Fresh vs. Frozen Veggies: Myth-Busting Your Way to Better Eating

In this episode, we tackle the age-old debate of fresh versus frozen produce with two expert guests who bring real-world insights to your kitchen. Lisa Johnson, corporate dietitian for Homestyle Direct, and Maddie Ehrlich, Boise account manager for Simplot, join host Darleen Mahoney to bust myths and share practical wisdom about maximizing nutrition while minimizing waste and cost.

You'll discover surprising truths about when frozen vegetables actually outperform fresh ones nutritionally, how Americans waste an average of 37 minutes daily on food prep, and why that $20 bag of cherries might be costing you more than you think. Lisa and Maddie walk through what freezes well (broccoli, peppers, kale) versus what doesn't (lettuce, cucumbers), smart strategies for organic purchases, and cooking methods that preserve both nutrients and texture. They also share creative smoothie recipes using frozen produce and offer a practical framework for deciding when to choose fresh or frozen based on your lifestyle and budget.

Tune in to discover actionable tips that could save you hours of prep time, reduce your grocery bills, and help you actually eat the produce you buy instead of tossing it in the trash. Whether you're managing a tight budget, dealing with mobility challenges, or simply trying to eat healthier without the hassle, this episode offers invaluable guidance for making smarter choices in the produce aisle.

SeniorLivingGuide.com Podcast sponsored by TerraBella Senior Living & Tom Marks, Best Selling Author on Retirement

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Transcript

Darleen Mahoney [0:00 - 0:47]: Sam. And today we are joined by Lisa Johnson. She is the corporate dietitian for Homestyle Direct. Homestyle Direct provides remote meal service for medically tailored meals. And we also have Maddie Elrich. Did I pronounce that correct? 

Maddie Ehrlich [0:47 - 0:50]: Maddie. Maddie Ehrlich. But close enough, close enough. 

Darleen Mahoney [0:50 - 0:57]: Oh, my gosh. Everyone on this pod listens to my podcast. They absolutely know I cannot pronounce it. It's so bad. 

Maddie Ehrlich [0:57 - 0:58]: That's totally fine. 

Darleen Mahoney [0:58 - 1:08]: Oh, my gracious. And Maddie, she is the Boise, Idaho account manager for Simplot. Thank you, ladies, for joining us today. 

Maddie Ehrlich [1:09 - 1:10]: Thank you for having us. 

Lisa Johnson [1:10 - 1:11]: Yeah, thank you. 

Darleen Mahoney [1:12 - 2:02]: Absolutely. So we're going to talk about something today I'm really excited about, and it sounds so simplistic when you, when you say it out loud, but it really isn't. We're really going to dig into the. I guess it's a debate. It might be a debate. Today there's three of us. Who knows between fresh and frozen vegetables? Because I think people have, like, a misconception potentially that, like, what's in your freezer is not going to be as healthy as going to the store and buying. I mean, do you. What are your thoughts on that as far as, like, is it just about money? Is it nutrition? Is it about, you know, what's the prep on it? I mean, we're going to dig into all of that as far as, like, what's the difference? 

Lisa Johnson [2:04 - 2:55]: So I think there's a whole. There's a variety of factors that affect your decision about whether you want to use fresh versus frozen or even throwing in canned at the end of the day, depending on what you're trying to do with the item that you're using, a certain type of application may be more, more applicable, better for the, for the meal that you're making. But in general, if you compare fresh vegetables and fruits versus frozen, from a nutritional standpoint, you may actually end up. Unless you pick your fruits and vegetables exactly at the height of the season and you use them within three to four days, you may end up with a more nutritious product if you use a frozen food. Yeah. 

Darleen Mahoney [2:55 - 3:46]: Because I think we're trying more and more to eat healthier, especially as we age. We definitely need to be eating healthier. I think some people, younger people, can get away with it a little bit more, but it's something we really need to start being cognizant. I mean, we need to be eating healthy our whole lives. I don't want to give any young person that might be listening, they're out to go eat A bag of candy. But at the end of the day, I think it's important to consider your healthy options and what is available and weigh those options and have that knowledge. Because if you don't have the knowledge, then you're not making the best decisions, maybe for yourself or your family. Or if you're a caretaker and you're taking care of older people and seniors and the elderly, you really do want to make sure you're making the best choices for them as well. 

