We love utilizing our freezers for all sorts of foods and it's become quite a convenient little habit. Now that favorite summer produce is fading, we have some favorites we keep in our freezers to keep our meals healthy and delicious, along with year round favorites for convenience and ease.
Our must have list is bound to make anyone a freezer believer!
Organic Leafy Greens
One of the best ways to keep fresh greens is in the freezer! The greens pictured above are from a spinach, bok choy, arugula mix. Another favorite is kale. Kale is not the most popular green, and if you are new to kale, it's nice to freeze so you can eat it slowly and gradually without it going bad. When some of these organic greens are expensive, the last thing you want to do is have them go to waste! Stock up on them when they are on sale and keep some in the freezer. We also include herbs in this category!? One of our favorites is basil and mint. The only draw back is that they can no longer be used as garnishes as they'll just look wet and ugly once thawed. Frozen greens are still versatile for lots of different recipes and when frozen can be added to things like smoothies, green drinks, soups or stews. We've even added some to sauces (like pesto) and pasta dishes to help spread out the recipe and to sneak in those important nutritional benefits.
Coconut Shreds & Coconut Butter
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Did you know you could freeze coconut?! Going naturally sweet, we always, always buy unsweetened coconut shreds. Because of this, there are not any preservatives in the coconut. Coconut keeps great in the fridge for quite awhile, but freezing it ensures it will last as long you need. You can also freeze your homemade coconut butter (haven't tried freezing store bought, but we don't see why that couldn't work too!). Make sure to store in an airtight container. When ready to use, allow your coconut to thaw before use and you're good to go!
Whole Bananas
This one isn't out of the ordinary. Frozen bananas make awesome smoothies, drinks, ice cream and bread! We typically decide to freeze bananas when we find they are ripening quicker than they will be eaten. But did you know there are actually great benefits for doing this? Ripe bananas with large brown spots have great health benefits. Dark spots on banana indicate a production of cancer fighting properties and immunity boosters. Eating bananas at this stage will give the most benefits, so think about freezing them before turning them over to fruit flies or tossing them out!
Fresh Ripe Avocado
Avocado is one produce that we can't get enough of! During colder months, frozen avocados are such a treat! When ripe avocados are on sale, we buy several of them, cut them up into slices or cubes and freeze them to use in any way we would fresh avocado. Let them thaw for an hour or so before hand and then prepare them as desired. Once thawed, they make great guacamole, puddings or delicious toppings for burritos or salads.
Raw or Roasted Nuts
Nuts are a great thing to have stashed in the freezer. Nuts can go rancid if not used in an appropriate amount of time, even if stored in the fridge. When we buy nuts in bulk, a bunch of them go to the freezer for later use. The only thing to be aware of is that nuts can get freezer burn if left there too long.? If you freeze nuts, be sure to use them up within a few weeks!
And lastly.... Doggie Treats!
Couldn't really count this one since not everyone has pets... but we couldn't leave out the goodies we store for our furry friends! In our freezers, we keep organic produce especially for our dogs.
Certain raw produce can be very nutritional for pets (though, grapes and onions are big no-no's for dogs). Keeping washed, cut and frozen produce in the freezer ensures you always have healthy snacks on hand for them. It also gives an extra crunch that they are sure to enjoy!? Enzo's favorites are carrots and apples. He's always alert and happy to see his treats come out of the freezer!
Some of these items may be a little strange, but give them a try! We've loved discovering different foods we can freeze, especially for the winter months.
What are your favorite items to freeze?? Years ago, our mother used to freeze milk! And surprisingly, it freezes great!
Source: http://naturallysweetrecipes.blogspot.com/2012/09/5-foods-to-keep-in-your-freezer.html
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