I wasted three avocados. (whaaaat.)
I always think it's nice to get the bad news out of the way first, don't you?
Top container: some leftover mac n' cheese that my girls didn't eat.
Bottom container: two bits of chicken.
Not pictured: 3 (three!!!!!) avocados that went bad.
This is sort of unheard of at my house because I eat avocados like they're going out of style. Not sure what happened.
Alrighty!
The happy news is that my fridge is in super good shape (partially because I made the most random smoothie ever yesterday as I was cleaning out the fridge!).
The only two possible challenges are the cauliflower and the zucchini.
I could make zucchini bread, but I think I'll do something less sugary.
(That thought is going to make you laugh later when you see my sugary bread usage...)
The cauliflower...I haven't decided about that yet, but I need to hurry and make up my mind because the cauliflower's good days are numbered.
I made the most random smoothie ever as I was cleaning out the fridge...lots of fruity odds and ends!
And also, I finally dealt with the bread odds and ends from my freezer challenge.
I made some cinnamon croutons first.
Super good. Although when I use old bread from the freezer, I find that I have to bake the croutons a lot longer than the recipe specifies.
I'm really not sure why because you'd think the bread would be unusually dry already.
After I made the croutons, I still had a pile of bread cubes left, so I did some googling and came across The Pioneer Woman's cinnamon french toast casserole, and it is in the oven as I type.
So basically my use-up-the-bread philosophy seems to be: Add cinnamon and sugar.
I feel like this maybe needs to be rethought...
And I am definitely not making zucchini bread. 😉
Let's see...what else did I do?
-I froze some pineapple that was a little overripe. Pineapple is great in smoothies!
-a small visiting friend dropped a whole watermelon this week, so we ate the unbroken parts as-is and then I froze the rest. I've never made a watermelon smoothie, but it seems to be a thing, so...
-I froze a bag of marked-down spinach for smoothie use.
So, I think that's about all the food waste news from my house for this week. All in all, it wasn't too bad.
Except I'm kind of mad at myself for the avocados.
But I'm super happy that I don't have any more miscellaneous bread in my freezer, so that kind of balances out.
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How did things go for you this week? Any wins? losses? challenges? food you don't know what to do with? Let us know in the comments!
I froze watermelon last week too! Could you make cauliflower pizza crust? I'm a fan of that!
Here is how I did: http://eatdrinkandsavemoney.com/2015/07/03/prepping-for-the-fourth-with-food-waste-friday/
I plan on making grilled cheese sammies with the odds and ends of dry bread from the fridge. I refuse to buy more bread til we use this up! Last night I combined two containers of roast from the freezer, thickened it's gravy a little, and served it over mashed potatoes. Really good! Makes me feel less guilty about the chunk of grilled salmon I packed for my lunch, then didn't eat...
Zucchini pancakes! Trust me, yummy for dinner! And I steam cauliflower add butter and mash for a no carb "mash potato".
I know it's not been terribly hot(well, since summer actually started, that is), but I don't think I've ever eaten anything that felt colder than frozen watermelon. I've used it in smoothies, but prefer just to eat it in little frozen chunks after some hard work outside on a hot day. 🙂
We signed up for a local veggie basket delivery, and I have found myself using up all kinds of veggies in all kinds of different recipes! I think it is fun and a good challenge to try to use up all the basket items. I had a lot of zucchini in the last basket, and I made whole wheat zucchini bread (I actually made muffins instead of loaf bread) from the recipe on 100 Days of Real Food. There was no sugar - only honey to sweeten the muffins. They definitely do not taste like sweet muffins (or bread), but they are really good! And, I was able to freeze half of them for later!
Here's our favorite cauliflower recipe.
Cook cauliflower - however you like, microwave, boil, ect, I usually steam mine - until it's fork tender done.
Next puree it in a food processor (or blender works but it's harder to do) with a few Tbs. of milk (whatever you have, heavy cream half-n-half, skim, whole, the creamier the better it will taste though) a Tbs of butter, salt & pepper to taste.
Blend until smooth. Enjoy!
Add-ins: I love to add 1/2 to 3/4 cup of shredded cheddar. Just think whatever you'd add to mashed potatoes, cream cheese, sour cream, diced bacon, chives, ect.
Serve hot but tastes very good left over as well.
I found this recipe when looking for low-carb choices for my diabetic husband who absolutely loves mashed potatoes. It's such a hit I make it about once a week. The first few times I tried it we didn't like it because I left chunks of cauliflower like I do when I make mashed potatoes. When I completely puree it smooth with no chunks, the cauliflower taste is milder & the add-ins complement it so much better.
