Freezing Directions

We had a question this week about freezing produce.  I am thinking that some of you may want to freeze asparagus knowing that the season will come to an end sometime in June.  Most vegetables need to be blanched before freezing to destroy enzymes and bacteria. 

Bring a pan of water to a boil.  Add trimmed and cleaned asparagus to the water.  Medium spears should be in the water for 3 minutes after the water comes back to a boil, (longer for larger spears, shorter for thinner).  Have a bowl of ice water ready so that you can plunge the spears to cool down quickly and stop the cooking process.  Remove after a few minutes, drain completely. 

Place in Ziploc bags.  Leave a little opening enough to insert a straw so that you can draw the air out of the bag. Press the straw closed where inserted as you pull out the straw and complete closing the bag.  If you are thinking about freezing leafy greens you want to remove the stems, blanch for 1 minute, remove greens from boiling to the ice water, and blot until completely dry.  Chop the greens and continue as above for packaging.