Reducing food waste isn’t just good for the environment—it can also inspire creative and delicious meals that save you money while stretching your ingredients. With European Week for Waste Reduction (EWWR) 2024 focusing on the theme "Food Waste is Out of Taste!", there’s no better time to embrace mindful cooking and make the most of every ingredient in your kitchen.
This year’s theme highlights the growing problem of food waste and encourages us all to rethink the way we buy, prepare, and use food.
Around 88 million tonnes of food are wasted annually in Europe alone, making it essential to take steps toward reducing waste at home. But the good news? Reducing food waste is easy—and can be incredibly rewarding! Let’s dive into some hero recipes and simple tips that turn leftovers and odds-and-ends into tasty meals.
Here are a few ideas to get you started
Fruit peels tea- Drinking herbal tea could be one of the secret for longevity! We love adding orange peels to sage tea or steep our lime leaves with apple or pear peels and cores, either directly after eating them or using dryed ones (See tips on how to dry peels in our recipe link)
Apple Scraps vinegar- Perfect base to start pickles or for salad dressings or immune-boosting tonic. Fill Half a Jar with ACV add the juice of one lemon, two heaped tablespoons of honey add two thumbs of ginger fill the jar with boiled water to combine then blend.
Turn leftover cooked beans or lentils and stale bread into delicious vegan burgers- Important tip- store your leftover bread pieces in an open breathable bag (paper or fabric, not in plastic!) so it doesn't go mouldy
Learn to make this quick quiche pastry to bring all your leftover meals to the front stage. Just mix in one beatten egg or a couple of tablespoons of corn flour to 1/4 cup of milk and pour over your leftover. Roast veggies or curry, it works with almost everything!
Veg Scraps- Freeze your leftover vegetables to create a stock from scratch.
Jar Vinegarette- The idea is to extract the excess goodness from the inside of the jar and pair the sweetness of the remnants of your favourite jams with the acidity of good cider vinegar for a wonderful salad dressing
Pumpkin seeds - Create a post Halloween healthy snack.
Instructions: Collect the pumpkin seeds, wash them, dry them, toss them in oil and salt and replace your crisps and other ultra-processed snacks.Delicious as salad toppers!
European Week for Waste Reduction 2024: “Food Waste is Out of Taste!”
EWWR 2024 focuses on reducing food waste with the theme “Food Waste is Out of Taste!” The campaign urges action to prevent food waste by planning meals better and using all ingredients efficiently. Start by trying the recipes and tips here to make a difference in your kitchen and become a food waste hero. Embrace leftovers, scraps, and overripe produce to create delicious, cost-effective meals that reduce your environmental impact. Take a step towards cutting down on food waste today!
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