Good Cook Produce Keeper Review, Mac & Cheese Recipe, & Giveaway (4 winners!)

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This time of year I love to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables. However, I find that I often do not eat them all before they spoil and I really hate throwing away food. Good Cook's Veggie Keepers are designed to keep your produce fresher longer. The bright and themed containers are a great reminder when you look into your fridge that you have produce left as well. They are available for peppers, lemons, melons, tomatoes, bananas, and asparagus. The specialized, transparent lid prevents contents from spoiling and smelling and they are designed to represent the produce it stores so they are easy to identify in the fridge.

I have never had produce keepers before so I was so excited to try them. I placed 1 tomato in the Tomato Keeper for a week and another one in a plastic baggie. I was shocked at how well the keeper worked. The one in the baggie was already starting to get squishy and questionable while the one in the produce keeper was still fresh and ready to eat! The Green Pepper Keeper  has been working great as well.  Since I buy foods like this ahead of time for specific recipes, I just hope that they will be fresh when I am ready to use them. It looks just as good as they day I bought the pepper. I really think these Keepers are going to save me lots of money and help me not waste food!

As you can see, the tomato on the left that was in the Tomato Keeper has is firmer and has a better color than the one on the right.

The produce keepers that I received do not represent the most common fruits and vegetables that we consume in our house, but I have found that there are multiple uses for each container. For example, we use Asparagus Keeper for celery! I have been on a real health kick lately so I am happy I can buy vegetables and fruits without having to worry about them spoiling in such a short amount of time. This keeper was the perfect size for the celery I purchased and since I eat celery more slowly than other produce, I am hoping it will keep it fresh until I can get to it all as I almost always end up throwing some away. So far, it is fresh as can be in the keeper a week and a half later!

The Cantaloupe Keeper was great for storing strawberries too. I purchased a large package of strarwberries that looked fairly fresh in the store but when I got home I realized that they were not as fresh as they seemed. I put them in the keeper and 4 days later they were still the same as they were at the store. If I would have kept them in the store packaging I would have definitely had to throw them out today.  I did get  a cantaloupe as well that I  cut in half.  I stored the unused half in this keeper and then use my melon baller to cut up the other half. Since we don't eat grapefruit, I stored the balled pieces in the Grapefruit Keeper. The Cantaloupe Keeper is a nice size, but this one in particular is really hard to open and close. I have to push the plastic lid to the side a bit before it will twist off.  I did not have the same problem with the Grapefruit Keeper. Both kept the fruits fresh.

I have not had the need for a lemon so I have not used the Citrus Keeper yet; however, my daughter and I were challenged by Good Cook to make crafts out of the Lemon Keepers. Check out my Good Cook craft post find out how you can make this adorable cupcake keeper or Easter chick!

Finally, I was given a Banana Keeper to review.  One of my biggest irritations is when my daughter eats half of a banana. As I said, I HATE wasting food. I thought the remaining banana half was a lost cause so this was the Keeper I was most excited to try. However, this one was disappointing. I placed half of a banana in a keeper and half in a plastic bag. The piece in the keeper was browner on the end and was slimy. The one in the bag was less brown. Both were equally fresh when I opened them up and chopped of the end. The picture on the left below was in the Banana Keeper:

Produce Recipe: Macaroni & Cheese with Tomato-Basil Topping

Ingredients
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs, divided
8 ounces dry elbow macaroni
10 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
6 eggs
4 cups milk
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon seasoned pepper
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
3 tablespoons basil

Instructions
1. Preheeat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray; add 1/4 cup bred crumbs, tilting to coat dish evenly
2. Cook macaroni according to package directions.  Layer one-third of macaroni and shredded cheeses in dish. Repeat layers twice.
3. Whisk together eggs, milk, salt, and pepper; pour evenly over mixture. Sprinkle the remaining bread crumbs over top.
4. Bake 55-60 minutes or until golden and set. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle top with basil and diced tomatoes.

Buy it here: You can find the variety of produce keepers on the Good Cook website.   Prices range from $4.49-$9.99. Use the code KEEPERS to enjoy 25% off your entire order at Good Cook!! Plus, if you buy any produce keeper you can receive a FREE Banana Keeper with purchase (online only)!  Offer valid until 6/30.

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*I was provided with the above mentioned products for the purpose of facilitating this post. All opinions expressed are my own.