Maddie Ehrlich [3:46 - 4:25]: Yeah. And I would say something too, to think about when we're talking about, you know, fresh versus frozen. Of course, I don't think it's one or the other. I think you can have kind of a beautiful combination of the both. But a lot of folks who maybe are afraid of frozen vegetables, in the same token, we're going to probably dive into it. But how much of the fresh produce that you buy at the store ends up at the bottom of your garbage because you didn't eat it before it went bad? So hypothetically, you know, in that scenario, the frozen broccoli in your freezer would have done you a lot better than the broccoli that's spoiled and is now, unfortunately, going to be wasted. 

Lisa Johnson [4:25 - 4:25]: Right. 

Maddie Ehrlich [4:25 - 4:29]: So I think there's a lot of elements to that conversation as well. 

Darleen Mahoney [4:29 - 4:46]: Yeah. Do you think that sometimes the fresh vegetables that you're buying at the grocery store tend to go bad quicker than something that you would have in your, like, your own garden or that you're picking up at maybe a co op or a farmer's market? 

Lisa Johnson [4:49 - 6:42]: So the thing you have to remember about fresh that you're buying versus in your garden, typically if we're growing a garden, we're picking it exactly when we want to use it. So you're making spaghetti for the evening, you pick your tomatoes, you pick, maybe pick your peppers, peppers. You make that sauce, you use it, it's exactly the right ripeness. You're ready to go. You cook it, you use it. And once it's cooked, you know, you have that week or so shelf life that you can use that sauce again. With fruits and vegetables, they may be traveling a thousand miles from wherever they were picked. They probably weren't picked at the height of ripeness to allow for that travel. They sit in the store, you bring them home. If you don't use them immediately, they over ripen. And so by the time that you're ready to use it, maybe it's too ripe to use it, and then you have to throw it away or it's not ripe. Enough and you let it sit longer. With frozen, it's picked at the height of the season, it's blanched and processed and, and frozen. The other big benefit here is that it's prepped for you. It's cleaned, it's chopped, it's diced, it's ready to go. Interesting. Fun fact. The average American over 18 years of age, according to the USDA, spends at least 37 minutes every day prepping and cleaning food. So if you don't have that time or if you, let's say you're the type of person that likes to prepare everything on Sunday for the week. So now we're talking about three or four hours that you need to spend on a Sunday doing that. Or maybe you're an older person, you have a disability and you have mobility issues, can't shop or clean. Frozen is a great way to go. 

Darleen Mahoney [6:44 - 6:52]: Yeah. And I'm hearing you say your fresh food may be like, I'm thinking fresh food may not be so fresh, right? 

Lisa Johnson [6:52 - 6:55]: Yeah. Depending on how long you use reality. 

Maddie Ehrlich [6:55 - 6:56]: Yeah. 

Lisa Johnson [6:56 - 7:03]: Yeah. I mean what we would say typically is that your, your fresh stuff shouldn't be around for longer than three to five days. 

Darleen Mahoney [7:03 - 7:04]: Yeah. 

Lisa Johnson [7:04 - 7:25]: So unless you're picking it or getting it exactly when you want to use it, or you have your a nicely organized fridge to where you don't push the celery or broccoli to the back of the fridge and, and it stays in there for two or three or four weeks, frozen may be a better option for you. 

Maddie Ehrlich [7:29 - 7:53]: I know, I was just going to say. And also with that too, if you're, we're talking about a three to five day timeline. I know I'm a person religiously, every Sunday I go to the grocery store. I don't have the bandwidth in my fresh produce to get me to the next Sunday. Especially on an ideal three to five day timeline. So the 37 minutes a day plus you add in the extra grocery store trips. If you're trying to keep up with eating the fresh every single day just in your own life. 

