freezing squash & zucchini

Freezing is a great way to preserve produce from the summer.  It’s easy to let the extra zucchini & squash go to waste.  And with all the funny stories of people leaving bags of squash on neighbors doorsteps, why not just take a little time and freeze them for soups, stews and veggie chilis for the winter?
Here is a great link for more information on freezing produce.

…a few rules and tips to follow:

• you must blanch before freezing (this slows/stops the enzymes actions, if you do not do this, it will cause off-coloring, off-flavoring, and toughening)
• don’t over blanch!  each veggie has a specific amount of time to cook, view this link for specific times
• drain well
• using a blancher makes the blanching process easier, a multi-cooker that has the strainer inside the pot would also work, I’ve been wanting one of these!!

freezing squash & zucchini

1. cut squash/zucchini into bite-sized pieces
2. blanch squash/zucchini into boiling water for 3 minutes (blanching the veggies is essential for freezing, see above)
3. immediately put veggies into an ice bath, let veggies cool through for several minutes
4. drain well, very well
5. place onto flat baking sheet pans and freeze
6. take pans out of freezer, then place frozen veggies into ziploc freezer bags, mark date then put back into freezer