No matter how much we want it, summer is coming to an end. You don't want to say goodbye to juicy berries and fruits at all. And you don't have to! We will tell you how to properly freeze fruits and berries and enjoy the taste for a long time. All you need is a convenient container or freezer bags and a freezer.
Regardless of whether you freeze berries or fruit, the principle is the same. Just follow a few simple steps.
How to prepare fruits and berries for freezing
Some fruits and berries must be cleaned and cut before freezing:
- Apples and pears must be peeled, cut into four parts and cored. Then sprinkle with lemon juice or apple cider vinegar so that they do not turn brown during the freezing process.
- It is better to cut apricots into two or four parts, and remove the stone.
- Blackberries, blueberries and raspberries can be frozen whole.
- Cherries will also be easier to use if you remove the stone before freezing.
- Melon can be cut into small cubes or pieces.
- Peaches, plums and nectarines must be peeled, cut and pitted.
- Before freezing strawberries, it is necessary to remove the green sepals and cut them in half.
- Make sure that all the berries and fruits you have selected for freezing are ripe and undamaged.
- Rinse the berries and fruits with cool water and wipe them thoroughly with a paper or clean kitchen towel.
- Place berries or cut fruit in a single layer on a baking sheet. Choose a sheet that will fit in your freezer.
- Place the tray in the freezer. Berries and fruits should become firm, usually it takes a couple of hours, but you can leave them in the freezer overnight.
- Transfer berries and fruit to Zip-Lock bags for storage, expelling as much air as possible from the bag before sealing.
- Store frozen berries and fruits in the freezer until ready to use. They can be stored frozen for up to 6 months (or a year if you have a self-contained freezer).
In addition to the fact that berries and fruits are very easy to freeze, they are also quite versatile in cooking.
First, frozen berries and fruits are perfect for making cocktails and smoothies. Their texture will make the drink thicker. You don't have to add ice, banana or yogurt. To achieve a smooth, thick consistency, add berries at the very end of cooking.
Ingredients
- About 3/4 cup orange juice
- 1 cup frozen berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, etc.)
Preparation
- Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
- If you are using fresh berries instead of frozen, add a couple of ice cubes to achieve a thick smoothie consistency.
- Pour the smoothie into a tall glass and serve immediately.
- You can add a few spoons of yogurt. Low-fat or fat-free yogurt will also work, but whole milk yogurt will give the cocktail the necessary creamy texture better than others.
Variations
- Milk smoothie. If you want your smoothie to be creamier than fruity, use soy, almond, rice, or cow's milk instead of orange juice.
- Vegetarian smoothie. Use a whole, peeled banana instead of yogurt to add thickness. Other tropical fruits, such as mango or papaya, can also be suitable for this purpose. In addition, papaya will make the cocktail more frothy when whipped in a blender.
- Mint smoothie. Add a few fresh mint leaves to a berry smoothie to give it freshness.
- Protein smoothie. Add a tablespoon or two of almond butter for a lovely nutty flavor and extra protein.
- Green smoothie. If you want to add greens to your diet, you need a handful of spinach. This amount of spinach will not affect the taste, but will add a dark color to the smoothie and make it more useful.
Secondly, frozen berries and fruits are very often used in baking. Surprisingly, the frozen version is more suitable for baking than fresh. There is a simple explanation for this: freezing dries berries and fruits, depriving them of excess moisture, which can spoil the structure of the dough, making it runny.
Peach shortcrust pastry recipe
Ingredients
- Two sheets of puff pastry
- 9-10 frozen peaches
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3 Art. l. corn starch
- 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. kitchen salt
- 1/8 tsp. chopped nutmeg
- 1 Art. l. lemon juice
- 1 Art. l. oil
- Milk for moistening the dough
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a large bowl, mix the thawed sliced peaches with the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and lemon juice. Mix well, cover with cling film and set aside.
- Place a sheet of puff pastry in a baking dish.
- Top with the peach mixture and a little oil.
- Brush the edges of the dough with milk to then join with the top layer of dough.
- Cover all this with the top layer of dough and seal the edges. Pierce the cake with a fork in several places.
- Brush the cake with milk and sprinkle with sugar.
- Transfer the cake to the oven and bake for about 50 minutes. You can cover the edges with foil if they start to darken. The pie will be ready when the crust turns golden brown and the peach juice begins to bubble.
- Cakes must be cooled before use.
You can make jam or jelly from frozen berries and fruits. Freeze ripe, fresh berries and put them aside until you have time to make jam, as not many people want to do this in the summer heat.
Finally, from frozen peaches, apricots, nectarines, cherries, mangoes, strawberries and blueberries, you can make long-term fruit puree.
Sauce
Ingredients for 1.5 cups of ready puree
- 500 grams of frozen fruit or berries (must be thawed before cooking)
- 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
Preparation
- In a food processor or blender, combine fruit, sugar and lemon juice. Blend for about 30 seconds until smooth.
- Strain the puree over a bowl through a sieve. Use a rubber spatula to mix and push the puree through a sieve. There should be no lumps in the puree.
- Taste and add more sugar if necessary.
- Ready puree can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or 2 months in the freezer.