"Mom, this is so cool!"

This is what Bean said when he was cutting green beans off the vine today.  It's what Ida said when she was helping me dig onions and pick strawberries.  It really is cool.  The kids are right.  To get to watch something that you planted as a seed grow to a large plant that produces fruit and vegetables is so cool.  It's rewarding too.  It makes me really happy to see the kids amazed at the garden that they helped plant from seeds.  Not only that, but they are learning that food doesn't just magically appear from the grocery store, that there is hard work and a process behind every piece of fruit and vegetable. 

The kids go in to the garden at least daily to snoop around and see how things are growing.  If something needs to be be picked or weeded, the kids are on it.  Sure, things get cut that aren't supposed to sometimes, but it's ok.  I know that they are learning valuable skills that they can teach their children someday(already hoping for grandchildren).

The green beans are coming in like crazy right now.  Every day for the past 5 days there have been more to pick each day.  So, that means that I have to do something with all of these green beans.  Most people can them, but I am choosing to freeze them.  I know that canning them will preserve them for much longer than if I were to freeze them, but I am looking to get enough beans to last until next summer's harvest.  I also want to have the beans that we eat through the winter to provide the most nutrients possible.  I am already starting out with organic, home grown stuff, so that is a good start.  I decided to go with freezing after I researched the nutritional differences between different food processing.  Come to find out, freezing retains a lot more nutrients than canning does.  Canning requires high temperatures to process the food, which causes a lot more nutrient loss.  Now don't get me wrong, there is a time and place for canning too.

With my green beans, I chose to blanch them first.  My Mom taught me about this neat little process, which I'm sure some of you have done before yourselves.  Blanching is simply boiling them for about a minute or so, immediately plunging them into ice water, drying for a bit, packaging and then freezing them.   Blanching doesn't cook the beans, but stops the enzymatic activity that will cause spoilage.  This is obviously taking some of the nutrition from the bean, however I can't keep the green beans good in the fridge all winter long.  I have been using my food saver to vacuum pack them to keep them good for as long as possible.  You can also use this same process for other things from your garden, such as broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, greens, etc.  I can use all of these throughout the winter for cooking and Vitamix shakes.

You would be amazed at how many fruits and vegetables you can freeze.  A simple google search will provide you with all the information you need.  My Mom and I keep finding new things to freeze for the winter to cut down on the winter grocery budget.  Not only that, but it's so much easier to find GOOD food during the summer.  For example, did you know that you can freeze apples?  I didn't.  Now I can freeze them while I can get them cheap and use them for the Vitamix shakes or fresh applesauce for the kids.

So, pretty much I love gardening.  I love including my kids and teaching them stuff.  I love eating good, healthy food that came from by back yard.  I also love the cheap price tag.   Hopefully you know what I'm talking about, or will someday when you decide to grow your own garden.

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer.