What are freezers for?

(Let’s assume “dead bodies” was not the first thought that came to your mind.)

Burrrrrrr!

At a gathering in my home recently, I noticed a group of tipsy guests congregating around my freezer. They had apparently gone in for cocktail ice refills and were distracted by the contents of my cold box. They were touching things and asking questions as if they had just landed on a strange and confounding planet. I found this very amusing and was intrigued by the idea of exploring how different households stock their freezers.

When you start to embrace the ideals of eating whole, real, natural, fresh food you might find that the contents of your freezer change significantly from colorfully packaged convenience foods to glass jars and well-used zip-lock bags. I suppose the contents of my freezer do look a bit mysterious. But guess what…my freezer is definitely still for convenience.

So reach down deep and awaken your inner voyeur for this reality rummage through my freezer to see if you can find an idea or two that brings more ease and pleasure to your kitchen. Here’s my inventory:

• A bag of U-pick local organic blueberries – perfect for:
• adding to smoothies (checkout this example)
• blending thickly with any kind of creamy milk for ice cream
• super-hot-day quick snacks for kids served in bowl
• adding to drinks like tiny ice cubes only much fancier
• thawing and adding to sweet treats when baking (see this example)
• A bag of too-brown bananas – peeled & perfect for:
• adding to smoothies for creamier texture
• A bag of chopped fresh greens (mustards, collards, kale, chard) collected in season and cheap – perfect for:
• adding to smoothies 
• adding to soups (whoa look at this example)
• making fast stirfry meals in the wok (feast the eyes here)
• adding to omelets and other breakfast scrambles (read more about this here)
• chopping fine to make Indian paneer dishes to serve with rice (Indian Bliss information here!)
• adding to beans
• A bag of peeled and diced mango surplus – perfect for:
• adding to smoothies
• blending thick with any kind of creamy milk for ice cream
• blending thin with water to make mango juice
• A bag of lemons and limes – whole & perfect for:
• grating frozen into any dish while it’s cooking for extra nutrients and a pop of flavor
• grating frozen into water and other drinks
• Note: don’t be afraid; use the whole lemon/lime; just grate it until it’s gone, and it will keep in the freezer, serving your zesty flavor needs for longer than you can imagine.
• A bag of avocado pits – you read that correctly – whole and perfect for:
• grating into smoothies
• grating into baked goods
• grating over oatmeal or cream of wheat dishes
• Note: again, don’t be afraid; use the whole thing. They last forever and just a bit adds a nice nutty flavor packed FULL of nutrients.
• A glass jar half full of sofrito (minced mixture of onion, ginger, garlic, peppers, cilantro – read more about sofrito here) and a glass jar half full of mineral/bone broth (read more about how I make my stock here) perfectly put on HOLD for:
• adventures away from the kitchen any longer than a weekend.
• Note: nothing goes to waste; it will save in the freezer until I get back when it will return to the fridge for continued use.
• A bag full of bones - YIKES dead bodies! -  (and all the unmentionable meat stuff left on plates after bone-in meats are consumed) perfect for:
• boiling and straining to make a bone stock/broth (here’s how made super easy)
• keeping smelly stuff out of the garbage can
• A bag of herb and root vegetable scraps - perfect for:
• boiling and straining to make vegetable stock, which I am loving for making creamy risotto lately
• adding to the boiling bone broth to increase the mineral content and healing properties (courtesy tip from my friend and your local herbalist, the fabulous Mrs. Phoenix Fermin, of Sacred Tree Herbals)
• boiling, straining, and adding to chicken soup to heal a sick neighbor
• Glass jars of bulk-bought brown rice, whole wheat flour and tea that we are simply not consuming fast enough to leave out in the summer months
• Full Disclosure: a ridiculously colorful package of fully cooked chicken nuggets (hey but they are organic!) because my daughter has developed middle-school-lunch pickiness, but willingly packs these in her lunch to thaw all morning and eat at room temp by midday.
• A lavender eye-pillow stored in a small zip lock bag to stay dry. The notorious pillow is granted like a special treat to anyone in the house with a headache.
• And finally…frosty pint glasses for sharing beer. Cheers!

Lemons, Limes, Avocado Pits, and Eye Pillow (of course)!

That’s what freezers are for…in good times…in bad times…

Don’t be perfect. Don’t be strict. Don’t be judgie. Be experimental, curious, intentional, healthy, happy, brave, tasty and wild!

Food is my friend and yours.  Enjoy it!