Freezing Strawberries – Carolyn Hardimon

 

Community Recipes

 

Select fully ripe, firm berries with a deep red color.  Sort out immature and defective fruit.  Gently wash the berries in several changes of cold water.  Remove hulls and place berries in a colander to drain.  Pat dry with paper towels.  Choose a good quality freezer container.  Leave at least 1/2 inch head space for expansion during freezing.  Always label and date.  Prepare in one of the following ways:

 

Sugar Pack:  Slice the hulled berries in halves or thirds, lengthwise.  Mix six parts sliced berries with one part sugar.  Allow to stand until sugar dissolves ( about ten minutes).  Gently stir. Spoon into containers.  Seal, label and freeze.     

 

Syrup Pack:  Leave the hulled berries whole or slice.  Cover with a 50% syrup.  Seal, freeze and label. 

(A 50% syrup is half sugar and half water.  Bring to a boil in a saucepan.   Boil for 1 minute.  Spoon berries into containers and pour syrup over.)  Seal, label and freeze.    

 

Puree:  Put 1 pint hulled strawberries, 4 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon lemon juice in food blender jar.  Puree until smooth.  Spoon into containers.  Seal, label and freeze.  

 

Whole: Place whole hulled berries on a large cookie sheet and freeze.  Transfer to good quality freezer bags.  Press out as much air as possible.  Seal, label and freeze. 

 

Carolyn Gass Hardimon, M. S.     Home Economist      www.recipeladies.com

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Reference:  Ball Blue Book