What's for dinner that is fast, easy, convenient and nutritious? Frozen vegetables and fruits, of course. They are an overall bargain any time of the year, but are especially useful in the winter when comparable fresh food in the supermarket increases in price and often travels longer distances. Seton Northwest clinical dietitian Janessa Slatky, RD, LD is a fan.

"As a Registered Dietitian I cant stress enough just how important fruits and vegetables are to our overall health. They are the foods that provide vitamins, minerals, fiber, and phytochemicals that may protect us against cancer, heart disease, stroke, and other health problems. Fruits and vegetables are so vital to our nutrition that the Centers For Disease Control (CDC) revised their national campaign with the slogan Fruits and Veggies- More Matters replacing the old Five a Day campaign to encourage us to eat up!" comments Janessa.

"When fresh fruits and vegetables get too pricey in their off season, maybe youre sick of dealing with cleaning and spoilage, or if theres just too slim of pickings in your produce aisle, do what I do and head for the freezer section."

In 1998 the FDA confirmed that frozen fruits and vegetables provide the same essential nutrients and health benefits as fresh fruits and vegetables, whereas canned vegetables tend to lose more nutrients during the preservation process. Tomatoes and pumpkin are exceptions.

According the Janessa, the preservation process itself matters. "Frozen fruits and veggies only go through two steps before you buy them. The first is 'blanching,' which is cooking for a short time in boiling water or steam to kill bacteria and stop food degrading enzymes. The second and final step is 'flash freezing,' which locks them into a relatively nutrient-rich state. This generally all occurs within hours of being picked at their peak in terms of freshness and nutrition. Fruits and veggies that are to be shipped to the fresh produce aisles around the country are typically picked before they are ripe, which gives them less time to reach their full potential of vitamins and minerals. Although most continue to ripen, they may never have the same nutritive value as if theyd ripened on the vine."

Popular frozen produce choices include asparagus, Bell pepper, blueberries, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, green beans, mangoes, mushrooms, onions, peaches, peas, potatoes, corn and many more.

Frozen Foods Are Hot!

Chill out. Veggies from the freezer are fast, easy and convenient. Janessa offers the following tips to make the most of your frozen produce, both nutritionally and taste-wise.

• Skip the sugar and salt. Most frozen vegetables and fruits are sugar-and salt-free, but not all. Read the label.
• Use and replace . Nutrients in frozen fruits and vegetables eventually do degrade so be sure to eat them within a month or two. If you buy smaller packages, they can be finished and replaced.
• Steam or microwave . Skip boiling to minimize the loss of water soluble vitamins. Microwaved frozen vegetables can be prepared in just minutes, seasoned and served.
• Cut costs with coupons or sales . Frozen food prices tend to be stable throughout the year, but some consider them a little high. Take advantage of advertising coupons or search the Internet for discounts on frozen vegetable and fruit products you like.
• Select organics if you prefer. Yes, organic vegetables and fruits are frozen, too. You can find them in most supermarkets and some store brand organic products are competitive in price to non-organic choices.
• Mix and match . Most frozen vegetables and fruit contain only one product, but some mix produce types for convenience. Choose what your family likes and mix them yourself if you want a combination. (If you have several bags of frozen vegetables with too little left for a family, consider making vegetable soup and using them all.)

"When vegetables and fruits are in-season, I prefer to buy them fresh and ripe, especially if they come straight from a farmer's field. But in other seasons, frozen produce is quick and easy to prepare, nutritious and delicious. The real bottom line is that vegetables and fruits in any form are better than none at all," concludes Janessa.