Keeping It Fresh With Windy Acres Farm!

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1 Beets: - Wash roots and greens, let air dry. Cut off the greens except for about 2 inches. Put in sealable storage bag, remove all air. Place in the crisper draw of refrigerator. Roots should last at least 2 to 3 weeks. - Wrap greens in paper towel and place in a large sealable storage bag, remove air. Beet greens will last 2 to 5 days after purchase. Use greens in place of spinach, Swiss chard or kale in favorite recipes. Bell Peppers: - Store in vegetable crisper of refrigerator inside plastic bag or tuber ware. - To freeze: slice or chop peppers, spread in a single layer on cookie tray and freeze, then promptly place in airtight containers or heavy-duty freezer bags and return to freezer. Blackberries: - Remove from green pint container. Do not wash until ready to use. Place paper towel on a dish or tray, spread berries out single layer. Store uncover in refrigerator, use in 2-3 days. - To freeze: wash and allow to dry, place single layer on tray. Place tray in freezer. Once solid, scoop up and place in freezer bags. When ready to use thaw or use frozen. Broccoli: - Place head of broccoli, stem down, into a bowl with a half inch of water at the bottom. Cover head loosely with a plastic bag containing a few holes for air circulation. Refrigerate. Change water daily. Use within 5-7 days. - Another option: fill a clean, empty spray bottle with cold water, gently mist your broccoli heads. Loosely wrap the heads with a paper towel so that the towel absorbs some of the moisture, refrigerate. Use within 4 days. Cabbage: - Refrigerate inside a tuber-ware. Keeping cabbage cold will help to retain its vitamin C content. - To freeze: wash, cut cabbage into thin wedges or separate into leaves. Blanch (plunge into boiling water) for 2 minutes and chill quickly in ice cold water. Drain off excess moisture, package in airtight containers or freezer bags and freeze immediately. Cauliflower: - Store unwashed cauliflower stem down in a plastic or paper bag inside refrigerator. Use within 7-10 days. - To Freeze: remove leaves, wash. Split cauliflower into 1 to 1 1/2 inch pieces. Blanch (plunge into boiling water) for three minutes and chill quickly in ice cold water. Drain off excess moisture, package in airtight containers or freezer bags and freeze immediately.

2 Cucumbers: - The best place to store is on your counter at room temperature. For longer storage, wrap the cucumber in a dry paper towel and then put it into the fridge. Keeping the cucumbers wrapped, minimizes the amount of moisture on the cucumber, which slows the process of decay. Place them towards the front of the shelf, where temperatures are warmer. - Cucumbers are highly sensitive to ethylene, a natural gas that causes the certain foods to ripen (and eventually spoil) very quickly. Keep them separate from bananas, tomatoes, and melons, which are all high ethylene producers. Donut Peaches: - Ideal for eating out of hand because of their strong, sweet peach flavor and tender flesh. To ripen: let them sit stem end down at room temperature for two to three days. Peaches may be placed in a paper bag with an apple to enhance ripening. Refrigerate only after ripe. Refrigerated peaches will not ripen further. Eggplant: - Store eggplant not in the refrigerator, but at room temperature. Store in a cool spot, away from direct sunlight, and use as soon as possible. - Like cucumbers, eggplant is temperature sensitive especially below 50 F, which can damage the texture and flavor. - Eggplant is also highly sensitive to ethylene, a natural gas that causes certain foods to ripen and spoil quickly. Store eggplant away from bananas, tomatoes, and melons, which are all high ethylene producers. Garlic: - Store at room temperature. Whole heads will last 3 to 5 weeks, but once cloves are separated, they will last about 10 days. Garlic Scapes: - What is it? Garlic scapes are the flower bud of the garlic plant. The bud is removed in late June to encourage the bulbs to thicken up. Scapes taste just like garlic. They can be used in exactly the same way as garlic in any recipe. - Ways to use garlic scapes: - Scape Pesto: Scape pesto can be very pungent, but it mellows substantially after a few months in the freezer. - Grilled Scapes: Tossed with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper, over direct heat for about two minutes. Flip them once, halfway through, and finish with an extra sprinkle of flaky salt and maybe a bit of lemon juice and zest. - Scapes as vegetable: Scapes also work well as a vegetable, cut into lengths and added to stir-fries or blanched and added to salads, much as you might use green beans.