Darleen Mahoney [7:54 - 8:46]: Yeah. I throw out so much fresh vegetables and it's disappointing because I think it's going to take me through because I don't have time to go to the grocery store like multiple times. I'll be very honest. I will use Instacart, which they'll bring it to me or I pick up delivery, but then I'm trusting another person to pick out my vegetables. And sometimes I get stuff and I'm like going, what is this garbage that this person picked out and then I'm stuck with it. I guess I could get in my car and then drive back and go exchange it. But at the end of the day, what's the point of paying for a delivery or what have you to bring it to my home. And I don't do that all the time. But when I'm tight on time and I'm trying to make dinner and I'm not getting done working until 6:30 at night and I just, you know, by the time I get there and make dinner, we'll be eating at 10 o' clock at night. 

Maddie Ehrlich [8:46 - 8:47]: So. 

Darleen Mahoney [8:49 - 9:11]: I really, it can be very frustrating with, especially the higher costs that we are now paying for groceries to realize when you look at your pay, you know, when you throw stuff out, you literally put dollar signs to it and say $5 in the garbage, $6 in the garbage. And it starts adding up really quick on how much money, literally money you're throwing away into the garbage can. 

Maddie Ehrlich [9:13 - 9:48]: Yeah. And on that same token too, not only is that just dealing with, you know, vegetables or produce that has gone bad, but we, we kind of don't think about the, I think it's around 10 to 20% of some vegetables and things like that that when you're, you're cutting down and you're trimming or you're prepping, you're inevitably not going to be using. And that's more food waste right there. And especially with the rising cost of groceries that, you know, 10, maybe even 20% of, of dollars is a lot more that dollar value goes up. Yeah. 

Darleen Mahoney [9:48 - 10:37]: I can remember one summer and this was, I think it was probably last summer, not this past summer, but buying a bag of cherries. So excited. And then I couldn't figure out why my food bill was so, so high. And honestly I hadn't checked on what the, the price of the, the cherries were per pound. Those cherries were $20 and it was not a gigantic bag of cherries, but they were fresh cherries. It was summer. I liked. Cherries are like one of my favorite things during the summer. Fresh cherries, they were just ridiculous, outrageous. And then you throw half of them away because so many of them are already starting to rot and not be good. And I'm like going, do I get my money back for these? You know, I, you know I paid for X amount of pounds of cherries, but then half of them or a quarter of them I should say, are going into the garbage, right? Yeah. 

Maddie Ehrlich [10:38 - 10:47]: It's heartbreaking when you have to throw it away and you're like oh my gosh, I was so excited. I spent so much money. I planned my week. Oh, my avocado, my cherries, my whatever is bad. 

Darleen Mahoney [10:48 - 10:49]: Yeah, 100%. 

Lisa Johnson [10:49 - 10:56]: So you buy those fresh cherries and you portion them, you, you pit them, you portion them in bags and you freeze them. 

Maddie Ehrlich [10:57 - 10:57]: Right. 

Lisa Johnson [10:57 - 11:05]: And then you can put in the little snack bags and then as you're hungering for for fresh cherries, you take them out and use them. 

Darleen Mahoney [11:06 - 11:09]: So I just learned recently you can do that with grapes. I did not know. 

Maddie Ehrlich [11:09 - 11:12]: I love frozen grapes. I'll do that one at a time. 

Lisa Johnson [11:12 - 12:15]: You can in general, what I would say for, you know, the question of should I have this fresh or frozen? Generally fresh things that are high water content, things like lettuce, kale actually freezes pretty well because it's not as wet. Lettuce, cucumbers, those types of things are going to be better fresh because they have a high water content and you develop ice crystals when that water and the vegetable freezes. Things that like broccoli, squash, like peppers will freeze well. And whether you use them in stir fry, you use use them as a soup, they're going to be great any which way if you want the crunch and munch. So you, you're doing a stir fry dish and you want things like water chestnuts or you want bean sprouts, those types of things maybe be may be better either canned or fresh. 

Maddie Ehrlich [12:15 - 12:16]: Yeah. 

Darleen Mahoney [12:16 - 12:48]: So as far as like cost typically, and I do not know the answer, I have no clue. Is it typically more expensive to buy frozen because it is already prepped for you, it's clean for you. And if you get, you know, the green beans, they've already snapped off the end, so they're already good to go. Or you know, the carrots are already cleaned and ready to go or you know, all the things that are already prepped and ready to go in the frozen versus buying fresh? I mean, is there a cost saving aspect that you might want to consider? 

