Fruit in Jan/ Feb

[CookieMumsters]

I'm not expecting the world to end after brexit, but I do think getting fresh fruit / veg might be tricky for a while.

Ive started buying a few tins of fruit with every shop, and my plan is to shop near the end of december and get in some berries / soft fruit which will hopefully last a couple of weeks, and some apples / pears etc while will last a couple more in the fridge. Then we'll be onto tinned stuff.

Is there anything else I can do? Anything I've not thought of? How do you like to eat tinned fruit?

We've been pleasantly surprised by how nice the frozen fruit from Farmfoods is.

30 - 60 seconds in the microwave for fruits like cherries, blueberries & strawberries & they're lovely with yogurt or porridge.

I also quite often buy a couple of bags of apples & they keep well for around a month.

Tinned pineapples & mandarins are lovely. I always buy them in juice rather than syrup so they taste more like fruit & less like sugar!

Thanks PhantomErik - I agree there's some good frozen fruit but my freezer space is limited so I don't have much.

I like syrup though

I'm thinking of buying a few extra fruit juice as we will be low on fruit and want the DC to get a little Vitamin C.

Great idea MarshmallowManiac. Do you know what fruit juices have the most vitamins in?

Dried fruit. Good with cereal, porridge,etc. Need less per portion as well.

I think apple and orange are the best, but I am going to get a mixture as there should be some vit c in most of them. Mango juice is good too. Great idea Blackeyed I eat some always with my b/fast but it would be good to have some in reserve for the kids. I am going to buy some more tinned fruit too.

Dried fruit, good idea BlackeyedSusan. I'll have to see if I can convince anyone else to eat them

I work on the principle that we all need a certain number of portions. If three of mine are dried fruit, I need less of what else is available.

It's hard convincing them isn't it Cookie, my DC don't want to eat too much fruit so I have to disguise it in things they like such as stewed fruit, crumble and jelly with fruit in. We will do what we have to won't we guys.

Dried apricots contain antioxidants, magnesium, potassium and a little calcium. I'm not a fan of fruit juice due to its high sugar content. I prefer to eat fruit whole and get the fibre instead of a concentrated shot of sugar.
Tinned/jars of pears in juice are lovely with natural yoghurt.

The only thing is Diana dried fruit has a lot of sugar in it too, but obvs we would like to try to get some nutrients into our children with the absence of lots of fresh fruit.

I’ve bought the dried fruit from here. We eat it in porridge, cake, pancakes.
The dates make lovely sticky toffee pudding - not very healthy!
They also sell dehydrated pears and apples, which can go in crumbles.
The blueberries were the cheapest dried that I could find online, that was a few months ago and I haven’t price checked since.
I’m also going to make tinned mincemeat for Christmas, and pudding and cake. The mincemeat will keep for a year.

Thanks Blue the link didn't come through though.

Definitely just doing what we can!

I think lots of fruit options have plenty of sugar, but it's just one option. And veg keeps better anyway.

How do people store dried fruit once it's open? What's a space efficient way?

BlueistheNewme where did you buy from?

We have tined, frozen, dried and freeze dried fruit and fresh if we can

Also for veg, squash, sweet potato, onions and potatoes last ages in a darkened room (garage, shed) or cupboard.

I buy packets of dried prunes and apricots Cookie and they usually seal up well again, and I keep them back in a dark cupboard. The packets stack side by side usually quite effectively for space.

Here you go,

wiltonwholefoods.com/12-dried-fruit

Sorry!

I store open packets in glass Kilner type jars. Smaller amounts in the plastic packet with a plastic clip.
The unopened are under the bed, in plastic really useful boxes.

I'm starting to freeze chopped bananas now. Only problem is I keep eating them

Oxyiz I had that problem with the chocolate biscuits, not the frozen fruit

You can also freeze most fruit guys. It is probably good to flash freeze them first on a tray separately and then bag them up so that they do not stick together.

That's my problem too Oxyiz , and Cookie

Dried fruit stored open in the cupboard or in our tummies... we eat some every day.

And it is good past bbd. Still using 5/20 fruit and it is ok. Apricots discolour and don't go so long after date.. Sultanas go mank eventually.

But where have all the tinned mandarins gone. None to be had for the last month in my local supermarket.