How to Freeze Berries

Last year, a farm in North Carolina had pick-your-own blueberries for only $1/lb.  As you know, that was a great deal. My family went to the farm several times and picked enough blueberries to eat during the summer, to make jelly, and to freeze for later use in cobblers and such.  Just last week I used up another bag while making blueberry pancakes for my kids.

I picked up a few packages of strawberries at Aldi last week for $1.19 and then a few more at Walmart this week for $1.  I’m stocking the freezer for later.  Since berries are such a great price right now, I thought I’d give you some tips on how to freeze them. 

You will need:

• fresh berries
• a pan or tray that will fit in your freezer
• spatula
• strainer or colander
• storage containers or freezer bags

1.  Start with the freshest berries. Cut off any bad spots or toss rotten berries.  Remove any stems.  (Some say not to wash blueberries before freezing because it makes the skins tough. I didn’t notice a difference though.)

2.  Thoroughly wash the berries. Let them sit in a colander to drain the excess water.  (I let mine sit about 30 minutes.)

3.  Spread a single layer of berries onto a cookie sheet and pop them into the freezer.  Leave them overnight.

4.  The next day, pull the cookie sheet from the freezer.  Use a spatula to pop the berries from the pan.  They should come off of the pan fairly easily.  If not, let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.

5.  Put the berries into freezer bags, reusable containers, or airtight bags. (Unfortunately, I don’t have any of the vacuum seal bags.)

6.  Put the frozen berries back into the freezer until ready to use.

Now whenever you need berries, you can open your container and pull out as many as you need.  Sometimes I just dump them out from the freezer bag or reach in to the container and pull out a handful. They are handy for throwing into a cobbler or pancakes.

Menu Plan Monday 4/12/10

Last week I found myself wandering aimlessly through the kitchen, dazed, and searching through cabinets wondering what we were going to have for supper.  I couldn’t figure out what was wrong and then I realized that I forgot to write out my weekly meal plan.  My, my, my, things certainly go smoother with a plan.

Sunday:  meat loaf, mashed potatoes, fried okra
The meat loaf was premixed and put into the freezer during one of my freezer cooking days in March. The okra was purchased buy 1 get 1 free at Harris Teeter a few weeks ago.

Monday: breakfast casserole, fresh fruit
I made some breakfast for the youth at church on Sunday and had quite a bit of grits left over. I was thinking I could use them in a breakfast casserole. It turned out pretty well. The kids really liked it. I’ll try to share the recipe this week.

Tuesday: grilled chicken salads
It’s hubby’s turn to provide lunch for the staff at his work. Usually there are leftovers and I can make a side item so that we have enough for our family.

Wednesday: Indian food for hubby and me, leftover for the kids
The kids don’t like Indian food. Every now and then hubby and I will make a special treat for ourselves and the kids enjoy their leftovers or kid friendly foods.

Thursday: pizza (birthday boy’s request)

Friday: taquitos, homemade mexican rice, black beans
I confess that these are the premade ones by Deli Mex. They’re not as good as homemade, but these were on sale at Harris Teeter. I think they were buy 1 get 2 free!

Saturday: eating out

What will you be cooking this week?

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The Gardener’s Trick to Getting Kids to Like Vegetables

Guest post by Geoffrey F. Moore
Family Fire Pits

Since it is close to spring you might be thinking about what to put in your garden. Last year my wife did an excellent job of planning out her vegetables with a sinister motive behind all of it. She loves to garden and wanted to get our two boys to be more interested in eating and enjoying fresh fruits and vegetables. The items she chose were all items that could easily be cut into a salad.

Every night she would tell our boys to go out and pick some fresh vegetables from the garden that she would then chop into a salad. The boys loved the idea of eating the veggies they had just plucked. Some of the items on the menu included carrots, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers to name a few. In addition, she also planted some of their favorite fruits such as strawberries and raspberries. They loved going to the garden to get the veggies because it also provided an opportunity to get a snack of fruits that they loved.

The plan worked and since most of the items were mixed into the salad they were not forced to eat an entire plate of one type of vegetable. With the right ratio of veggie to lettuce to dressing on the plate we were able to find success and teach our kids to like vegetables as well as learn more about gardening.

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5 Tips for Using Leftover Candy

We have a candy basket at our house. Every now and then it gets full and I have to clean it out. I find candy from Halloween, Christmas, Easter, and any other holiday inbetween.  Truthfully, I don’t buy much of the candy.  It trickles in from school, Sunday School, church activities, and it multiplies somehow. 

Here are some tips for using up your leftover candy:

1.  Use your candy to decorate cupcakes, cake, cookies, or as an ice cream topping.  This week the kids are out of school.  We made cupcakes and I let them help decorate them.  We pulled out the candy basket.  Some of the cupcakes have conversation hearts on top.  We even opened some pixie sticks and sprinkled it on like it was colored sugar.

2.  Take the candy to a group gathering.  If I want to get rid of my candy quickly, I just take it to the youth group at church.  It will be gone in one meeting.  I’ve sent some in to Sunday School classes and brought some to my small group. You could also put a bowl on your desk at work or put it in the breakroom.

3.  Give it to the needy.  Send your candy to the local food bank.  To help out, you could put it into little ziploc bags before you take it.  They could easily stick a small bag of candy into each family’s box.

4.  Put it in your cake batter or make ice cream.  Have you ever had Snickers ice cream, Milky Way ice cream, or Butterfinger ice cream? I know someone that likes to make her own ice cream and these are some of their favorites.  You can also cut up chocolate pieces and put it in to your batter.  For more information, do an internet search for recipes.

5.  Use it for shoeboxes for Samaritan’s Purse.  Each year, our family puts together a few shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child.  I try to include a zipper baggie with a little candy inside.  I usually don’t have to purchase any candy to do this. I just search through our candy basket and I can find lollipops, gum, and other hard candy. 

What tips do you have for using leftover candy?

image (c) Karen Weideman

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