Lisa Johnson [12:52 - 14:13]: So in general, if you're buying fresh during season, you, you it may be the same cost. It may be a little cheaper than frozen frozen. If you look at 365 days over the course of the year, for the most part is actually going to be cheaper because you're getting to have squash in the summer, you're getting to have green beans in the winter. Those things are processed, they're harvested and processed during season and then they're available 365 days a year. Obviously if you add things to frozen. So if it's not just frozen green beans, but it's frozen green beans with a butter Alfredo type sauce on it. It's probably going to be more costly than plain green beans would have been. So my suggestion for your frozen would be to have either saute sauces or like a bruschetta, some type of thing that you can have to add to your plain frozen vegetable to spice it up if you want some seasoning and not need to buy the frozen in a mixed or a sauced item. Plus, it's going to be more healthy for you because it's not going to have added salt and preservatives. 

Darleen Mahoney [14:14 - 14:41]: Yeah. You definitely want to look at the back of that nutrition bag to see what else is in there, right? Yeah. Yeah, for sure. So I do have a question. When you buy a bag of frozen vegetables at the grocery store, you put them in your freezer. How long can you leave it in your freezer before you don't use it and may need to throw it in the garbage? So I know, does it freeze? 

Maddie Ehrlich [14:41 - 15:17]: Yeah, it's a great question. And I do think it varies a little bit depending on what type of vegetable or produce that you're talking about. But in my line of work, typically what we'll say is about 18 months in the freezer is unopened. It things will last. So that could vary coming from, you know, a grocery store product. And maybe Lisa has a little bit of a different opinion. But I find too, I don't normally buy freezer things and keep them in there for over a year, but you definitely have a good amount of time once you open it. Of course, you're dealing with freezer burn and things of that sort. I wouldn't do that. Definitely don't. 

Darleen Mahoney [15:18 - 15:18]: Right. 

Maddie Ehrlich [15:18 - 15:23]: But you do have a very long time once it's in the freezer. Right. 

Darleen Mahoney [15:23 - 15:27]: And freezer burn, you can tell that has occurred with the crystals on the vegetables. 

Maddie Ehrlich [15:27 - 15:28]: Correct? Yeah. 

Lisa Johnson [15:30 - 16:04]: So the other thing you would want to take into account is if you go to the store and you know you're going to be buying frozen food, I would take whatever, you know, whether you have a freezer bag or you take a cooler with you, but getting it frozen, keeping it frozen and putting in the freezer at home is going to extend the shelf life. What you want to minimize as much as possible is freezing and thawing and freezing and thawing. So, you know, if you lose power, if you're in the middle of, let's say, a hurricane, you lose power, you don't have a generator, you may need to evaluate those types of things. 

Maddie Ehrlich [16:05 - 16:05]: Yeah. 

Lisa Johnson [16:06 - 16:34]: When you're. When power comes back on, generally what we say in our line of work, if it's cool to touch and the number that you're looking for is 40 degrees, then you're safe in terms of food safety. To refreeze that, to eat that, whatever. But you will affect the quality of the vegetables if it goes from a thawed to a frozen state over and over again. 

Darleen Mahoney [16:35 - 17:44]: That is a very good note. Yeah. No, I appreciate that feedback, especially from someone that lives here in Florida. We tend to lose our electricity every now and then. We've survived this summer so far without any major hurricanes, but we still have a few more days. Who knows? I do appreciate that. I did have another question. So the thing that I do, and this is just my. I don't want to call it a pro tip, but when I put all of my groceries on the belt, I put all my freezer stuff together so that I have some OCD with putting stuff on the belt. And I don't want anyone else to help me because I want all my fresh vegetables together. And it also makes putting groceries up easy. Cause I'm the only one that puts the groceries away. So all my cans together, all my dairy together, but I put all my frozen together very specifically so that they're all. They kind of keep each other cold. 

Maddie Ehrlich [17:45 - 17:46]: Yeah, great idea. 

