Food Waste Friday | Good News, Bad News
Every week, I post a picture of the food that has gone bad over the last seven days. Why do I do this? Because in March of 2008, I finally got fed up with the amount of food I was wasting, and I thought that showing my waste to other people would motivate me to use up my food instead of wasting it. Because this often embarrassing practice was so helpful for me, I invited other bloggers to join me in posting their food waste photos, and Food Waste Friday was born. If you're not a blogger but still want some food waste accountability, feel free to participate by leaving a comment.
We'll start with the good news, because that's just my perky way.
Yesterday, I made a batch of Banana Chocolate Chip muffins to use up 3 spotty, bruised bananas. I also made 3 loaves of cinnamon bread, using up more of the eggnog (in case you don't follow me on Facebook, I had some eggnog go slightly sour, and I made a small batch of cinnamon bread to use up some of it. I froze the rest, in case the bread turned out. It did! And so I defrosted some more eggnog yesterday and made another 3 loaves. I modified the Cinnamon Oatmeal Bread recipe to make this bread...I left out the oatmeal and also reduced the butter and sugar since eggnog has a lot of sugar and fat in it.)
See what riveting stories you are missing out on if you haven't "liked" my Facebook page?? How do you even survive?
(please note that the previous sentence should be read in a dripping-with-sarcasm way)
Also, I made scrambled eggs for breakfast yesterday and used up a piece of bacon and several mushroom slices in the process (also spinach and Swiss cheese. I love me some Swiss cheese). And for lunch I had a salad made with all sorts of random stuff I found in the fridge.
Scrambled eggs and salads are excellent ways to use up food.
Anyway, I was the no-food-waste diva yesterday.
Unhappily, I do still have some waste to report for the week.
I'm pretty sure that the tomato sauce and the half and half are a result of the power outage we had last week as neither of those things should have gone bad so quickly.
I'm just pleased that those two things are appear to be the only waste that resulted from the outage, though. It could have been much, much worse.
The two avocados that went bad, though? Those are my fault. I've been on an avocado eating kick lately (which is progress for me. I used to hate them!), and when they were on sale, my eyes were apparently a little bigger than my stomach, and I bought more than I could eat in time.
If they were just mushy, I'd use them in some muffins, but sadly, they are a bit moldy, so they're going into my compost bin (well, first they're going into my winter compost bucket!).
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Today's 365 post: Yogurt and Jam x4
Joshua's 365 post: Some of my reptile art
Somebody tell me how to use avacado in muffins? Can you taste it? I'm thinking this might be a sneaky way to get some veggies in my kids' bodies...
I've mashed it up and subbed it for part of the banana in the Chocolate Chip Banana muffin recipe I linked to in the post. My kids hate avocado, and they didn't even notice (just don't tell them!).
We need to get better at not throwing food away. We currently meal plan and this normally stops the majority of the food waste however there are still things that we forget about. I am off to have a read of your archives now as I have only just found your blog! Stacey x
Meal planning helps a lot, so you're off to a good start. Glad to have you here...hope you get comfy and join us Food Waste Friday-ers!
Its good to know I'm not the only one who has been wasting avocados!
There are many domestic skills I am sorry to say I have not yet acquired. This post made me wonder what made you recognize that the tomato sauce and your first batch of cinnamon bread were not fit for consumption. Do you mind explaining so I don't food-poision myself in the future? 😉 By "turn out," I think you mean the loaves weren't good to eat.
Hee. Well, the tomato sauce had visible mold, so that's why it got dumped out. The half and half was sour smelling, and a little too far gone to use in pudding or bread (if it's only a little sour, pudding or bread is a great place to use it).
Obvious mold means I don't use the item (unless it's produce and then I cut the moldy part out). If something's just a little sour, though, or slightly off, I try to think of a way to bake it or cook it. That helps to disguise any off-taste, and also kills any potentially harmful bacteria.
The place where I err on the side of caution is meat...if meat smells bad or is slimy or is just questionable, I get rid of it.
I'm sorry if my post was unclear...my first batch of bread WAS fine to eat. The heat of the oven definitely would kill off any bacteria, and the taste was good (my children gobbled it up!).
