Blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries…I love
them all, especially when they are freshly picked and tasting like sunshine.
However, few things are more discouraging than spending
money on fresh berries only to have them go bad before you use them up. Thank
goodness Cooks Illustrated magazine published a great cleaning method that keeps
the fruit around longer.
Wash the berries in a bowl with three parts water and one
part white vinegar. Then drain and rinse. (For other fruits and vegetables,
fill a spay bottle with the water-vinegar solution, give them a spritz, and
then rinse.)
To dry, place more the sturdy ones like strawberries and
blueberries into a salad spinner lined with three layers of paper towels. Then
spin until dry. Delicate raspberries can be laid out onto paper towel-lined
counter or baking sheet and allowed to dry. (A fan blowing on the berries will
speed up the process.)
Once cleaned, place the berries in a container lined with
paper towels and keep in the refrigerator. Leave the lid opened a bit to allow
any excess moisture to escape.
The extra berries I purchase are headed straight for my
freezer to enjoy the rest of the year. After the berries are cleaned and dried,
I place them on a rimmed baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Then I pop the
sheet into the freezer. Once they are completely frozen, I remove the berries
from the sheet and place them into a zippered freezer bag.
Both fresh and frozen berries work well in so many recipes,
from smoothies to pancakes. When using the frozen ones, most recipes will tell
you if they need to be thawed out first. When in doubt, thaw the berries.
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