 ft).

And enjoy the flavor of your labor, even if it really doesn’t take a lot time!