I see. Thanks for the info! 😉
Eggs are amazing... They are so versatile... I haven't any left this week, just a courgette (zucchini), 3 peppers, and some cherry toms. I say just...but as I always use up any potential waste on a Friday as part of No Waste Tastes Great I'm okay with that. Planning a slow cooked pasta sauce. No idea what it will taste like, but better than composting (I hope anyway :-))
It took a while until I realized what in the world a courgette was. lol I think it was Mrs. Green at My Zero Waste that enlightened me.
This week was not really a bad week for waste--some herb cheese spread (made a few weeks ago), leftover soup from 2 wks ago. We ate some form of pasta most of this week, starting with DH's birthday celebration on Sunday w/children and their spouses, leftovers on Monday, lasagna rolls and sauce on Tues., pan-fried chicken and leftover pasta on Wed., leftover chicken and vegetables on Thurs. Tonight is our eat out at locally owned, non-frills (but filling) restaurant. I am going to work on this and work on getting back to weekly shopping again. (We are empty nesters, so deciding what to eat and not wasting has been difficult.)
I had some waste this week. I lost a honeybell orange and some broccoli. I don't know if I can be blamed for that orange,it came in a basket of 8 and I did my best but after while I get tired of them. The broccoli was used up as best I could,some just went bad. Hopefully next week will be better.
My go-tos for using up waste are soups, omlets, and stir-fries. I should add stir-fried rice to my repetoire but I keep forgetting.
How could *bacon* go uneaten? This is a foreign concept to me. It's almost as bad as chocolate going to waste.
You could safely pare away the moldy parts of the avocado and use the rest, if the rest wasn't too mushy.
Well, it was one of several cooked strips that I'd frozen to use on top of pizza, and I didn't end up using all of them.
No worries...I refreshed it in my pan, added the eggs, and all was well. 😉
In my household someone would eat that poor lonely piece of bacon. I stopped adding bacon to dishes long ago. I'd saute the bacon and remove as instructed but somehow the bacon bits would disappear before they were to be added back again. Now I use saved bacon grease instead.
Interestingly I've lost my taste for supermarket bacon. I started buying really good bacon from Whole Paycheck about a year ago, and now Oscar Mayer isn't good enough to be worth the health hit.
Separate post for question:
My CSA gives me a quart of homemade yogurt from full-fat happy milk every fortnight. I want to strain it to make it thicker. I do not want to throw out the whey[1]. What can I do with it? I know I could make bread, but the CSA also gives me homemade bread (this week's honey nine grain is scrumptious! I've eaten 6 slices in 2 days) so that's sub-optimal.
Could I use it in sweet baked goods that use milk, such as cupcakes?
Could I use it in sweet baked goods that use milk, by using dry milk and whey?
[1] I know that technically it's not whey, but it has many of the same characteriistics so that's what I'm calling it.
I call it whey. 😉 I know you can use it in baked goods, sweet or not, and I've also heard that people put it in soups. I imagine it would work in pancakes as well.
I bet you could get away without adding dry milk, but it certainly wouldn't hurt.
I find yeast breads to be quite adaptable that way. When I made my first loaves of eggnog bread, I cut butter, cut sugar, used only egg whites (I had some random ones in my fridge) instead of eggs, and used eggnog instead of milk, and the bread was still delicious.
Pancakes and waffles it is, then, with a possible dose of cupcakes. I wonder if it would work in ice cream or if it would be a bit sour? I'll have to taste the liquid to see.
I wonder what rice cooked in whey would taste like?
if it makes you feel better, i threw out an avocado last week. nothing this week though (yet).
What's with the avocado waste lately?? It seems to be epidemic among us!
Tonight we're having "fridge night". This means that everyone picks a leftover meal from the fridge and has that. Sometimes the meals are a bit odd for example a plate with tilapia, chili and leftover roasted squash but everything gets eaten.
I always make a special desert though and tonight we have flourless chocolate cake to look forward to 🙂
My food sins though are a whole pint of STRAWBERRIES that I got as a special treat and then languished away in the fridge. I almost never get berries out of season and so I am really cross with myself.
Oh, I HATE it when I do something like that...let something really expensive and out of season go to waste. So frustrating.
Totally random but I had a totally FG moment this morning -- as I was about to grab a new plastic bag to put the leftover fresh French loaf from the night before I -- wait for it -- noticed the English muffin bag that had just been emptied and realized that the loaf would fit perfectly there. Yay! I know, this is a baby step and i have miles to go before i sleep, but something has gotten through! I know i can thank you for this!! Have a great day!
