Before tossing out that fruit, consider making quick and delicious frozen fruit purees that can be used later as:
–Healthy frozen fruit pops for the kids this summer.
–Always-on-hand ingredients for fruit smoothies, eliminating the need to add ice.
—Fruit topping for pancakes, french toast, waffles, ice cream, oatmeal, quinoa, and Greek yogurt.
Greek yogurt topped with strawberry puree and honey
Here’s how in 4 simple steps:
1. Wash the fruit thoroughly and discard any pieces that are in really bad shape.
When preparing berries, I keep them whole, like the strawberries pictured here:
Leftover strawberries from a recent dinner party.
For larger fruit, such as mango or pineapple, cutting it loosely into chunks will make preparing it easier.
2. Steam the fruit for ~15 minutes using a pot with a steamer insert and lid.
If you don’t have a steamer, use a large pot and lid with a little bit of water in the bottom – maybe 1/4 cup or so.
Bring the water to a boil and then reduce it to low heat.
My Simply Calphalon steamer set that I Simply love.
3. Pureeing your steamed fruit
a. Blender Method – Once the fruit is soft, drop it into a blender with a touch of the cooking water and puree it for about a minute.
If you don’t have a blender, or don’t have time to use it, or just don’t feel like using it today, try this method instead:
b. Potato Masher Method – Empty the pot of most of the cooking water (which makes a delicious hot tea when topped off with honey, by the way).
Reserve a very small amount of cooking water in the pot.
Add the steamed fruit, and press it firmly and repeatedly using a potato masher until you achieve your desired texture.
Strawberry puree I made using a potato masher
4. Freezing Your Fruit Puree – Pour the puree into freezable containers, ice cube trays, or a silicone brownie mold pan.
Optional: Once frozen, transfer the cubes to a sealable freezer bag. Be sure to label the bag with the contents and the date you prepared it.
Your frozen fruit puree should last ~3-4 months in your freezer.
Blueberry puree before freezing in my Wilton silicone brownie mold pan
COMMON QUESTIONS:
Should I add sweetener?
Most fruits are sweet enough for me when steamed, with the exception of strawberries, which can be fairly tart. You may want to add your favorite sweetener to strawberry puree before freezing it.
What about freezing bananas?
Bananas don’t need to be cooked before freezing.
Simply remove the peel in its entirety, break the banana into 2-3 pieces, and drop the pieces into a sealable freezer bag.
Finito!
Can I combine flavors?
Absolutely! Be adventurous by combining multiple flavors such as triple berry, or pineapple mango.
Now you can save your fruit from spoiling and always have yummy, healthy treats on hand in your freezer.
Enjoy!
Question: If you really, really hate to throw away food like I do, what are some of your tips for using up ingredients before they expire?
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