Freezing is a simple process that will allow you to enjoy perfectly ripe produce all year long. While you can just wash thoroughly and freeze your fruits, most vegetables need to be blanched before freezeing. Blanching is a simple process that destroys enzymes in vegetables that can remain active even after freezing that rob the vegetable of nutritional value and flavor. To blanche your vegetables, boil a gallon of water per pound of vegetable. Leave your vegetable in the boiling water for the appropriate amount of time as listed on our chart. Be sure to follow the time guidelines carefully as underblanching stimulates the activity of enzymes and is worse than no blanching while overblanching causes loss of flavor, color, vitamins and minerals. After boiling, run your vegetables under cold water to stop the cooking process. Once the vegetables have cooled you can bag them and freeze them for future use. Freezing is fun and an easy way to save money and provide your family with nutritious locally grown produce. It is also a great activity to share with family and friends and is quite rewarding when you open a bag a frozen fresh berries in the middle of February!