Darleen Mahoney [17:46 - 19:07]: So. Cause I used to be a military spouse, and a lot of times the grocery stores, the PXs or whatever they were called, I don't even remember anymore, were not close to, like, the housing areas. So it would take, you know, 45 minutes or so to get home. So I would make sure that they were all packed tight. And I never bought ice cream, I can tell you that. But just to keep them cold. And I never had an issue. They would still be really cold when I would get them out of the car to. To load. And that was like my. That's my little. I guess you would call it a pro tip to keep. But yeah, yeah, so there is that. As far as. Is there a difference? Do you know? And maybe you don't. I really don't know. As far as the vegetables that are frozen and then the ones that are fresh. As far as any kind of treatment while they're being grown. Do you know, are they treated the same way as far as, like, with any kind of how the crops are taken care of or anything like that? I don't. I don't know when it comes to, like, pesticides and different treatments, anything like that. Or is that specifically just on the packaging? As far as like organic versus not organic? 

Maddie Ehrlich [19:08 - 19:57]: That's a great question. And honestly, I wish I A knew the straight answer or B could give you a straight answer. And maybe Lisa has a different input here. Um, however, the more I've learned about all of that, the more it really depends on the brand, the farmer and like you said, like the different labeling and things of that sort package. So I don't know if you could ever say like all frozen uses this or doesn't use this. Like Lisa had kind of said earlier to at least all the food that like Simplot produces. I know when it's frozen, we're picking it at peak ripeness. And so it's going to be high quality, consistently high quality, consistently, all the time. But in terms of just all frozen, I'm not sure you could say that the same for all of that. I don't know if Lisa, you have something else. 

Lisa Johnson [19:58 - 20:26]: Yeah, I think that, I mean, if you want to ensure that everything is pesticide free, you're going to have to go organic and have to look for a specific brand that, that highlights that, that is how that, that's what they look for in terms of, of and, and so fresh or frozen could. Would be the same thing. You would be looking for a farm that doesn't, that grows pesticide free. 

Darleen Mahoney [20:26 - 20:27]: Right. 

Lisa Johnson [20:27 - 20:42]: The freezing process doesn't add anything to it. And so as long as they're picking, let's say strawberries or they're picking green beans or whatever, and they are not actively using a variety, that you're frozen is going to be fine. 

Darleen Mahoney [20:43 - 20:49]: And then clearly, as we all know, it's going to be more expensive to purchase a product that's specifically organic. 

Lisa Johnson [20:51 - 20:51]: Correct. 

Darleen Mahoney [20:52 - 21:03]: Typically, yeah. I know when I look at bananas and you have, you know, that to me is the most glaringly obvious between organic and non organic because they put them right next to each other. 

Maddie Ehrlich [21:03 - 21:03]: Right. 

Darleen Mahoney [21:04 - 21:21]: In produce. And the price difference is, you know, they wrap it in green. Organic, not organic. They don't. Other than the, the, the tag of, you know, the organic, which is the green tag, at least at my grocery store, they look exactly the same. They don't look any different. 

Maddie Ehrlich [21:21 - 21:22]: Right. 

Darleen Mahoney [21:22 - 21:26]: But the price difference is definitely higher. 

Lisa Johnson [21:26 - 21:41]: And here's my pro tip with organic generally. The way that I look at it, to me, it's wasted extra dollars on something organic like a banana, let's say where I'm going to peel it. 

Maddie Ehrlich [21:41 - 21:41]: Yep. 

Lisa Johnson [21:41 - 21:44]: And whatever would have come in contact with chemicals is gone. 

Maddie Ehrlich [21:44 - 21:45]: Right, Right. 

Lisa Johnson [21:46 - 22:19]: I get Spending extra money on something where I'm going to be eating, where that chemical has come in contact with. So if you're going to leave the skin on, if you're not going to peel it, if it could have gotten into the item that you're actually eating, that is a consideration. But, you know, if you always peel your apples or in a banana or oranges, you take the orange peel off or you take the banana skin off, you may want to consider going with just the regular variety because essentially you're peeling off anything that would have that chemical. 

