Is there a way to preserve greens???

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

OMG-This wonderful woman I work with brought me a BOX of beet tops from her garden for the buns yesterday. I figured with four (And Rupert is on reduced pellets right now) we’d likely get through maybe half before they spoil.

Then today, she brought me a GARBAGE BAG FULL of carrot tops(some with carrots) -The bunnies would go nutz if they knew how much of their fav’s I have.

 

So help me!! How do I keep them from spoiling or going to waste?

 

Can I freeze them? Dry them? …something else?

[mrmac]

I am not much help, but I have been wondering this too. They always go bad so fast…

[SophieBun]

Hi KK I just looked it up on google and you can freeze carrots & beets!

here’s both tutorials on how to do it, hope it helps!

http://www.pickyourown.org/carrotsfreezing.htm

http://www.pickyourown.org/freezing_beets.htm

[Scooter]

BRILLIANT! I will be saving this info… excellent topic!

[jerseygirl]

I’ve tried freezing carrot tops before & it didn’t work. I had wrapped them in alfoil and they went black (could have been the foil though). Parsley is the only herb I know that freezes well. The other you have to chop & freeze in water. Don’t know if carrot or beet tops will do so well. Beet tops seem to stay good in fridge for a while. I have thought about drying carrot tops – think it would turn out like oregano…   In the fridge, they keep best if they are dry (as in if they were washed, make sure they thoroughly dry again.)

Maybe use half for your crew + Mikey and go vvisit your friends who have bunnies?

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I was thinking….And let me know what you all think… of just chopping them up and making bunny cookies with them. I’m going to have to get creative with the recipes-but I figured I’d use them in lieu of hay or pellets in a cookie recipe…

[MimzMum]

I think the cookie idea is excellent! And thanks for the freezing links! I often find my greens “unintentionally” frozen in my fridge, because it has some wild hair about when they are not in the crisper drawers, or too close to the tops of the drawers, they ice up. I’ve tried resetting the temp and everything…ziplocs…GLAD tubs…green bags…nothing helps.
And yes, Jerz, carrot tops turn black when frozen, no matter how they are packaged….I’ve seen it happen almost right before my eyes. It’s the yuckiest thing. >.< They're Mimzy's favorite and I just can't keep them long enough for him to really enjoy.
I’ve almost come to the point of finding some bunny-safe way to can the greens. ANYTHING to make them last longer!! 0_o

[Adalaide]

Making cookies with greens is a brilliant idea. Cookies will freeze easily and can be stored for way longer that way. Maybe I should make cookies, I’ve never made any for Freya.

[Beka27]

That’s the one unfortunate thing about carrot tops, they do turn so quickly. Most veggies I am able to purchase and feed for about 5-7 days… not carrot tops… they seem to have a shelf life of only about 2-3 days at most. Even then they start to get icky. My thought was also if there was a way you could dry them out and then mix bits in with hay.

[jerseygirl]

Yes, I think drying would be best way to go but if you have oodles, why not try everything! Oh I forgot, you can eat some yourself also. Just treat it like spinach or fresh herbs- adding to dish near end of cooking. Throw it in a stirfry or with pasta…

[Monkeybun]

Monkey LOVES carrot tops. What I usually end up doing is washing them all, drying them all off, and putting a little handful into a ziploc baggie, suck out the air, and put more in another baggie, etc etc. until i have a stack of vacuum packed carrot tops, and then put em in the crisper. They seem to last longer that way.

[Sarita]

If it were me, I would just wash and use them up very quickly. Just fill them up on the greens.

Freezing greens is not a good idea and it seems like a waste of good carrot tops to use them in cookies.

Most greens can only be preserved up to a week anyway. I use the green bags and that seems to help.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

^^ There is waaay too much to use quickly. I literally have almost a garbage bag full. They are getting so many greens right now they are leaving them on the ground!!

I think I’m going to try cookies tonight-I’ll let you all know how it goes…I guess I have to clean the kitchen then… YUCK!! LOL

[Sarita]

Are there any other rabbit people you can give it to then? Maybe share with them.

That’s the problem with getting too much :~)

[SophieBun]

How do you guys make cookies for the buns? I wanna learn!

[KatnipCrzy]

I had someone give me a case of beet tops once and my Mom gave me a paperbag full of carrots from her garden-  the best thing is to clean them- get rid of anything that looks like it will go bad first, wash them well, lay them out on papertowel to dry (I usually spin them in the salad spinner first)- you can even point a fan on them to get them to dry quicker- and then package them in green bags.  I can get 10-14 days max by “cherry picking” the freshest, washing, air drying then storing in a green bag in the refrig.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Guily-it’s easy.

And trust me when I say easy. I cook-sandwhiches and mac and cheese. That’s the extend of my kitchen powers…and sometimes they don’t turn out. I am NO martha stewart.

Combind ingredients in a blender. Spoon on to baking sheet. Cook at 250 until done. That’s it.

Ingredients: Veggies in a blender. Add oats to make them cookie dough consistency. That’s it that’s all LOL

[mnrabbit]

 I don’t know if this will work for beet tops, but this is what I do with herbs to make them last longer:

I arrange them like a vase of flowers.  I trim the stems a tiny bit, then put the herbs in a cup with a little water at the bottom, making sure any leaves are not under water, just the stems, so they can “drink.”  I keep the cup of herbs in the refrigerator.  They stay fresh a lot longer than when they are just wadded up in a plastic bag in the crisper drawer.

[Deleted User]

I always dry carrot tops. I hang them up in bunches close to my furnace in the basement for a week, like you would with clover for tea. Or I spread them out on top of a grate outside. The beet tops I tried to dry but the thick stems hold a lot of moisture and wouldn’t dry out completely before spoiling. But I love eating sauteed beet greens myself so I used up the bags I was given this summer fast.

[RabbitPam]

I think the cookies idea is great. Once they are cooked, you can freeze the cookies if you want to or just fill a cookie jar for treats.
What a great recipe. You can cook mac and cheese? Without using a box by Kraft? *bows to superior chef*

[Author]

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