Don't let those precious ingredients get moldy in the back of your fridge! Plan ahead and freeze leftover sauces, canned tomatoes, heavy creams, and blended fruits in an ice cube tray so that you're ready with perfect portions in the future.
Our family makes pizza every Sunday night, so it takes us about a month to go through an entire jar of this specific tomato sauce (pictured). Instead of keeping the jar in the fridge and finding a moldy ring inside the lid after a couple of weeks, I have made it a habit to freeze the remaining sauce into ice cubes. At this point I know that it takes about 3 cubes to make one large pizza, so on Sunday afternoon, I just pull 3 cubes out of the bag and put them in a bowl on the counter to defrost.
You can use the same trick with any jars of pasta sauce, home made pesto, or even blended fresh berries that you might not get to before they get moldy. This is also a great tip for containers of heavy cream (often used in small quantities in sauces and soups), and milk or creamer that you won't be able to finish before going away on vacation. Milk and cream cubes can be used to cool down cups of coffee or tea, or added to recipes as a substitute for heavy cream, while blended berry or citrus juice cubes can be added for extra flavor when cooling down summer drinks.
Tips for freezing ingredients into ice cubes:
- Find an ice cube tray that comes with a lid, or simply cover the tray with a wrap (preferably something reusable like bees wax). This will prevent the sauce or cream from absorbing any other smells and flavors in the freezer, as well as keep the cubes free of any possible debris.
- If possible, freeze the ingredients in as simple form as possible. Unsalted, unspiced, etc. will allow you to use the ingredients for any range of things in the future.
- Roughly knowing the measurement of the cubes will help you decide how much to defrost in the future. A standard ice cube is about 2 tablespoons.
- After filling the tray, gently tap it on the counter a few times to ensure that there aren't any bubbles in the cubes. This is more important for thicker sauces.
- Once frozen, remove the cubes from the tray and place them into a freezer bag or reusable container to save space. Make sure to label it and include the date!
