UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Although produce goes in and out of season, you can enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables year-round by learning to preserve them, says a specialist in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.

"Freezing fruits and vegetables while they are fresh and in-season is one of the easiest ways to preserve," says Luke Laborde, assistant professor of food science. "To ensure freshness and quality, the fruit or vegetable should be frozen within the first day of its harvest. The procedure is simple, but varies for different fruits and vegetables."

Strawberries -- Prepare the berries by washing them and removing the caps. Using pint or quart freezer bags, fill the bags leaving three to four inches of room at the top. Squeeze out the air, seal, label and freeze.

Corn -- Prepare corn by removing husk, silk and damaged kernels. Trim off the ends and wash the ears. For whole kernel corn, blanch in boiling water for three minutes and cut kernels from the cob at about three-fourths of their depth. For cream style, blanch in boiling water for four minutes and cut kernels from the cob at about one-half of their depth. Then scrape the cob with a knife to remove remaining kernels. For corn-on-the-cob, blanch in boiling water seven to 11 minutes, depending on size. Cool in water and drain. To package whole kernel or creamy style corn, fill pint or quart bags within three to four inches of the top. For corn-on-the-cob, fill quart or half-gallon bags. Squeeze out the air, seal, label and freeze.

Snap beans -- Prepare beans by snipping off the ends and removing strings. They may be left whole or cut into one-inch pieces and washed. Blanch six cups of beans at a time in boiling water for two or three minutes, depending on size. Cool in water and drain. Fill pint or quart bags within three to four inches of the top. Squeeze out the air, seal, label and freeze.

Onions -- Prepare onions by cleaning. For cooking use only, blanch in boiling water for three to seven minutes or until center is heated. Cool before packaging. Leave one-half inch space from the top of the bag. Squeeze out the air, seal, label and freeze. For use on salads and sandwiches, chop and freeze without blanching. They will not be crisp, but will be highly flavored.

To learn how to preserve other fruits and vegetables, visit the Penn State food preservation database on the Web at http://foodsafety.cas.psu.edu/presqueryform.cfm.

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Contact:

Cheryl Anthony cka106@psu.edu 814-863-0938 814-863-9877 fax

Chuck Gill cdg5@psu.edu 814-863-2713 814-863-9877 fax #188