Spring hasn’t officially started until I enjoy my first handful of fresh berries at the farmers market. Nothing compares to those tiny, heirloom strawberries or plump, just picked blueberries… It’s easy to get carried away and take home several pints of fresh berries.

The catch is, the berries are fresh and they don’t last very long. But there are a couple of ways to help keep your berries from going moldy.

Prep

1. Cook’s Illustrated recommends you wash your berries in a solution of 3 cups water and 1 cup white vinegar for at least 30 seconds. Then rinse. Line your salad spinner with three lines of paper towels, place the rinsed berries inside, and spin the berries until completely dry.

2.  Harold McGee from the New York Times recommends you place your berries in a very hot bath (water that’s not boiling, but close) for 30 seconds to kill any mold spores.

Storage

If you have ample storage space in your refrigerator, you can spread the berries out on paper towel lined cookie sheets so that the berries aren’t touching. Alternatively, if you have a small refrigerator, you can store the berries in a paper-towel lined covered container with the lid partially askew. I have a small salad spinner that’s perfect for this purpose as well as drying fresh herbs.