Waste not…
I was double gifted with tomatoes this week, and had also brought some home from the farmers market. It was a recipe for waste, if I wasn’t wise about the sudden windfall. It also served as a reminder that I had been wanting to write about food waste.
There are staggering figures about the amount of produce wasted each year, but the most commonly cited is 40%, with The Atlantic reporting 50%. Even if it is actually lower than that, I think we can agree it’s still a problem. jump to recipe
I myself am guilty of it. I get enthusiastic shopping at the farmer’s market and have all kinds of plans for what I’ll be making. They aren’t concrete plans, however, just fanciful notions of dishes I might conjure up with my haul. Crisper drawer languishing can happen.
This time of year we’re all making zucchini jokes, and apparently those who plant them do practice restraint, but even one seed will yield a need for zucchini bread. I think of zucchini bread as something of a metaphor for a creative approach to the multifaceted issue of food waste. Yes, planning meals saves money and food, and I am endeavoring to be more strategic. But I thought we could also focus on the spirit of whatever gave rise to the thought, “I am gonna make a sweet treat out of all these dang zucchinis!”
To wit, first and foremost to chip away at waste if you ask me, is to make soup. There is virtually nothing in the crisper drawer that can’t become soup. Even better, is that soup freezes like a dream. To ensure that a quick pot of soup can be made the moment you notice slightly wrinkly peppers or even bedraggled lettuce greens, make sure you always have garlic and onion – or at least one of them. By first browning them in your soup pot, you are just about guaranteed a yummy result.
Lettuce not forget that an ice water bath can revive many greens, carrots, and celery if you aren’t prepared to make soup. Pot pie is another non-soup option for many veggies just past their prime. Like soup, pot pies can also be frozen. Just about every green can go into a smoothie, just add fruit to hide the “good-for-you” flavor as needed.
At the moment I have some leftover quinoa in my fridge, and had the thought that it would work well as a “patty” of sorts, much like potato pancakes. My leftover mashed sweet potatoes may well end up in the same latke, and I think it would be a tasty creation. So consider the cakeability of things you fear you may have to pitch. Pancakes are also on the list of freezables, by the way.
While I avoid plastic as much as possible, the bags are necessary in prolonging the life of most fruits and vegetables. There are specialty bags made just for preserving produce, but I can’t say I have ever used them (please leave a comment if you have). I choose living plant versions when possible, and love them for their longevity – especially watercress!
Composting is the last ditch effort to avoid waste, but it does require a certain level of commitment. If composting is a bridge too far, get out your flour and sugar and be the first on your block to make rutabaga muffins with chocolate icing.
The Jam’s the Thing
So, there I was with a kitchen counter full of tomatoes and no chance that I could eat all of them before they went. Word on the street is that you can freeze them, but I was feeling frisky, and decided to make caramelized onion and tomato jam. I have been caramelizing onions for years, and the notion of adding tomatoes sounded delectable
I had some zucchini on hand – imagine that happening in August – and wanted to make a terrine with them. The one I had in mind was made by lining a mold with roasted slices of zucchini, and filled with the cashew cheese from last week, along with my tomato jam. As is my wont, once I had this thought, there was no choice but to whip it up. I am deeming the whole operation a success. The terrine recipe will appear shortly.
Some recipes call for all sorts of additions, such as worcester sauce, Tamari, allspice, and so on, but I kept mine on the simple side. Feel free to embellish if you wish. Use it as a sauce, or on crackers for a snack. If you know how to can, I think this would make a great gift from the kitchen. Ingredients Instructions
Love the advice on avoiding food waste– certainly guilty of leaving veggies languishing! Have tried to make a patty out of quinoa and had trouble with the binding– ended up with a yummy, yet unformed pile of grilled quinoa. Would love to see the great Chef Chris take a crack at it!! 🙂
Binding can be tricky. I have had great success with “flax eggs” and I don’t even grind them up before (#lazycook). Have you tried aquafaba? It’s the liquid from the can of chickpeas, or the leftover cooking liquid. I think some sweet potato or just plain leftover baked potato might help too. Let’s keep each other posted!