Zucchini is excellent when sliced thinly and dehydrated. Ditto eggplant and cherry tomatoes.

I freeze large tomatoes in gallon-sized ziplock bags (as summer wears on and I know that we won't be able to eat what we have, I freeze them as I go for later use). In September, I thaw out several of the bags and use the tomatoes for sauce. Others I keep for use in the winter. Running the frozen tomato under warm water will cause the skin to split and make it easy to peel, then I toss them in my stews and soups.

I wish I could save beans. I've tried blanching and not blanching and always seem to end up with inedible beans fit only for the compost pile.

Linda

I also shred zucchini and freeze in zipper top freezer bags. I use the defrosted squash in enchiladas, baked casseroles and frittatas.

Broccoli and Cauliflower blanche and freeze well, as do green beans( i dont always blanche beans).

Lots of ways to freeze tomatoes. I will slow roast mounds of cherrys with garlic and onion, then puree and freeze in small containers. These can boost the flavor of soups, sauces and stews. I run whole tomatoes through a food mill this can then be frozen(though I can because I carefully mete out my freezer space). Tomatoes can also be cooked into sauce and frozen.

Carrots can be frozen but I just keep in a root cellar. I also store potatoes, rutabaga, turnips and winter squash. I braid my onions and garlic and hang. I dry my herbs and then store in bags or crush and put into bottles.

Eggplant I slice into planks, roast the planks with olive oil salt and pepper. These then freeze well layered with wax paper. I use the frozen slices in sandwiches, moussaka and vegetable lasagna.

Peppers freeze fine sliced, no blanching required.

I also make chips from zucchini and eggplants. And freeze them.

I assume you know that the Harvest forum here isn't just about canning? It covers all forms of food preservation - freezing, dehydrating, pickling, smoking, salting, fermenting, and yes, even canning.. That is why it has a direct link from this forum in the Related Links at the top of this forum's front page. ;-)

Harvest Forum

You all mention "blanching" but you don't say how you are blanching or for how long. That can make a crucial difference in the results.

Dave

Ahh never thought to look for a harvest forum! Dope! Blanching I followed most directions I found, boil 3-4 minutes then submerge quickly in ice water. That is from memory - but most places said same method and that is what I used. Like I said beans zuc & squash were terrible.

Also let me clarify I am hoping for ideas that preserve most of taste, not interested in saving just to save.

Beans are OK blanched and tossed into ice water, then flash frozen on a cookie sheet and bagged and frozen.

The only way I've had luck with squash is either to grate/shred it, blot the moisture out then freeze to use in soups/stews/baking or cook a bit and food process/freeze for soup base. Otherwise it turns out mushy!

I haven't tried drying the zuk and eggplant before freezing! I think I will! I've dried tomato slices and frozen, so why not zuk and EP!?!? Nancy

I don't blanch my beans. They last a whole year, no problem, taste great.

We were not happy with our frozen zuc last year and don't think we will be freezing any this year. Blanch/no blanch doesn't really make a difference.

Tomatoes are great in the freezer, or canner.

I blanch my Italian flat beans and they freeze just fine. Zucchini gets both grated for bread, and cubed, blanched and frozen. I add the cubed, frozen zukes to things like sauteed veggies, and tomato sauce that I make from the frozen tomatoes. I don't bother to blanch the tomatoes. Instead, as others said above, I just freeze them whole, and when the weather gets cold, a day of making sauce warms the house. That way they aren't really frozen for a long time. I roast cherry tomatoes before I freeze them to also add to the sauce (did that today.) Peppers are cut up and froze without blanching, and some of them also find their way into the sauce. After cooking, the sauce gets frozen.

I grew my first plot of edamame this year and picked and cooked a few plants-worth yesterday. Came out great. So, the rest will get steamed for 5 mins. and frozen. When I take out a bag, I'll just need to steam, boil, or microwave them for a few mins. Easy!

Oh, and generally speaking, blanching isn't just giving a cold water bath. It's putting the veggies in ice water for the same amount of time as they were boiled. The texture will never be the same as fresh, or as as good as commercial quality frozen foods, but if you can stop the enzymes, and the cooking that the boiling starts, you'll get fairly good frozen products.

Another idea for any veggie, even the not-so-freezer-freindly types, like eggplant etc... is simply to cook the same meals that you do when it's fresh and freeze the meals as quickly as you can. That has the added benefits of convenience of time saving when you're ready to eat the meal, and being able to freeze perfect-sized portions.

