Tips of the Trade

We have decided this month (March) to be Tip Month for the co-op. So I have asked my members to give their tips and tricks to share with everyone else. I will update the blog as they come in and put up as many tips as we get (and that I can think of).

Tip #1:
Buy a salad spinner when you join the co-op. When you get your tender greens, pop them in the salad spinner (add either lemon juice or vinegar) and spin the heck out of them. Put the salad spinner with greens in your refrigerator and cool.. your greens will perk up like the day they were picked!

Tip #2
In addition to the washing immediately as you have already suggested (didn't know about the lemon juice!) store your greens in a ziploc bag with a large square of paper towel. They will stay fresh for a long time! (from co-op member Jessica L)

I pulled these tips from the hip2save.com website

*Keeping a paper towel lining the drawer of your crisper will keep moisture from accumulating and over ripening your fruit as fast.

*Keep cut fruit fresh without it turning brown by adding lemon juice when storing it in the fridge; the juice of half a lemon is enough for a quart or two of cut fruits.

*Prevent fresh fruit from getting crushed in your grocery bags. Simply blow air into the plastic bag containing the fruit and tie it so that the air cannot escape. When the fruit is packed in the paper bag, the air in the bag acts as a cushion for the fruit on its ride home.

*Prevent fruit from turning brown by dissolving two crushed vitamin C tables in a bowl of cool water before adding fruit.

*Ripen fruit quickly by placing it in a brown paper bag with a ripe apple. Set in a cool, shady spot and make sure there are a few holes in the bag. The ripe apples gives off a gas, ethylene, which stimulates the other fruit to ripen.

*To keep apples crisp and other counter top-stored produce fresh, store them out of direct sunlight, either directly on the counter top, in an uncovered bowl, or inside a perforated plastic bag.

*Keep produce in perforated plastic bags in the produce drawer of the refrigerator. (To perforate bags, punch holes in the bag with a sharp object, spacing them about as far apart as the holes you see in supermarket apple bags.)

*Keep fruits and vegetables separate, in different drawers, because ethylene can build up in the fridge, causing spoilage.

*When storing herbs (and asparagus, too), snip off the ends, store upright in a glass of water (like flowers in a vase) and cover with a plastic bag.

*If you are unsure about the best place to store your favorite fruit and veggies (i.e. counter top versus refrigerator), click here to view a helpful chart.

(Thanks to SparkPeople and RecipeGoldMine for some of these helpful tips!)