3 Grape Tomatoes: - Don't store them in the refrigerator. When fresh tomatoes are chilled they get that unpleasant grainy, mealy texture. Cold temperatures from the refrigerator will also stop their ripening process. - Store tomatoes on the countertop in a bowl. Honey Dew: - Whole, ripe honeydew melons can be stored in the refrigerator for up to five days. - Enclose them in plastic bags to protect other produce from the ethylene gas that honeydew gives off. - Once cut, honeydew should be sealed in an airtight container or wrapped and stored in the refrigerator, where it will keep for up to three days. - Cut melons quickly absorb odors from other foods; plus, their own aroma can transfer to and alter the taste of other foods, so make sure their wrapping is airtight. Kale: - Kale is super fragile, despite its hardiness. - Do not prewash. Washing it before storage will only increase spoilage. - Store in the coldest part of the fridge. Kale tends to get more and more bitter the longer it is left at room temperature - Wrap kale in a paper towel and then place it in an air-tight bag. - Do not de-stem it. Kale is very sensitive. You only want to cut it and wash it prior to use. Kale is very sensitive to ethylene, formed naturally from certain other produce, so store it away from these melons, tomatoes and peaches, nectarines, apples, and bananas Lettuce: - Do not wash until ready to use. Place head lettuce in bowl so it stands upright. Add about an inch of water to bowl. Place lettuce stem down in bowl. Cover loosely with a plastic bag. Nectarines: - To ripen nectarines let them sit stem end down at room temperature for two to three days. Nectarines may be placed in a paper bag with an apple to enhance ripening. three days. Nectarines may be placed in a paper bag with an apple to enhance ripening. Refrigerate only after ripe. Refrigerated nectarines will not ripen further. Never squeeze a nectarine at the sides, if ripe you will bruise the nectarine. To test for ripeness, gently press at stem end. Onions: - Store in a cool, dry place that has good air circulation. (Store in the fridge if you don t have such a place.) They will keep for 2 to 3 months. - DO NOT STORE WITH POTATOES. (If next to each other they spoil faster.)

4 Raspberries: - Remove from green pint container. Do not wash until ready to use. Place paper towel inside a colander, add berries, place saran wrap over top with some small air holes for ventilation. Do not store in crisper part of refrigerator. Use within two to three days. - Freeze easily: wash and allow to dry, place single layer of berries on tray. Place tray in freezer. Once solid, scoop up and place in freezer bag. When ready to use thaw or use frozen. Red Potatoes: - Store in a cool, dry, dark place that has good air circulation. They will keep for 2 to 3 months. DO NOT STORE WITH ONIONS. - Leave dirt on, only wash as you are using them. Scallions: - Scallions are most commonly referred to as bunching onions in the United States. They are a variety of young onions with a long, thin base that has not yet developed into a bulb and long straight green stalks that look like giant chives. Both the base and the green stalks are commonly eaten. - Place your green onions in a jar with a bit of water. Cover them with a plastic bag, and store them in the refrigerator. Change or add water every couple days, as needed. Bunching onions have a milder flavor than mature onions, but a bit stronger than chives. Spinach: - Do not wash until ready to use. Remove from bag. Place a dry paper towel in bottom of tuber-ware container. Place spinach in container with sealable lid, store 5-6 days. Strawberries: - Remove from green quart container. Do not wash until ready to use. If using them day of purchase just leave on counter. - To store, remove green tops. Place cut side down on a paper towel inside a tuber ware. Place lid on tuber ware and refrigerate. Use within two to three days. - To freeze: slice the strawberries and place them into a bowl. For each quart of berries, sprinkle 1/2 cup of sugar over it. Stir the ingredients together until the sugar is dissolved. Then, pack the strawberries into a freezer container and seal it tightly to freeze them.