You can pickle tomatoes just fine. I've been eating pickled cherry tomatoes on my salads for the past week or two. Excellent. Could probably even pickle green ones. Loads of recipes available online.

Another vote here for roasting toms along with any available herbs/onions/garlic and then freezing them flat in freezer bags. Grew up with my mom making freezer pickles which I've never seen duplicated outside my hometown community-- so I make those in remembrance of her. Extra green beans are made into refrigerator dilly beans. The shelf life is shorter than the processed versions but it works for me.

I blanch my green beans, and I like them that way! Zucchini can be shredded or made into chips or pickled. Tomatoes - sauce, salsa, roasted, dehydrated, pickled, etc.

You can get more ideas here:

National Center for Home Food Preservation

I like tomatoes in a variety of ways. Cherry tomatoes get cooked with other ingredients for a curried cherry tomato sauce that is very similar to shrimp cocktail sauce. I freeze it in small containers. I am growing more paste tomatoes this year because last year I got a dehydrator and discovered partially dehydrated tomatoes frozen (because they still contain a lot of moisture) are great for different meals. I skin and freeze some whole tomatoes when I'm short on time. But, I think canning tomatoes and tomato sauces gives you a lot of variety. There are a lot of recipes that are fine for BW bath. Last year I found a smaller canning rack that fits into my stock pot which is a good size for half pints and pints. Also think of possibility of chutneys and jellies.

I freeze peppers sliced and raw plus also roasted.

I freeze roasted tomatoes.

Last year I grew three varieties of pole beans that were good fresh but also as a dried bean.

Winter squash and potatoes just needed cool storage in the basement.

Fermenting vegetables is another idea. I got a Perfect Pickler gadget at the farm and feed store which fits on any wide mouth canning jar. With this you can do small batches. I love fermented cubed beets. The salsa starter recipes for green bell peppers and jalapenos is very good. I use it as a condiment but for salsa I add fresh tomatoes.

Freezer and refrigerator pickles are good. One of my favorites is Zuni Café zucchini pickles for the refrigerator. Our daughter-in-law makes tons of zucchini relish (canned) which the family gobbles up.

I know you said you weren't interested in canning but think about what you cook during the winter. Pasta and tomato dishes are popular at our house so canning tomatoes and sauce is worth it. You can always freeze the items. I froze a fresh tomato pizza sauce. With the dehydrator I was also able to partially dry paste tomatoes and then puree to make a tomato paste substitute for the freezer. I freeze in snack bags but put the collection of snack bags into a freezer bag.

to me the veggies that really lose nothing in quality when frozen are shelling peas and shelling beans. They are then amazing in winter and spring. I also freeze paste tomatoes (after blanching) and potherbs (celery, turnip, daikon leaves) for stock and juicing, all in ziploc bags, but I consider these utilitarian in nature. For other types of storing, I am addicted to pickles.

blanching is over rated for most stuff. That was a practice done before home use vaccuum sealers came along. Just wash your green beans, cut um up and freeze them preferbly in vacuum bags., I suppose if you plan on storing them for a few years then maybe blanching is neccessary. Peas freeze great, again no blanching needed. Zukes dont freeze that well for future eating by themselves but as mentioned above, we always shred some for bread and the wife makes and freezes zuke noodles. I also freeze some sliced zukes which go fine in pasta sauces. About the only things I blanch any more are carrots and corn. oh and peppers freeze pretty well also when cut into juliene strips. And I also flash freeze everything on trays before sealing and freezing in vacuum bags

Last year I made what I called 99 pepper cubes. Basically the same idea as making pesto cubes in the freezer. I started with a large pot of cut up peppers, a couple tomatoes and a variety of herbs such as basil, marjoram, parsley and oregano. Boiled it all done for about 90 minutes and then ran through the food processor. Next froze in ice cube trays and into freezer bags. I was expecting them to be really hot from the peppers but they really weren't considering the heat of some of the peppers I started with. Everyone really enjoyed them. Goes well with all sorts of recipes.

gjcore Great idea! Nancy

I agree....don't blanch anything anymore! Right now, I have in freezer, snow peas, regular peas, green beans, onions, chard, pak choi, potatoes.

soon I will be getting baby corn,peppers, carrots, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, and cabbage. Don't blanch..I rinse, pat dry, put in zip locs, or some things, (like the baby corn)),I vacuum seal. All tastes great for a good year.