Today we wrap up Fruits/Vegetables – Preserving month with some comparisons of freezing vs. canning.

Get Real: Sometimes Freezing Can Be Better

This month of canning was quite educational for me.  I have always been intrigued by canning, and felt like since I am a “Whole Foodie” I should venture further into it.  I love the tradition, and the rich history of canning; how our foremothers passed down the tips and tricks of preservation and sustainable living.  I was so sad when my last zucchini pickle was gone hat I almost stood at the kitchen sink and drank all the pickle juice.  Almost.

I do love canning, and I will do it more now that I have some of the basic knowledge.  I picture beautiful little jars of raspberry lemon balm jam with red satin bows at Christmas time.

But for now, I am an always-on-the-run mother of two little boys, and freezing is my game.  Yes, freezing requires that I have room in my freezer, and that I pay for electricity.  But in return I get raspberries in the dead of winter that look and taste like they are freshly picked from the field.  And I get veggies that are just as crunchy and delicious as they were when I placed them in that container and into the freezer six months ago.

For now, I like the time I save when I simply pop a zip top bag full of a prepared meal into my freezer, knowing that meal will be ready for me to pull out and cook whenever I come back for it.

Freezing gives me whole foods with very little change to freshness, nutritional value, color, texture, and taste.  I love that, too.

Do you have any particular foods you prefer frozen over canned?  How about canned over frozen?  Let us know in the comments.

Fresh Freezer Salsa
Adapted from ehow.com

10 fresh medium size tomatoes
2 fresh medium size onions
2 fresh medium size jalapenos (or more if you prefer a hotter salsa)
1 fresh medium size green pepper
1 fresh lemon
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Wash and remove the stems of the green pepper, jalapenos, onions, and tomatoes; roughly chop into chunks. For milder salsa, remove the seeds of the jalapeno peppers.  Place them in a large food processor, or blender. Process on low until the ingredients are well chopped. Juice the lemon. Add lemon juice, salt and garlic powder to the mix and process again. Process on low until the salsa reaches the desired consistency. Enjoy immediately or transfer to freezer safe containers and freeze.  Remember to leave a fair amount of head space if you are using glass jars to freeze.