I thought it would be fun to do a how to week. So first up, how to properly freeze fruit. If you didn’t know, there is a right and wrong way to do this. Trust me, if you’ve ever frozen fruit the wrong way, you know it because you end up with one big frozen ball of mush. And this ball of mush always leaves you wondering how store-bought frozen fruit always ends up so perfect. Like it actually looks like raspberries or peach slices that hold the shape rather than pink seedy mush. Frustrating right? Well I’m here to tell you, it can be done!
After my peach recipe binge (peach galette, peppered steak with grilled peach salsa) of cooking anything and everything with a peachy twist I thought it was time to lay the final balls of sweetness to rest in the freezer. That is, until the first snow storm strikes and I crave everything summery. Warmed peaches sprinkled with cinnamon and nutmeg on a cold winter day makes my heart go pitter-patter. The sweetness of summer + the spiciness of winter = a tasty dream. Honestly, store-bought peaches have nothing on tree-ripened, sweet, juicy, home-frozen peaches. Plus, you don’t need to add any sugar this way. Maybe that should be a double-plus. The sweetness of these peaches is contained in each slice, it really is an amazing thing.
So how do you do this? It’s really quite simple. Peel the peaches the quick way, boiling water to ice bath or the slow way a good ol’ knife. I choose the slow way just because my peaches were so ripe the skin was basically falling off anyways. But the hot-water method is great for a big batch of peaches (tomatoes, or anything else with a soft skin that needs peeled).
To peel peaches in a hot water bath:
- Heat a pot of water until boiling.
- Cut an X in the bottom of a peach, just through the skin.
- Carefully place peaches (3-4 at a time) in the boiling water.
- Leave for 5-10 seconds (no longer than 15).
- Remove and place directly into an ice=bath (bowl of ice water).
- Remove and peel.
To peel peaches via a knife:
Find a sharp paring knife and go to town peeling just the skin.
HOW TO FREEZE Fruit:
- Prepare fruit as needed (peeling and slicing).
- Place in a single layer on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Freeze for 24 hours or until frozen through.
- Remove fruit and place in a freezer bag (marked with date).
- Remove excess air, seal tightly and place back in freezer.
- Enjoy all winter long!
It really is a delicious thing in the midst of a snowy, dreary day. Can you tell I’m getting excited for winter? –>ENTER SARCASM<–
Now get to freezing and don’t let that precious fruit go to waste!
Stay-tuned as How to Meal Plan is coming up next!