I grieve for you with the avocados. 🙁
Oops - need to edit my recipe - it should say a FEW TBS of butter - add to taste like making mashed potatoes.
Hi, how about cauliflower rice or cauliflower mash. I'm not sure if you've tried these dishes before, but they're really good.
What about creamy cauliflower soup as a way to use up your cauliflower? Cut up your cauliflower and an onion into small chunks, and put into a pan with enough water or chicken broth to barely cover the vegetables. Cook until soft enough to mash into small pieces with a potato masher. In a separate pan, make a fairly thick white sauce. Pour the finished sauce into the cauliflower mixture. Add salt, pepper, and a tiny bit of curry powder. Start with a very small amount of curry powder and add more to your taste. It shouldn't taste strongly of curry, but rather have a nice, warm, savoury taste. Pure comfort food!
Try using your frozen watermelon in a granita. Just purée the watermelon in a blender or food processor (strain to remove seeds), mix about 3:1 with simple syrup and pour into a shallow freezer proof dish. Stash in the freezer till it starts to set. As soon as it is firm ( but not solid), start scraping it with a fork to form a snow come like texture. Scrape then return to freezer every 30 to 45 minutes till completely frozen. It's delicious!!!
Cauliflower stir-fried rice. All of my children (even the 1-year-old) and my husband gobble it up. AND you can use up other leftovers like bits of meat and other odds-and-ends veggies. We're having it on Sunday, I think, since my husband brought home a cauliflower yesterday.
There's no sugar in it at all. Just veggies and meat. How healthy is that?!
We make that too. Love it.
I didn't have a great week. I tossed 1 1/4 heads of broccoli. I got sucked into a supermarket multi buy and then didn't freeze it straight away. My new mantra for the supermarket is "It's not a bargain if you bin it": http://moretimethanmoney.co.nz/2015/07/02/its-not-a-bargain-if-you-bin-it/
For the cauliflower, my go to is slicing it into steaks, smothering them in indian spices and grilling them. I then crumble the cauliflower and mix it with couscous for a salad. Or cauliflower with cheese sauce - that always goes down well in our house.
For the zucchini you could try a zucchini slice - http://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/zucchini-slice//basic-zucchini-slice
Just to let you know Capitol One 360 is offering some serious deals this month! I know you use them and enjoy them so I just wanted to let ya know.
I, too, freeze every fruit under the sun to prevent loss. Watermelon, IMO, does make a good smoothie. Also a great slushy! Another use for bread odds and ends are stratas, bread salad, and garlicky breadcrumbs for pasta toppings (instead of cheese).
I love your fridge and freezer updates! Thank you!
I'm busy, the fridge is chaotic, and I know I've wasted 1 lb mushrooms and who know what else. You think there's a connection amongst these?
Pan-Roasted Cauliflower
(my memory of a CI recipe)
1. Brown panko or bread crumbs in minced bacon. Set aside.
2. Saute cauliflower florets in the same pan over med/med-high heat (I use more bacon grease) till brown on one side. Turn florets, brown the next side. If the cauliflower still isn't done, add a few T of water to the pan, cover, and steam till cooked.
3. Toss cauliflower with bacon-toasted panko. Serve.
Zucchini is good in a smoothie. I cut it in chunks and freeze. Add cocoa powder or blueberries and lemon extract.
It's boiling hot at my house today so the only thing that appeals to me regarding the cauliflower is to cut it up into small bite size pieces and eat them raw dipped into the ranch dressing that I can see in your fridge.
Zucchini noodles go well with spaghetti sauce. If you have a spiralizer making the noodles is easy.
I always have trouble with avocados! It seems like I can never get them just right! Looking good otherwise though!
A watermelon mint green smoothie is pretty good. I think I'll make one for myself tomorrow b/c I have some pretty average tasting watermelon in my fridge that needs tending too. For zucchini my family loves it when I steam it and sprinkle Parmesan cheese on it and that's it. Super easy. For cauliflower, I like to make what's called The Brain. #1) steam the cauliflower (whole) till fork tender approx. 15-20 min. #2) mix 2 Tbsp mayo with 2 tsp mustard and spread on the cauliflower. #3) pat 1/2 C. shredded cheese (whatever kind you like--we prefer cheddar) on to cauliflower. #4) bake at 375 for 10-15 min.
I feel like I ALWAYS waste one avocado. Like I can't find the magic number of avocados to buy. So I end up not buying them. I totally feel your pain
Food waste- 1 cucumber, and a couple tablespoons of homemade humus.
