FREEZING ZUCCHINI TUTORIAL, REALLY?

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FREEZING ZUCCHINI TUTORIAL...

I love growing zucchini... and picking it... and cooking with it! But I hate freezing it!

Since I have a garden and grow zucchini, it only makes sense that I have an OVERabundance of zucchini.

And that means freezing... what a thankless job~ it is such a mess! Grating, and bagging~ my countertops, floors and clothes are covered with zucchini shards!

THERE'S GOTTA BE A BETTER WAY!

There is!

There are those tasks and little jobs that we do by rote... not giving much thought to them. And maybe there is a better, more efficient, less messier and easier way!

It may sound a little silly to have a tutorial about freezing zucchini, but these little tips really helped me... so I thought I would pass them along. Hope they help you too!

~ Cut all big baseball bat type zucchini into managable chunks. Half the zucchini lengthwise.

~Scoop out any seeds with a spoon. You are better scooping than scraping.

~ Don't use a box grater if you have a lot of zucchinis to grate. Use the grater attachment on your food processor! Magic!

~ When using a freezer zip-type bag, freeze the zucchini in 2 cup servings.

Get a 2 cup mug or glass. Put the bag in the mug and fold the locking top of the bag over the edge of the mug.

Fill the bag full with zucchini.

~ Use tongs to transfer the zucchini from the food processor to the freezer bag in the mug. This was a revelation to me...I HATE getting zucchini stuck to my hands! Easy and no zucchini hands!!!!

~ Line a large rimmed baking tray with parchment and put the cup with the freezer bag on the tray. Keep the zucchini mess on the tray.

When you are done, fold up the parchment and throw the zucchini shards away! Look clean work space!

~ Seal the bag trying to get as much air out of the bag as possible. Stack to freeze. I have a upright freezer and a secondary frig with a freezer on top. I use my freezer on top as a "holding tank" until things freeze hard and then I transfer them to the upright freezer.

~ Here is a tip for anyone who has an electric bag sealer. I have a Food Saver and love it.

If you are freezing "wet" food put it into the bag, fold down the top and secure it with a clothespin and put it in the freeger. When the content of the bag is frozen it is much easier to seal.

I bagged four cups of zucchini, put a clothespin on it and laid them on their side so they would lie flat (because no liquid would seep out). Once frozen I sealed it with my Food Saver and put it in my big upright freezer.