Maddie Ehrlich [22:19 - 22:20]: Right. Yeah. 

Darleen Mahoney [22:21 - 22:41]: That is a great pro tip. Thank you for that. Thank you for that. So as far as texture, is there a difference in texture? Fresh versus frozen because of the freezing process? 

Lisa Johnson [22:44 - 23:48]: So like we were saying with stir fry, if, if there's something that you want that has a specific, specific crunch and munch to it, or a salad, lettuce is going to do better as a fresh product. Cucumbers are going to do better, better as a fresh product. Things that don't have a high moisture content and that, you know, you're essentially like a green pepper or squash or broccoli, they're going to be as crunchy. Fresh versus frozen. The freezing process doesn't really affect the texture so much as the cooking process does. So if you want your broccoli to be crunchy from a frozen state, steam it, stir fry it, broil it in the oven, bake it in the oven, maybe with some balsamic on it. Don't drown it in water on the stove and cook it for 25 minutes, because then you've leached all the vitamins and minerals out and you've taken all the cellulose and fiber out of the stock and it's not crunchy anymore. 

Darleen Mahoney [23:49 - 24:15]: So when you use. I know that one of the things, I'll be honest with you, that I buy, and maybe it's because I'm lazy, but I do like the frozen in the steam bags because I will buy those and I will just steam them right in the microwave and then I just put a little bit of seasoning on them and then that's it. Because I don't want the butter, I don't want the oil, I don't want any of that stuff. And to me, that is the easiest thing in the whole world, right? 

Lisa Johnson [24:15 - 24:51]: So that is. That has taken the extra step of needing to use a steamer and you've just put it all in the bag. So that makes it even easier and probably more time effective versus getting a bag of let's say frozen broccoli and needing to figure out which way you're going to prepare it, how you're going to cook it, you've just taken that extra step out. So I would think for a person who's has time issues and, or has maybe mobility issues, that's a great option. Yeah, it's a one stop shopping and. 

Darleen Mahoney [24:51 - 25:41]: It'S so super easy. And you can do that with pretty much any vegetable. I mean one thing that I like is Brussels sprouts. So I'll buy the frozen brussels sprouts and you can, before steaming it, I put some olive oil and some salt in there and, and I shake that and I steam it. And it's delicious. Yeah, it's absolutely delicious. So those are the basic differences and we've really gone over, I think a lot with as far as like the spoilage and different things like that. So as far as yourselves, what do you really insist be fresh versus frozen? What do you, what do you think of. And you say, you know what, I do not ever want to eat that frozen or I don't ever want to eat that fresh. 

Maddie Ehrlich [25:45 - 26:45]: I mean honestly, I'll do, I'll do a good amount frozen. Especially like I had said, being in this job, I've just tried a lot of different frozen things, more than I ever thought I would. I would never think to buy like Lisa said, like frozen lettuce. I just wouldn't do that. I don't know how you would like make that work in a salad and things of that sort. I also think something that's cool is the idea of blending fresh and frozen. As I mentioned earlier, I prefer a fresh avocado, although they're really expensive and you can buy frozen avocado and so kind of mixing that like, especially if you're gonna make a guacamole, it's nice because it saves the cost. And avocado, you have like 30% waste with just one. So more of those leafy greens all kind of steer towards fresh. But like broccoli, I will always buy frozen. I am a, you know, carrots, I buy a lot of frozen carrots. Those are just some. I'm thinking off the top of my head. 

Darleen Mahoney [26:46 - 26:47]: How about you, Lisa? 

Lisa Johnson [26:48 - 27:26]: So the two things I would never buy frozen. You can't make a frozen baked potato. And I love baked potatoes. That's my go to, that's my comfort food. So you just, I, I can't imagine a world where our frozen baked potato makes sense. I also love peaches and there isn't A frozen peach in any form. I mean, you can, you can guess them up and, and Simplot has great frozen peaches. But to me, a fresh peach picked right off the tree when it's ready, ready to go, there's nothing better. 

Darleen Mahoney [27:26 - 27:28]: It bursts with flavor. 

Maddie Ehrlich [27:28 - 27:29]: Yeah, yeah, yeah. 

