Don't Throw Food Away Challenge 2012

RingtheChanges

JackieO wrote: »

I am at my DDs and in the fridge there is an almost complete celery and a lot of cherry tomato's both past their best Could I do something with them before she ends up binning them as I can see the glint in her eye at the moment .She is dreadful at binning stuff which makes my blood run cold at times.I was thinking perhaps celery and tom soup or something I need inspiration or it will end up in landfill :)she has onion and stock cubes in store

I think those cherry toms from last October are probably dead now, but I have just chopped up my old soft and wrinkly cherry toms, with some chopped basil (plant on window ledge) and a bit of garlic and spray of olive oil, and I will have this on toast for lunch (bruschetta).

Carcluster

Just made banana bread; search online for the recipe - I used BBC I think. Needs 3 or 4 bananas that are way past feasibly being edible in isolation, but the cakey/bready result is very very nice!

KazLA

RE Spinach...

Last time I had a big bag of spinach, I froze what was left straight away, once frozen it was crunchy and could easily be broken up, I then sprinkled it on top of homemade pizza for extra nutrients!

SpikyHedgehog

KazLA wrote: »

RE Spinach...

Last time I had a big bag of spinach, I froze what was left straight away, once frozen it was crunchy and could easily be broken up, I then sprinkled it on top of homemade pizza for extra nutrients!

Ooh, I like that idea!

Thrown away the remains of a tub of hummus that had been hiding at the back of the fridge. Used the remains of the tub of soft cheese to mix into leftover couscous for DS2's packed lunch.

sophlowe45

opened a can of chickpeas to make a salad, added an onion, went to add a cucumber but it had gone bad. so i had toast instead.

could someone guide me to a thread on storing things in the fridge, e.g. people wrapping up things in foil, clingflim, airtight containers etc. so at least i can make sure i am storing the items correctly.

i know cheese should be rewrappwed with clingfilm after every use.

fresh herbs, put them in a jar of water.

Firemunchkin

sophlowe45 wrote: »

opened a can of chickpeas to make a salad, added an onion, went to add a cucumber but it had gone bad. so i had toast instead.

could someone guide me to a thread on storing things in the fridge, e.g. people wrapping up things in foil, clingflim, airtight containers etc. so at least i can make sure i am storing the items correctly.

i know cheese should be rewrappwed with clingfilm after every use.

fresh herbs, put them in a jar of water.

There's loads of tips online, just google it. e.g. - how to revive limp lettuce or celery, how to freeze vegetables (most will freeze well) or what to cook and then freeze to prevent the waste. What to do with excess leftover bits and pieces. There's loads of ideas online, too many to list here!

:rotfl:

OLDBILL_2

Oooh, love this thread!

I have just sorted my freezer out and am meal planning from it... so far have got 8 meals for 3 people plus 8 microwave meals for work!!!

However, I have located a pack of smoked hoki that looks like it has freezer burn. Im tempted to chuck it but is there anything I can do with it?? Will it make a fish pie?

Also have 2 packs of smoked mackerel - what can I do with this??

Other ingredients Im not too sure what to do with are:

lamb chops, and lamb gravy - OH wont eat meat on the bone, so guessing some kind of stew would be good for these? Have a load of red peppers that need using up so perhaps lamb and cous cous stuffed peppers??

Also 225g of gressingham duck fillets... can these be made into crispy duck does anyone know?? I have bejing pancakes so would be great for those but I have it in my head that duck breast like this is only good for stir fries etc??

I have some posh dry cured streaky bacon too... no idea what to do with that?!

Any recipes / ideas greatly appreciated :j

[Deleted User]

salvaged three speckly bananas from DDs yesterday(she won't touch them once she sees a speckle on them ) and turned them into a banana custard one of which I had as pudding last night the other two will be tonight and tomorrow night's pud

Linda32

sophlowe45 wrote: »

could someone guide me to a thread on storing things in the fridge, e.g. people wrapping up things in foil, clingflim, airtight containers etc. so at least i can make sure i am storing the items correctly.

i know cheese should be rewrappwed with clingfilm after every use.

fresh herbs, put them in a jar of water.

Hi, Clingfilm and foil all sound a bit expensive to me :eek:
I never buy clingfilm and foil only goes over chicken in the oven.

Looking in my fridge at the moment, the cheese is in a food bag and stays in the same bag until its gone. The food bags arn't anything special. £1 shop / Wilkinsons / Supermarkets etc all sell them. Make sure you get the biggest they sell so you can fit everything in, regardless of the size.
Remember to save your bread bags as well for the same thing.

If I open cooked meat (the sort you have in sandwiches) then that goes in a food bag. Or a food box, the only reason for a food box is you can wash these out and re-use instead of using a bag, the bag costs money.

I put cucumbers in a bag as well but they do go soft after a while. Tomatoes stay in the punnet they came in.

HTH

Firemunchkin

Oldbill it sounds like you already know what you're doing with that lot!!

I'd say don't risk wasting other ingredients with the fish pie, just chuck it. If you're unsure anyway then it's less waste cost than cooking it with other stuff and finding out it hasn't worked - that's way more costly.

Duck is great cooked up and,shredded for adding to salads, pitta breads - all sorts. It's just a bit like sweet chicken, you could do a stew too.

Lamb - yes, cook slowly in a stew, take them out when done and remove the bone - delish.

Bacon - add to chicken recipes, wrap chicken in it and bake, add to cabbage and fry, or have a cheeky bacon sarnie!!

Wish I had that lot in my fridge!!!