Freezing Fresh Fruit

Freezing fresh fruit is easy and perfect for keeping farm fresh produce in your rotation all year long.
Here are a few things to remember...


- Always wash, stem, pit, peel or slice fruits before freezing them; in other words, prepare them so they are ready to eat.

- Some fruits require pretreatment to prevent darkening. Ascorbic acid (the most effective), citric acid, or lemon juice may be used for treating these fruits. Steaming for a few minutes before packing is enough to prevent firm fruits, such as apples, from darkening.

- For small, whole fruits such as strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and cherries. Simply spread the fruit in a single layer on a shallow tray and freeze; then remove and quickly package in labeled freezer bags or containers. Remove as much air as possible from containers and allow no head space. Seal and return promptly to freezer.

But Emilie, why are you talking to us about freezing fresh berries in January where most fruit is out of season?

Good question. And the answer is....Cranberries.



Cranberries are fantastically resilient. You can purchase fresh cranberries in bags in your grocer's produce department. Put the bag straight into the freezer for these tart red berries all year long. But buy them NOW because many grocers only carry fresh cranberries in the holiday months.

So this week head to your local grocery store, grab some and freeze them for use in apricot cranberry tarts in the Spring, cranberry scones in the Summer and warm cranberry orange sweet bread in the Autumn.