Don't Throw Food Away Challenge

Firemunchkin

Spinach - SAG ALOO!!! Combine with potatoes, cumin, coriander and other spices to make this delicious accompaniment to a curry. It freezes brilliantly too. Otherwise, stir through some cream cheese, add some cherry tomatoes and have with pasta, or a greens risotto (just stir through when you put your last ladle of home-made chicken stock in).

Beetroot - potato/beetroot gratin; roasted veg; beetroot pasta; beetroot, goats cheese & walnut salad - there are literally hundreds of options for beetroot. If none appeal - give it to me, I love the stuff!

If you're ever unsure of what to do with a veg, use the riverf*rd or ab*l & c*le recipe search on their websites (can I link in these?) - they're great for ideas.

Firemunchkin

I'm not officially starting this challenge until Friday, but as a test run: we have chopped bananas and strawberries in our breakfast at home, but OH didn't use his half of the banana and left it out all day. I chucked it in the compost and regretted it instantly. I should have mashed it up and froze it for baking.

Last week I mashed up some past their best strawberries (as in, too soft to eat raw but not going off) and put them in a cake. It didn't really work. I'm still trying to find ways to use strawberries in this state - strawberry milk?

OH sliced the entire red cabbage last week but we only needed half of it. Instead of chucking it out, we rinsed it and made a spicy cabbage & lentil side dish - yum!

Solstice_3

Firemunchkin wrote: »

Last week I mashed up some past their best strawberries (as in, too soft to eat raw but not going off) and put them in a cake. It didn't really work. I'm still trying to find ways to use strawberries in this state - strawberry milk?

You could make a smoothie or make fridge jam, you just mash up the strawberries with a fork, warm through in a pan with honey, about a tsp, until it thickens slightly. It keeps in the fridge for 3 days, probably more. I did that a while back with some on the turn strawberries and it was yummy

princesskitty29

Hi all, I am a bit of a lurker here and just getting into all of this. I actually inspired myself (sorry I know this sounds big headed but I really don't mean it to!) when I opened the bin to chuck an apple in where it's skin had gone wrinkly, then stopped myself and instead made up two little apple crumbles in ramekins as pudding for myself and my OH. This is when I had my lightbulb moment and realised that food doesn't always have to go in the bin! I was delighted to find this thread and have been really enjoying hearing about all of your concoctions and tips! Well done all. :T

My biggest downfall is I always do a meal planner, which is good, but I tend to plan a meal from a recipe book or similar that uses say, creme fraiche, but it won't all get used and I don't factor it into a meal any other time of the week so it usually ends up in the bin! I am going to be a lot more savvy about this now and think about the ingredients i'm buying and where it's all going to go.

I'd like to join you, and for the rest of January can you put me down for £2 please? Thank you!

I just have a couple of questions: what does YS mean? Sorry if I appear a bit dim! Also, what veg is best to keep to make stock? I have never made my own stock before but feel I should really start. I am ashamed to say I threw a chicken carcass away only at the weekend . But I want to do better from now on!!

Solstice_3

Hey nice to see you here Nice idea with the apple, yum!

YS means Yellow Sticker - reduced, also know as a whoopsie. I'm still figuring out the stock thing myself but I save carrot, onion and celery ends in a bag in the freezer for stock. I personally don't save peelings unless it's organic veg but some people put peelings in stock too I also freeze chicken carcasses and bones from drumsticks for making stock when I can't make it right away then freeze the stock once I've made it.

I was doing the same with meal planning and not factoring in the leftover ingredients and am trying to do the same as you when planning. Good luck! ^_^

Katzen

Firemunchkin wrote: »

Beetroot - potato/beetroot gratin; roasted veg; beetroot pasta; beetroot, goats cheese & walnut salad - there are literally hundreds of options for beetroot. If none appeal - give it to me, I love the stuff!

Thank You! Turns out it wasn't pickled at all, it was just pre-cooked and then packed for boiling in the bag- definitely not what I thought I'd bought! On the plus side, cooked it as per the packet instructions and dished up as part of the 'veg salad' of other little left over bits on the side of tonight's dinner. Was lovely and fine to eat. Lesson learnt here- vacuum packed beetroot lasts at least an extra month on the Use By date.

Been in the cupboard today and found a packet of stuffing (BBE March 2011), a jar of cranberry jelly (BBE Nov 2010 :eek:) and a jar of redcurrant jelly with no date but definitely old. I'm sure the stuffing will be fine but not sure what to do with the sauces. Anyone got any ideas? I'm not sure I'd want to eat them as condiments but maybe alright for baking? (There is no fur in the jars so I'm happy to have a go )

And finally, feeling rather proud of myself today. Opened a banana and found it all bruised. I'm really not a fan of brown banana so would normally have gone in the bin, but instead I brought it home to eat with some of the OOD fromage frais as I find this cuts some of the sweetness. When I came to eat it DH decided he wanted some, so I got to give him the squished banana. What he doesn't know won't hurt him :rotfl:

[Deleted User]

Well, this month didnt start well. I dropped lots of eggs. Ive salvaged most of them but a think about 20p escaped (divided the price of the eggs by the ones ide lost). Luckily they were cheap to start with, but thats beside the point. I HATE WASTE

Solstice_3

Just updating my waste estimated 33p for an old apple had gone brown and yukky and 5p for 2 basics tomatoes that had gone moldy. Total is now 57p

Lilyplonk

We've finally used up 1 of the 2 loaves that OH came home with a couple of days ago - not sure what I'd sent him out for, but it certainly didn't include bread as we already had one open :mad:! Sometimes he thinks he's using his initiative - especially when I don't want him to :rotfl:.

He's been informed NOT to go in that particular place for bread again - one of the High Street bakery places - it felt a bit stale from the start and has really 'only been fit for toast' . The other loaf is wholemeal which neither of us likes and looks very dry - he said the assistant just 'threw it in the bag' as it was the end of the day :undecided. I'm loathe to do anything with it - but could blitz for breadcrumbs and add to freezer for future use OR I could think about the birds around here and just chuck it out for them. Their need is greater than ours at the moment ................... PLUS we've still got other bread in the freezer for using up.

I've been keeping an eye on the veg in the fridge drawer and all still seems well with it - going to prep some for a large pot of veg soup - and also the stuff in the salad drawer is still good for a few more days. Last night we used up a whoopsied deli-counter pizza with a container of Salad that was best before 19th Jan and it was perfectly fine - there's still another one in there and that'll get used up today on sandwiches for lunch along with some 'defrosted frozen ham slices' :j.

I've never actually kept an 'account' of what my whoopsies cost me OR how many meals I get out of them - maybe I should start doing that ...............

Thanks for the link to 'A Girl Called Jack' blog - some great reading on there - and she's got a great outlook on life .

DawnW

Katzen wrote: »

Been in the cupboard today and found a packet of stuffing (BBE March 2011), a jar of cranberry jelly (BBE Nov 2010 :eek:) and a jar of redcurrant jelly with no date but definitely old. I'm sure the stuffing will be fine but not sure what to do with the sauces. Anyone got any ideas? I'm not sure I'd want to eat them as condiments but maybe alright for baking? (There is no fur in the jars so I'm happy to have a go )

I make my own jams and jellies, and they have no BBE dates - and they last for years. Some kinds get better with long keeping. I would open it, taste it, and if it is ok, just use it.

Same with the stuffing - it is dried. As long as it is sealed, and hasn't got damp at any point, it should be fine.

The worst that can happen is some loss of flavour due to long storage.