Recipies
As mentioned before, one of the best ways to eliminate your household food waste is doing your best to not waste food. Some food will be wasted, but with the help of these recipes hopefully the amount of food you waste will be lower. These recipes all use food that may soon go into the trash if not used, like brown bananas, leftover lemon peels, or over ripe strawberries. If you have a recipe that you think fits into this category, visit the contact page to share it with me, I would love to add it!
Croutons
Have stale bread, or even just leftover bread crust? Instead of throwing it out, use it to make croutons! This is a super easy recipe, it will only take you a few minutes to prep. This is one of my favorite recipes, but any crouton recipe will work.
Smoothies and Smoothie bowls
If you have over ripe fruit or fruit that you know you wont be able to finish, freeze it to use for smoothies, smoothie bowls, or sorbets later. There is an endless amount of recipes you could make with frozen fruits, but here is a link to forty different smoothie recipes, and here is a link to some smoothie bowl recipes to get you started.
Bone broth
Instead of throwing away bones from chicken, beef, or fish, use them to make a delicious and flavorful stock! Homemade stock is usually more flavorful than store both versions, and you know exactly what's in it. This stock can be used in soups, stews, or in any dish as a more flavorful alternative to water. Here is a great recipe.
Vegetable broth
Like bone broth, vegetable broth is a great recipe to use leftover veggies! If you don't have enough vegetables to make a broth out of now, you can save any scraps in an airtight bag/container and freeze it, adding on to the pile as you get more scraps you can use. Once you have enough scraps, defrost the bag and make a delicious broth! This is a great recipe, and it explains in more detail how to freeze the vegetables properly.
Fruit jam
Making fruit jam reduces food waste by using overripe or surplus fruit that might otherwise go bad. By turning these fruits into jam, you extend their shelf life and prevent them from being discarded, allowing you to enjoy them long after their peak freshness has passed. This is a great recipe for an easy fruit jam.
Banana bread
Baking banana bread from overripe bananas is one of the most common ways to reduce food waste, and for good reason- it tastes amazing! By incorporating these bananas into a delicious loaf, you extend their usability and prevent them from going to waste. This is my all time favorite recipe, its super easy and uses only one bowl!
Vegetable tomato sauce
Making a vegetable tomato sauce utilizes excess or soft tomatoes and other vegetables that might otherwise be thrown away. This recipe extends the life of the produce and transforms it into a versatile sauce that can be used in various dishes, and its a great way to incorporate vegetables into your meals! This is a great recipe.
Fruit crumble
Fruit crumble is a great way to cut down on food waste because the condition of the fruits doesn't matter, and sometimes overripe fruits make it taste better! Another great thing about it is it can be made year round by swapping out the fruits depending on the season. Plus you can use many different fruits in the same crumble, so you really will be able to use all yours fruits before they go bad. This is a great recipe, you can mix-and-match any fruit pairings.
Veggie chips
Veggie chips are a great way to use leftovers or slightly imperfect vegetables that would otherwise be thrown away or forgotten about. The condition of the veggies doesn’t impact the final result much, so you can use vegetables that are a little older, and you can get creative by mixing different types of vegetables for a unique chip blend. Plus, they are a super fun snack, and I love experimenting with adding different seasonings and spices. Here is a great recipe.
Broccoli Slaw
This is a really innovative and useful recipe because it utilizes the stems of broccoli, something that is usually thrown away. So next time you make a broccoli dish, make this recipe instead of throwing away the stems, it's super easy and adjustable! In addition, you can add tons of other vegetables to the recipe, which allows you to waste even less foods. This is a really easy recipe, only two steps!
Vegetable Quiche
This is a super versatile dish, you can throw in so many different ingredients- tomatoes, spinach, broccoli, asparagus, onions, mushrooms, bell peppers, and so much more. Because of its versatility, it is a really great meal to make if you have leftover vegetables, and it is good for you! Here is a great recipe that uses a ton of vegetables.
