The sustainable shopper: Save the surplus

If you're committed to eating local, preserving is a way of doing it all year round.

This time of year there are lots of crops getting ripe on trees like apples, pears and feijoas. If you don’t have fruit trees, you’ll find these in-season fruits at great prices in fruit shops and supermarkets. It makes good sense to preserve fruit now for use in the winter months; it saves money and energy, and feels great. Here are some preserving tips:

• Use your freezer to preserve raw fruit: scoop feijoas out of their skins and freeze with a squeeze of lemon juice in ziplock bags. Don’t forget to label!
• Do the same with lightly cooked apple; simmer until soft and collapsed with a little sugar and water. Thaw for mid-winter apple pie.
  
• Preserve halved or quartered pears in a light syrup (3 parts water to 1 part sugar). Add a vanilla pod for lovely flavour. Pack into sterilised jars when hot.
  
• Save your old jam jars – wash and dry them thoroughly and then sterilise them in the oven for 15 minutes at 120°C, before using for jam and preserves.
  
• Try making quince paste: cook peeled and quartered quinces in a little water and sugar for 3-4 hours until they’re a plummy colour. Purée with a stick blender, then pour into a tray until set. Slice into squares and serve with cheese (it keeps for months in the fridge).
  

See our article Eat well, spend less: Heaven preserve us for more tips and information on preserving.