Lisa Johnson [27:29 - 27:49]: And you can grill it, you can, you can cut it and eat it, you can make cobbler with it. It's just great. But I love peaches enough to where I. December 31st, if I want to have peach cobbler, I probably would be willing to compromise and buy frozen peaches and make my cobbler. 

Darleen Mahoney [27:49 - 28:15]: Yeah, yeah. Oh my gosh. No, I absolutely agree with you as far as the fresh versus frozen. On the leafy greens, I definitely can't imagine lettuce, any of that frozen. I definitely want to have that fresh for sure. It just doesn't even enter my mind as an option when thinking about that for sure. So. 

Maddie Ehrlich [28:15 - 28:15]: Yeah, yeah. 

Darleen Mahoney [28:15 - 28:50]: So I agree with you on that. So one of the things I wanted to also mention because one thing that I know that some of our listeners like are like pro tips on how to use some of these things. So if you've got frozen, like in a really quick, easy way. Frozen vegetable. Vegetables and frozen fruits. One of the things that comes to my mind that is super easy to do, super healthy if you're not cooking a meal is, is our smoothies. And these are really great go tos for smoothies, right? Yeah. 

Lisa Johnson [28:51 - 28:57]: What are some. Spinach is one choice of a green that actually does well frozen. 

Maddie Ehrlich [28:58 - 28:58]: Okay. 

Lisa Johnson [28:58 - 29:20]: Either using it in a smoothie and. Or cooking it as a green as a side. Another good option for a frozen green is kale. Kale actually freezes pretty well and you can use it. But some fun things with fruits might be freezing your fruits and then using them as a spread or as a topping on oatmeal in the morning. In addition to smoothies. 

Darleen Mahoney [29:25 - 29:37]: Yeah. So when you're putting them in for your smoothies, you can put them in right frozen because they'll just chop them right up and they'll just be super smooth. So you don't have to worry about defrosting or anything like that. 

Maddie Ehrlich [29:38 - 30:05]: And something I like about that too is when I make smoothies and I'm using frozen fruit, I don't put any ice in there really, or maybe a cube or two. But it's not watering your smoothie down. So I think it tastes even better because you're getting the cold from the frozen fruit that you're using. And I even throw some frozen spinach in there sometimes, too, and call it a day. And it's. It's cold. It's the smoothie texture, and you don't need to water it down, so the flavor is even better. 

Darleen Mahoney [30:06 - 30:16]: So what else do you add into your smoothie? If you're adding frozen vegetables, some spinach, do you put honey in there? Do you put milk? Or do you. I mean, exactly what else do you add? 

Maddie Ehrlich [30:16 - 30:42]: I'll do some yogurt. I'll do milk. I honestly, when I'm making a smoothie, it's whatever I've got. Like, I'm feeling lazy. It's whatever's in the freezer, whatever's in the fridge. I'll do. You know, if I've got fresh fruit I need to eat up, I'll put a little bit of that in there. Normally frozen fruit, normally some yogurt, maybe some water, maybe some milk. If I have orange juice, I never do, but have that lying around, Throw it in there. Maybe protein powder. Call it a day. 

Lisa Johnson [30:44 - 31:07]: So for a sweet, a great option is to do half honey and half agave. The two sugars have different flavors, and it will increase your. Your sweet profile. And it actually has less. Less glycemic index by combining the two. 

Darleen Mahoney [31:09 - 31:13]: That sounds delicious. I like that idea. Very good. 

Maddie Ehrlich [31:13 - 31:20]: I also want to try. I don't know if either of you have ever tried adding some avocado in a smoothie, because I know it gives it that creamy texture. 

Lisa Johnson [31:21 - 31:32]: So I. You have a recipe for your triple berry with yogurt with agave with a avocado. It is delicious. 

Maddie Ehrlich [31:32 - 31:34]: Have you. I haven't tried it yet. I need to. 

Lisa Johnson [31:34 - 31:36]: Yes. Mackenzie and I made them for a discussion. 

Darleen Mahoney [31:36 - 31:37]: Oh, yummy. 

Lisa Johnson [31:37 - 31:39]: They are so yummy. 