Also, yay you for using the eggnog -- wow, something I would never have figured!
Yay!! I re-use bread bags all the time. I bought some hoagie rolls from the store last week (which I do from time to time) and now the bag is holding a loaf of cinnamon bread in my freezer.
This week is my first no-waste week in my new house! I'm very excited. 🙂
I have some suspect looking lettuce, but I plan on making a salad tonight to use up that and some tomatoes, so it shouldn't be a problem.
Yay you! That's awesome.
Is it harder or easier to keep tabs on food waste on your own? I've never lived on my own, and have always wondered about this.
On the one hand, my kids are pretty helpful because I can count on them to eat things up for me, but on the other hand, it sometimes seems like having a bunch of people makes for more cooking, more variations in appetite, and thus less predictability.
Hi! I followed the links to find the directions for your simple composting bin made out of a rubbermade tub but the link is no longer active. Would you please provide info needed to start this? How does the water factor in (soaking vegetable peels, etc.). Do you have to water your compost? We are really interested in starting a compost bin this summer and this looks like something we could manage. Thanks!
Hmm, I don't know what was wrong with that. I re-did the link now, though, and it should be working. Let me know if it's not!
I never have to water my compost...instead, I have to work to dry it out by adding leaves and shredded paper. In my climate, which is not desert-like at all, the produce provides more than enough water.
Thank you! I actually did a Yay in my head when the picture of worms and dirt showed up on the screen. 'Preciate it!
Ohhh, I see what you meant...it's the You Grow Girl link. I fixed that now too, so you should be all set!
I was doing well for a bit, but it seems I've become lax again.
Did you know that avacados freeze really well? They don't turn black like some people think! I just slice them up, freeze on wax paper, then put them in a baggie when frozen. It takes just a few minutes to thaw and they keep their texture and taste. I stock up on avacados when they are on sale. I can have guacamole anytime I like. ☺
I had no idea. Good to know when I buy a bag and the last couple are looking really ripe.
I just throw out a bunch food too old to eat from my freezer yesterday and I still have to clean out my fruit and vegetable drawers in my refrigerator. I try to buy foods I know I'm going to use. I'm always getting helpful tips on how to buy and store food. I know I can eliminate waste altogether, but I can cut it way down.
because of your website, i used up 3 browning bananas and made banana chocolate chip muffins for my daughter's class. they were a hit =)
thanks. i would never had known to do that before i started reading your blog.
It's a no waste week here (I really need to start photographing my food waste, so I can join you! :D) All of the leftover's in the fridge are compatible enough to be mixed together into a casserole. If I sprinkle enough cheese on top of it, my kid's should devour it! Cheese is the greatest invention........ever!
KRISTEN, YOU ARE THE TOTAL AND PERFECTED BIONIC WOMAN, WIFE AND MOTHER!!
oh, no, I think I shed a tear over your avocados! but you made up for it with your bread, FG. well done. now I've got to go see what's lurking in my fridge...just when you think you're okay, sometimes the hidden waste pops up.
That is very good. I did not waste a thing this week so I am proud.
I almost wasted 1/2 pint of Half and Half this week. Then I remembered, Luke the Lab probably would not mind the Half and Half on his morning bowl of oatmeal. I poured it on; he ate it; nothing wasted. By the way, Luke is allergic to dog food; therefore, he eats and thrives on oatmeal in the morning and a mixture of rice, cheese, egg, and some type of meat for dinner. This combination is still cheaper than paying for the repeated vet bills for his allergies.
This was my first week partaking in Food Waste Friday. I was conscious all week about trying to make use of things (stale corn bread into corn bread crumbs, yes please!) and although I threw out a couple of things, I saved the sour milk. I'm not sure what I'm going to bake yet, but I'm excited! I've decided to try to cut down our grocery bill with more home-baking, so this is a perfect first step.
I am loathe to admit that I threw out a couple of cups of Frugal Girl Tortellini Soup. I thought my husband had eaten it when I had an evening event, but it was lurking in the back of the bottom shelf. Otherwise only a few leaves of lettuce that turned slimy.
I'm inspired by the eggnog rework with your bread. It's helpful to read new ways to push the frugal/creativity boundaries, too. The leftover tomato sauce used to get us a lot, too. My hubby freezes it in cupcakes now which helps.
You can use the avacado as a face mask it is great for your skin.