Learn how to transform your kitchen scraps, excess produce or the remaining half of your dinner into delicious culinary creations. This article provides you with innovative and creative ways to repurpose leftover ingredients, thus reducing waste while expanding your culinary repertoire.
Turn Veggie Scraps into Stock
Before you think of trashing those vegetable peels, ends, or stalks, consider this: these remnants can be turned into a full-bodied vegetable stock. Gather leftovers vegetables such as carrot peels, onion skins, and celery ends in a freezable container. Once you have enough scraps, simply put them in a pot, cover with water, and simmer for an hour or so to extract their flavors. Strain your stock and voila! You've turned waste into gold.
Transform Bread Ends into Croutons or Breadcrumbs
Getting tired of those ends of bread loafs? Don't throw them away. Instead, turn stale bread into delicious homemade croutons or breadcrumbs. For croutons, cube the bread, toss it with olive oil and your choice of herbs, then bake until crispy. Likewise, you can blitz the pieces in a food processor for fresh breadcrumbs, perfect for topping casseroles, pastas or for use in meatloaf.
Say Cheese to Cheese Rinds
The hard rinds from cheeses like Parmesan or Romano can be a flavor powerhouse in your soups and sauces. Instead of tossing them, throw them into your next pot of soup, stew, or tomato sauce. The rinds will soften and release a robust flavor.
Give Life to Leftover Wine
Have some leftover wine after a gathering? Don’t pour it down the drain! Extra wine can be frozen in ice cube trays and used later to add extra flavor to sauces, stews or marinades. Or, if you're feeling adventurous, you can even try your hand at making homemade vinegar.
Artful sauces from Softening Fruits
Fruit that's past its prime is perfect for creating flavorful sauces, reductions and compotes. Soft apples, peaches, or berries can be cooked down with a little sugar to make a sweet topping for ice cream, pancakes or muffins. Even overripe bananas can be transformed into delicious banana bread or smoothies.
Stale Cookies into Pie Crust
Stale cookies and crackers don't need to be thrown away. They can be re-purposed into a delightful homemade pie crust. Just crush them into a fine crumble, add some melted butter, press into a pie dish, and you’ve got a quick and easy base for your next dessert.
Leftover Herbs into DIY Herb Oil
Herbs tend to wilt fairly quickly, and often we end up throwing away most of what we buy. Instead, consider making a fresh, flavorful herb oil. Chop up the herbs, mix them with a neutral oil like canola, and let them steep. The resulting oil can be used in salads, marinades, or for sautéing.
All Rights Reserved © 2024