Summer fruits and veggies

This isn't at all photography related, but I wanted to share a couple of my favorite food tips. These are going to seem really stupid if you already know, but if you don't...

1. Crisp Lettuce. Leafy lettuces are much better for you than the round iceberg variety. Unfortunately, lettuce doesn't take well to being cut and shipped, but there is a way to perk it up. Once I get it home, I pull off all of the leaves and wash them thoroughly before placing them in a bowl. Pour out excess water (I use a mixing bowl with a handle to make this easier) so the leaves aren't sitting in water, but the leaves will still be wet. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate. When you take out lettuce to use, shake off the water (or use a spinner if you have one).

I'm always amazed at how well this works and how long the lettuce will stay good like this. If you don't use it up in a couple days then you will want to add some more water and flip the bottom lettuce to the top. Just pour out any excess water and cover again.

2. Frozen grapes. These are a great summer snack, and you can get grapes for a really good price right now. Buy seedless grapes (I like the red), pull them all off the vine, and wash them thoroughly in the strainer. I then keep half in the fridge and put the other half in baggies in the freezer. Once the fresh grapes are eaten, I have frozen grapes to snack on. I really like to pour out a bunch in a bowl and eat them as they thaw. They're even better half frozen than completely frozen.

Not long ago I had a bag of green grapes experience freezer burn. Freezer burn is caused by the food being exposed to the dry air in the freezer. To prevent it, I bag the grapes while they're still wet from washing (pour out excess water so you don't get ice) and squeeze out as much air as possible before closing. Use individual baggie servings so you don't have to open and close the same bag over and over.