Maddie Ehrlich [31:39 - 31:39]: Awesome. 

Darleen Mahoney [31:39 - 31:42]: Okay, so, Lisa, share exactly what's in that spoon. 

Lisa Johnson [31:44 - 31:50]: So it's a triple berry blend. I believe it's marionberry, BlackBerry, and blueberry. 

Maddie Ehrlich [31:50 - 31:51]: Yeah, that sounds right. 

Lisa Johnson [31:52 - 32:17]: But you could also put raspberries in it. But anyway, it's. It's a berry blend with yogurt to taste. Unsweetened yogurt with. I did half agave, half honey for the. The sweet of it. And you put in probably an ounce per cup of smooth or, like, diced or mashed avocado. 

Darleen Mahoney [32:18 - 32:20]: That is a great recipe for our listeners. 

Maddie Ehrlich [32:20 - 32:21]: That sounds so good. 

Darleen Mahoney [32:22 - 32:27]: Sounds so good. I'm gonna place my instacart order right now. I'm just kidding. 

Lisa Johnson [32:28 - 32:35]: Put a little orange juice in if you want to thin it, and give it a little bit more sweet and a different fruit flavor. Delicious. 

Darleen Mahoney [32:36 - 32:41]: Oh, wow, that sounds absolutely delicious and so refreshing and so healthy and good for you. 

Maddie Ehrlich [32:42 - 32:43]: It is. 

Darleen Mahoney [32:43 - 33:14]: Yeah. And to have healthy, good for you, and delicious all in one sentence, it's the win. It is the win. You're exactly right. That's perfect. Well, ladies, is there anything else before we sign off on this podcast that we haven't talked about with Fresh versus Frozen? This. I mean, I will be very honest with you. This has been such a great podcast, so enlightening, so fun. But if there's anything we didn't talk about, I definitely want to mention it before we sign off. 

Maddie Ehrlich [33:16 - 34:20]: I think it's been such a fun conversation too. And I would just encourage all the listeners to not be afraid of the frozen produce and to kind of just maybe do an a mental inventory and kind of a self check of like, hey, what, what do I consistently throw out? Or what do I maybe want to utilize more of? And you can have a nice blend in your own pantry at home or in your own freezer too, of what that kind of looks like, because, you know, what can you do to cut down the food waste, cut down your expenses, but also kind of have a nice stock on hand because I know when you've got like the frozen broccoli in your freezer, it's a lot easier to make a homemade meal that's still nutritious when you haven't gone to the store in a week or two weeks, when you've got some. Some things on that are frozen versus, you know, spending more money eating out or just kind of resulting to the Mac and cheese box on the shelf. So just encouraging folks to kind of do a self check. What are you throwing away? What could you use more of and what are you going to be using it for? What's the application? Because a lot of times frozen can be a good benefit. 

Darleen Mahoney [34:20 - 34:23]: Yeah. And to know that it lasts 18 months. Holy cow. 

Maddie Ehrlich [34:23 - 34:25]: That's insane. Yeah, yeah, yeah. 

Darleen Mahoney [34:26 - 34:26]: Well. 

Lisa Johnson [34:26 - 34:45]: And that you can have great variety and more color. I think that the. The nice thing about Frozen is it offers you opportunities for almost anything year round and allows you to have probably a better color texture vitamin profile than what you might have if you only eat seasonal fresh. 

Darleen Mahoney [34:46 - 35:46]: Ah, there you go. That's a whole different spin on it. I like that. Yeah. Perfect. All right, well, everyone, thank you so much for listening today. I did want to mention Homestyle Direct. Lisa works for them. They are a company that provides right at your door, medically tailored meals. Please visit them online. Do you want to share that website? Homestyledirect.com oh my gosh, that was super easy. And even though we mentioned it, that website URL is also going to be available in the description of all the podcasts. Well this episode I should say. So definitely check it out and you should be able to click on it and we'll take you right to their website and you can find out more about Homestyle Direct. And if you enjoyed this podcast. We have over 110 at this point episodes with different varieties of subjects that we talk about. Everything under the sun. Please check us out anywhere you listen to music or podcast. Thanks for listening.