Another Year of Freezing Begins

[winknasmile]

This morning I put 4 mulberry/rhubarb pies and 1 mulberry/rhubarb cobbler in the freezer for winter eating. Yum, they'll be good with a little vanilla ice cream and a cup of coffee on a cold winter day. I just love knowing they're there!

 

The mulberries are from last year but the rhubarb is fresh. Going to look for more recipes and keep going but I'm taking a break first.

 

Anyone else started? Let us know. I love reading what others are doing.

[Jori]

Wink~ I was going to pm you on facebook but since you've already posted here, too, and I'm logged in here, I'll just ask.

 

What do you put them in? Foil pie pans? Pyrex? Do you bake them pre-baked, partially baked, fully baked? I freeze cookie dough but am thinking it might be nice to have some desserts ready to go over the winter.

[winknasmile]

I put them in foil pie pan uncooked and freeze. After they're frozen I wrap them, pan and all, in plastic wrap and put in zip lock bags and back to the freezer until I'm ready to bake one.

 

Some people bake first and then freeze but I find it a pain. You have to practically cook it again to get it to thaw or sit it on the counter for hours and hours to defrost so I simply freeze uncooked.

 

I have lots of foil pie pans I wash and reuse. I don't have nearly as many baking dishes for the cobblers. I use a casserole dish, corning wear baking dish, loaf pans, whatever can be used to bake in lined with plastic wrap. Place the cobbler ingredients inside the plastic wrap and freeze. I make 4 or 5 cobblers at a time, using whatever baking dishes are available. When they're frozen solid I remove it from the baking dish, wrap good with the plastic wrap and put back in the freezer. When I'm ready to bake it I get the original baking dish out, butter or spray it, REMOVE the plastic wrap, place in the dish and bake.

 

Some people use tin foil instead of plastic and they can just put the foil lined cobbler right back in the same dish. I used to do that, it's slick with no dirty dish to wash BUT once I didn't realize I'd gotten a little bit of tin foil in my cobbler. Went to a filling in my tooth with an instant tooth ache. The next day when I went to the dentist he found it. It sure made it an expensive cobbler just because I didn't want to wash a dish.

 

Since it's just DH and I (and I'm not supposed to eat it) I usually use baking dishes that will make 2-4 servings. I also make some larger ones for when company comes.

 

Just experiment and you'll enjoy them next winter...I can guarantee it!

 

Also, being the tight person I am, I save the storage bags to use again another time. They are not in the least dirty when all the food is wrapped in plastic wrap or foil.

[Momo]

I put 12 quarts of squash in the freezer yesterday. We are being overrun with squash this year. I wish I could share with ya'll!

[winknasmile]

Squash sounds delicious Momo. Wish I could grab a few from you. My squash plants have about 3 leaves on them soooooo, it'll be a long time before we have any ready....usually about September.

[Annarchy]

MMmmmmmm, squash & mulberries. DH does not like squash, so I rarely get it. I told him you froze mulberry pies and he said he has never had mulberries. He doesn't know what he's missed. LOL

 

 

Summer means no more garden harvest here. Most everything has been harvested, planted the peas too late and they are drying out. Waiting on the tomatoes to ripen and we still have some onions, and zucchini-not producing yet, spices seem to be doing OK. Replanted spinach and carrots are slow growing sprouts right now, my experiment to see how it will grows in heat. Already planning the fall garden.

 

We were chatting the other day, about how much our summer is like the north's winter. Staying in doors with hardly any outdoor activity. 110+ degrees is just too hot to be outside doing anything.

 

The freezer is getting the trout we've been catching from the river (stocked). 48 so far.

[Jori]

I've never had mulberries, either.

 

Wink~ would store bought pie crust hold up?

[winknasmile]

How about buying frozen crusts, keep them frozen until ready to fill with berry mixture and then freeze the whole shebang.

 

Mulberries really need another berry or rhubarb to make pies as there's not alot of flavor BUT they make delicious pies when added to another fruit.

 

Actually the mulberries I'm using are some I froze last year. The rhubarbs ready, the mulberries aren't.

 

Yesterday I made another 4 pies to put in the freezer. This time rhubarb/mulberry/strawberry. The strawberries aren't quite ready either so I used frozen from last year.

 

A hint about the stems on the mulberries....leave them on. When they're cooked you don't even know they're there. Sure makes it alot easier to use them that way.

 

My DH didn't like squash either Annarchy but I put butter, brown sugar and marshmallows (like candied sweet potatoes) and he ate it fine. Have you tried that with your DH?

[Jori]

wink~ heads up on the strawberries this year. I bought a bucket from the berry farm last week thinking we could eat and I could put some in the dehydrator. The flavor is very little this year and they are very dry, just a few truly juicy strawberries. I'm saving my last bag from last year, which were AMAZING, to let the kids eat plan this winter. DD ate them without a problem thought.

 

The berries from this season will be used for canning and pies. I'll use some for drying and freezing but will try to find the sweeter ones for that.

 

*** disclaimer - my berries aren't in, yet. so I can't tell you what they are like.