Food Saves- 24 hamburger buns, 36 hot dog buns, and 50ish links of sausage. My husband went to a cookout and these were the uncooked leftovers that the party hosts were going to THROW AWAY!!!!!! So he took it all and put it in our deep freezer. Smart man!
Food goals- Try to incorporate the saved food into our meal plan as much as possible without getting sick of it. Finish homemade pizza leftovers. Clean fridge!
Oh my goodness. Even the sausage was getting thrown out?? Holy moly. But yay that you got to take it home!
We roast cauliflower pieces with garlic salt and a little butter or olive oil. They taste beautiful hot or cold, even my kids love them. We kind of eat them like chips or throw them in a salad.
My favorite too! So good cold either on their own or as part of a salad.
I like to slice zucchini into wedges, drizzle some olive oil over it, and sprinkle it with shredded parmesan cheese. Then I bake it in the oven...it's delicious!
2 lemons
Handful of snap peas
About 3 lbs from a box of peaches a friend gave me, that I let sit out a bit too long before I had time to can (still had enough for a batch of peach-blueberry jam and several jars of peach pie filling)
2 large pieces of lemon-glazed berry cake. Was really good, but since we've all been sick that last couple of weeks it just didn't get eaten.
An old jar of Chinese 5 spice
::hangs head in shame::
But wait, there's more:
4 slices of bread
Half a head of romaine
I had to throw out 2/3 of a block of mozzarella cheese that went moldy-all-over AND... an entire cantaloupe. I just left it sitting on the counter until it was moldy instead of cutting it. Also, several green onion stalks. I think I can still plant the heads, though.
On a more positive note, I froze some raspberries just in time (for smoothies and also raspberry mayonnaise) and also most of a block of cream cheese. Now I just have to use THOSE before they get freezer-burned.
Raspberries mayonnaise???? Tell me more!
We have done super amazing this week, considering that we were moving and having food all over the place(s) : at the new house, at the old house and at my mom's house. I think we wasted a couple of strawberries, a glass of milk and... that's it?? Yay!
Kristen, I feel the same way you do about avocados! Zucchini? Just shred it up raw and throw it in salads. It's one of our favorite ways to have it. I try really hard to have zero waste, but ... this week I wasted the last 1/4 cup of a pint of organic heavy whipping cream. Got lost in a back corner of the fridge and expired a month ago!
Watermelon slushies are a favorite in our house! Frozen watermelon, a squeeze of lime and some coconut water (or regular water). So refreshing in the summer!
Cinnamon croutons sounds delicious. Do you put them on something or are they just for snacking? My kids love snacking on the ones I make for salads!
Well, we just snack on them if they're of the cinnamon variety. The garlicky kind...those we put on salads!
I like using frozen watermelon as ice cubes in sun tea and other summer drinks. The watermelon tastes the best in fruity teas but is still good in regular tea or even water! I wasted two bread ends that didn't get frozen in time. I'll have to remember the cinnamon croutons in the future!
I threw away very little this week. I also used my bread ends to make that Pioneer Woman recipe you mentioned. It is dangerously good. I can't stop eating it. Thanks.
Watermelon smoothies are super refreshing on hot and humid days! My favorite mix is watermelon, juice of a lime, and a pinch of salt.
How did the cinnamon french toast casserole turn out?
Well, it was pretty good, except I forgot to add the brown sugar topping until not too long before the casserole was done. Whoops. So the sugared topping wasn't as brown as it should have been. I think it'd be much more excellent with the topping added at the appropriate time!
Thanks! I decided to make this since we had overnight guests this morning. I put the bag of topping on top of the covered dish so I wouldn't forget it. 🙂 The casserole was great! A perfect way to use up my bread ends and the extra heavy whipping cream in my fridge. My guests really enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing your fun finds!
Ooh, what a great idea. I should have thought to do that and maybe I'd have remembered in time then!
We make aqua frescas( fresh water) with the free "smoothie" fruit our vendor( from the Farmer's market) gives us. We also use watermelon and other leftover fruit. Puree in vitamix, strain out juice, add a squirt or two of lime or lemon juice, sweetener of your choice( agave, stevia, little bit of sugar) and then add cold water. They are VERY popular drinks here in Socal. Every single Mexican restaurant serves them.
Have you ever tried cauliflower pizza crust or breadsticks? I found it on pinterest years ago and tried it once and loved it!! I need to revisit that recipe I think
I've heard of it...any particular recipe you recommend? My produce box gave me ANOTHER head of cauliflower, so I think I'm gonna give the breadstick thing a try.