5 Sweet Potatoes: - Sweet potatoes keep at room temperature for a week or in a cool dark place for about a month. - What's a (Real) Yam? Yams are native to Africa and Asia, with the majority of the crop coming from Africa. They are related to lilies. Yams have a cylindrical shape with blackish or brown skin and white, purple or reddish flesh. Yams are starchier and drier then sweet potatoes. True yams can be tough to find. - What's a Sweet Potato? Come from the morning glory family. Skin color can range from white and yellow to red, purple and brown, while the flesh can be white, yellow, orange or even orange-red. These vegetables have an elongated shape with tapered ends. There are two major types: 1 Firm sweet potatoes, which have golden skin and paler flesh. 2 Soft sweet potatoes, which have copper skin and orange flesh.(windy Acres Farm grows this kind) After cooking firm sweet potatoes still remain firm and a little waxy, while the soft variety becomes creamy, fluffy, and moist. When Windy Acres Farm sweet potatoes season is over don t be fooled by the common U.S. Grocery Store Labeling: - Yam soft sweet potato with a copper skin and deep orange flesh. - Sweet potato Firm sweet potato with golden skin and lighter flesh. Tomatoes: - Don't store them in the refrigerator. When fresh tomatoes are chilled they get that unpleasant grainy, mealy texture. Cold temperatures from the refrigerator will also stop their ripening process. Store tomatoes on the countertop in a bowl. - To store cut tomatoes, place in plastic or glass container and store in refrigerator for only a few days. Watermelon: - Whole, ripe watermelons can be stored in the refrigerator for up to five days. - Once cut, watermelon should be sealed in an airtight container or wrapped and stored in the refrigerator, where it will keep for up to three days. - Cut melons quickly absorb odors from other foods; plus, their own aroma can transfer to and alter the taste of other foods, so make sure their wrapping is airtight. White Peaches: - To ripen peaches let them sit stem end down at room temperature for two to three days. Peaches may be placed in a paper bag with an apple to enhance ripening. - Refrigerate only after ripe. Refrigerated peaches will not ripen further. - Never squeeze a peach at the sides, if ripe you will bruise the peach. To test for ripeness, gently press at stem end.

6 White Potatoes: - Store in a cool, dry, dark place that has good air circulation. They will keep for 2 to 3 months. DO NOT STORE WITH ONIONS. - Leave dirt on, only wash as you are using them. - All purpose potato: Boiled, mashed, grilled, baked, potato salad, scalloped potatoes the possibilities are endless. Yellow Peaches: - To ripen peaches let them sit stem end down at room temperature for two to three days. Peaches may be placed in a paper bag with an apple to enhance ripening. - Refrigerate only after ripe. Refrigerated peaches will not ripen further. Never squeeze a peach at the sides, if ripe you will bruise the peach. To test for ripeness, gently press at stem end. Yellow Squash and Zucchini: - Store wrapped in a plastic bag in the fridge for up to five days. - To Freeze: wash, cut into 1/2 chunks, or shred it with a box grater or food processor. - Fill a large pot about 2/3 full with water and bring it to a full boil. For chunks, boil for 1-3 minutes. For shredded, steam it in a steamer basket for about 2 minutes. - Fill a large bowl with ice water. Use a slotted spoon to scoop from the blanching water and into the ice water bath for 3 to 5 minutes. - Place in colander, pat with a paper towel. - Spread pieces across a baking sheet in a single layer. Place the baking sheet in the freezer for 1 to 2 hours (or until frozen). - Place the frozen pieces in a zip-top bag or freezer-safe container.