Recipe(tried): Blanching Green Beans

Hi Jamey: As far as I know, blanching of any fruit or veggie is part of the preserving process. The one key thing to remember is time! If you blanch for 2 minutes you must cool( in a large quantity of ice water) exactly the same amount of time. So, blanch for 2 minutes, ice water for 2 minutes; blanch for 3 minutes, ice water for 3 minutes. Skipping the ice water step usually leads to soft mushy results. More work, but really worth the effort. Tomatoes, on the other hand do not need blanching - they are very acid and all blanching does is make them go "bleah" Simply lay whole tomatoes on a cookie sheet and freeze. When frozen, pack into containers and pop back into the freezer. Frozen Tomatoes are only good for cooking, as they do go mushy.