Freezing Strawberries + Freezer Jam

Yummy Strawberries!

Summer is here and suddenly it was time to purchase the local, yummy, juicy strawberries!  It's a tradition!  The already freshly picked quarts were purchased and after they arrived home it was time to prep/ freeze most of them to enjoy during the colder months here in Massachusetts.  Fresh local strawberries taste just sooo goood!!  Even the prepped local strawberries that are taken out of our freezer and defrosted.  There is something great about eating just ripe fruit.  Yum!!

To Freeze Strawberries:  Each berry was checked and the tops were cut off.  A triple rinse with cold water and draining them was the next step.  I like to cut the larger strawberries in halves or thirds before freezing. 

2 Cups of prepared fruit were placed in each freezer bag.  (Adding a little sugar to each bag is optional.)  Then, the bags were labeled and into our large freezer they went.  Oh, definitely there was a taste test and some strawberries are in our fridge ready to eat!

Strawberry Freezer Jam
Yes, the containers are recycled every year. :)

On Strawberry Day 2- three batches of Strawberry Freezer Jam were prepared.  We are not really partial to the commercial jams/ jellies/ preserves that are sold in supermarkets.  Making Freezer Jams has been another tradition of mine for over 40 years.  WoW!  It is that long.

After following the directions found in the CERTO package, the containers then sat on our dining room table undisturbed for 24 hours.  After the 24 hour time period they also found their place in our freezer.  Yum!

Our local, fresh, ripe, juicy Strawberries make their appearance in the fields once a year.  It's great to take the time to purchase them and then prep them to enjoy for the next 11 months.  Until there are no more found in our freezer, that is.

Enjoy!
Yummy!