Instructions: Fresh from the farm is a great idea. Fresh from a California farm is an even better one.

In summer. Supermarket bins overflow with locally fresh green beans. Farmers markets are piled high with sweet corn. Neighbors offer baskets of zucchini and tomatoes from their gardens.

But this is February. The groundhog says winter will last until March. And sometimes, in the dead of winter, the freezer case is the way to go - even in California, even in the face of imports rushed north by jet from the Southern Hemisphere.

Singing the virtues of frozen vegetables will not get you a starring role in your own cooking show. Chefs extol the wonders of the freshest ingredients.

Professional cooks shun convenience products.

But here in the real world of tight schedules and endless to-do lists, frozen vegetables may be the solution to getting more vegetables on the table.

I used to turn to the freezer case infrequently and for only a few items: peas, corn and the occasional box of spinach. But years of throwing away rotting vegetables, bought with the best of intentions and quickly forgotten, finally convinced me to give the bagged varieties a chance.

Its not that Ive abandoned fresh; instead, Ive put frozen on an equal footing.

Where else can I find beautiful Brussels sprouts all year long - even petite Brussels sprouts, which I can rarely buy fresh? Or green beans in February that arent woody and tasteless? When fresh bell peppers are $4.99 a pound, you will find me stocking up on bags of frozen pepper strips.

If steamed broccoli is on my menu tonight or tomorrow, Ill choose fresh.

Otherwise, Ill buy a bag of broccoli florets to stash in the freezer for the next time I need a vegetable - fast.

Of course, some vegetables should always be bought fresh: anything destined to be served raw - celery, carrots and mushrooms come to mind. In the case of mushrooms, Ill always buy fresh; I dont even like the sliced raw mushrooms used in salad bars. And I just do not see the point of frozen onions. They are more expensive, they dont taste the same and fresh onions last for weeks anyway.

Sometimes the preparation dictates what you will need. A quick saute of spinach demands the fresh variety. But if youre making a filling, with spinach as one of many ingredients, you will be justly served by the frozen version and will benefit from savings in both time and money.

Stalks of asparagus dressed with a mustard vinaigrette should be fresh, but asparagus soup turns out delicious made with boxed frozen spears.

Frozen vegetables ideally are fresh vegetables that have been blanched and frozen within hours of being picked.

Handled correctly by the distributor, supermarket and consumer, they are in a sort of just-picked suspended animation.

"Frozen vegetables are processed at the highest point of their nutritional content," explains Barbara Klein, a professor of food and nutrition at the University of Illinois.

In her studies on the effects of processing on vegetables, Klein has found that not that much happens during the freezing process.

At most, she says, "the effects are the same as what happens to a fresh vegetable when you cook it." and fresh vegetables are not always as "fresh" as they appear to be, especially in the off-season, when they are shipped long distances.

Klein has noted the consequences. "You lose nutrients in the shipping process, probably more than in the freezing process," she says.

The degree of loss varies vegetable to vegetable. Traditional winter vegetables, such as fresh broccoli and cabbage, have high nutrient retention even when stored. Green beans and similar vegetables take the biggest hit.

"Green beans seem to lose their Vitamin C 24 hours after being picked. A pound of green beans from the freezer is more nutrient packed," says Klein.

We have no qualms about frozen french fries, frozen orange juice or frozen waffles. Why not give vegetables a chance? Even in California.

If you would like to email yourself the recipe for later use, or share the recipe with your friends or family, enter the email addresses below and this recipe will be emailed to you and others as well.