My Favorite Zero-Waste Recipes
There are few things I enjoy more than finding ways to avoid food waste! Even better when I can find a way to make something delicious out of something one would normally throw out or compost. Whether utilizing parts of the produce that are often dismissed (the roots, leaves, skins, seeds or fibrous parts of certain veggies/fruits), finding creative ways to use things before they go bad, properly storing items to prolong their freshness and quality, buying only what you need, or simply prioritizing certain produce or food based on when you bought them, there are so many creative ways in which we can utilize what we already have to make something healthy, delicious, filling, innovative and completely waste-free! Here's a list of some of my favorite zero-waste recipes that have totally changed the way I look at, use and cook certain produce :)
Carrot greens pesto by Simply Recipes. I honestly couldn't stop eating this carrot top pesto! Good as a spread, dip or sauce, my housemates and I couldn't believe how good this was.
Carrot greens lentil soup: An adaptation of Ricardo Cuisine's recipe. Though I followed his basic initial instructions I ended up seasoning this hearty soup up quite a bit by adding a fair amount of cumin and coriander which I think made this go from a good to a solid great. I also let the soup cook for a lot longer than the recipe calls for which resulted in more of a thick stew which ended up being amazing! Highly recommend. A perfect one-pot meal for a chilly fall/winter day!
Sautéed beet greens by NY Times Cooking. I ended up adding a squeeze of lemon at the very end to help balance out the flavor a bit. This worked as a perfect side dish!
Roasted parsley root. I don't have a specific recipe for this one (and don't think I could even really find any given how unknown this part of the veggie is!) but I roasted the parsley root like I would any other root vegetable or tuber… and it was delicious! A perfect addition to a simple fall or winter roasted veggie dish (think carrots, potatoes, beets, onions, parsnips, sweet potato, winter squash!) it's amazing to me how little people know that the popular herb used in many cuisines around the world, parsley, is actually just the top part of a delicious and nutritious root vegetable: parsley root! It's probably hard to find parsley root at most conventional grocery stores, but try looking for it at your local farmers market during harvest time. Traditionally used in certain Jewish and/or Eastern European cooking, I came across parsley root at the local farmers market in South Williamsburg where I learned about its history and use. Always ecstatic about new fruits and veggies, I knew I had to try this one out myself! If you're excited about integrating new fruits and veggies to your cooking, be sure to check out your local farmers market each season to see what you can find! You may very well be surprised :)
Roasted butternut squash seeds by AllRecipes. This is one of my favorite recipes on hand and such a simple one, too! Though roasted pumpkin seeds are quite common, roasted seeds from other winter squashes aren't so much.. despite the fact that they're all just as edible, nutritious and delicious! Toss them with some olive oil and your favorite seasoning(s), pop them in the oven and you've got yourself the most perfect zero-waste snack! For some more info on eating and cooking squash seeds check out this informative article by The Spruce Eats.
Summer Stonefruit + Basil Jam. Though I live with 7 other people in a huge share house in Brooklyn, there are times we still struggle to finish all of the fruits we get from the farmers market each week. Having had a surplus of overripe plums, nectarines and peaches that weren't being eaten at one point this summer, I knew I had to save them. These sugary sweet locally-grown fruits were just too good to be composted! Though I never made jam before, I was up for the challenge and embarked on one of my most fun (and delicious!) culinary adventures thus far. Beginning with Food.com's nectarine jam recipe as a starting point, I eventually ending up making my own adaptation of this by using a combination of stone fruits (rather than just nectarines) and adding fresh homegrown basil to give it a beautifully fragrant and herbacious touch. To up the ante a bit more to make my jam as "legit” as possible, I then learned how to properly sterilize and can my homemade jam so it would be sealed shut and good to sell in case I ever actually wanted to sell it at my local farmers market or to friends. I ended up just sharing it with my household, but at least I now know that I could open up a little jam stand if I ever wanted to ;) Homemade jams really are such a great way to use up those overripe fruits you'd otherwise compost. Morning toasts just got a whole lot better!
Apple butter (or, rather, deconstructed apple pie!) from My Baking Addiction. Similar to the time I made stone fruit jam due to a surplus of overripe fruit laying around the kitchen, I followed a similar tactic with the leftover apples that weren't being eaten. This time, however, I made butter.. apple butter to be exact! Though the finished product ending up being more of a deconstructed apple pie rather than a spreadable butter or jam, this seasonal specialty definitely hit the spot! Looking back, I realized I actually forgot to cook the apples uncovered for those extra 2 hours which probably would've helped me achieve the desired consistency of the "butter”… but either way, I'm happy with how this came out… and my housemates were too! I also didn't follow the last step which called for using an immersion blender to puree the mixture into a smooth butter which likely explains why this was more a dessert rather than a spread... oops! Though I'd love to make this again and follow the directions more closely, point is, it's worth your while to give your mushy overripe apples a second chance at life! Whether a butter or just slow-cooked cinnamony-sugar apples, you'll be glad you did.
Zucchini bread and tonic shots with the leftover zucchini water/juice. We've got two recipes in one here utilizing the summer season's bounty of zucchini and summer squash! With a whole bunch of zucchinis and summer squashes sitting in the fridge on their last leg, I knew I had to find a creative way to use them given that I had already cycled through my rotation of favorite zucchini recipes. Luckily I had tried a delicious slice of zucchini bread at a nearby cafe the week prior, so zucchini bread was already on my mind… and I was ready to make my own. Really more of a cake rather than a bread, this not-too-sweet, but perfectly moist dessert might be one of my favorite baked goods ever! If you ever find yourself with too many zucchinis to know what to do with or summer squashes that are just a little too overripe for cooking - freshly baked zucchini bread is the way to go. But before cleaning up your mess (and while the bread is baking in the oven), make yourself a quick immune-boosting zucchini juice tonic with the leftover zucchini juice/water from your grated zucchini. With just a little bit of grated ginger, freshly squeezed lemon juice, a teaspoon of maple syrup or agave, and of course, the leftover zucchini juice from the grated zucchinis used for the bread, you've got yourself a healthy shot you'd find in an upscale juice shop any day. Talk about taking zero-waste cooking to the next level... Win-win if you ask me :)
Homemade Croutons (or bread crumbs). It's only a matter of days before that beautiful sourdough loaf you bought starts to go stale. Rather than forcing yourself to eat days-old bread or toasting it to the point of no return, homemade croutons (or breadcrumbs) are the perfect solution for your stale bread. Whether in a salad or on top of a homemade soup, these restaurant-quality croutons know how to elevate a dish! P.S. I usually use oregano and/or Italian/Herbs de Provence blends to spice these up even more. 10/10 would recommend.