Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Kitchen Tip: Using up Fresh Produce Before it Goes Bad

For years I struggled with the idea that we were supposed to eat 5 or more servings of fresh fruits and veggies a day. I'd buy fresh produce, bring it home, put it in the refrigerator and then some of it would get pushed to the back and forgotten until excavated a week or so later. Also, even though I knew it was best for my kids to snack on fruit or veggies, it was harder to offer them because it seemed that when I did, I spent what felt like all day peeling, slicing or chopping. What I try to do now is, when we get home from the Farmer's Market or grocery store, I try to prep all of the fresh produce before it goes in the refrigerator. Lettuce gets washed, torn and spun dry. Melons are peeled, seeded and cut into large chunks. Carrots, peppers, cucumbers, squash all chopped, sliced or peeled and stored in containers. That way, its all ready to go when I need it. And with everything prepped, I am much more likely to offer fresh fruit or veggies when the kids want a snack.

Check out Tammy's Recipes for lots and lots of Kitchen Tips.

1 comment:

Lisa said...

This is such a time saver. I need to get better at doing this myself so that we don't waste so much produce, especially now that summer is upon us I buy tons of stuff from the farmer's market.