Be a No Waste Olympian at Home

Be a No Waste Olympian at Home

I was just reading this New York Times article about celebrity chefs using wasted food from the Olympics to feed the homeless.  It’s a high profile event aimed at gaining notice from people like you and me.  So besides applauding their efforts, what can we do to limp veggies or stale, dry bread to make delicious meals that will make you a No Waste Olympian in your own kitchen?  Ideas?  Let’s hear ’em.

Strawberry Salad with Arugula

Strawberry Salad with Arugula

Sometimes I over buy my fruit.  I don’t mean to, but kids who gobble up baskets of strawberries one day, have no interest in them two days later.  It’s their fault clearly. So then a few days later I have a bunch of not so lovely looking berries.  A little strawberry salad to the rescue!  I soak and wash the berries and hull them removing any really bad parts.  The small or smushy bits I place in a small bowl…

Read More Read More

Rhubarb Blueberry Crisp

Rhubarb Blueberry Crisp

Fruit Mix: 3 Cups diced rhubarb 3 Cups blueberries (fresh or frozen) 1/3 Cup brown sugar, packed 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour 1 Teaspoon cinnamon Crisp Topping: 1 Cup quick-cooking oats 1 Teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 brown sugar, packed 4 Tablespoons butter, soft Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a 9 x 13 baking pan with cooking spray. Whisk together the dry ingredients of the fruit topping and then mix with the fruit in a large bowl and spread mixture evenly into baking…

Read More Read More

Turmeric Ginger Lemonade

Turmeric Ginger Lemonade

Power up with this delicious and refreshing beverage that is also an excellent natural anti-inflammatory.   Who wouldn’t want to quench your thirst with this gorgeous drink or maybe add a little vodka for a great cocktail. 2 inches fresh turmeric, grated 1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and grated 2-3 cups water to boil, more for lemonade 1/2 cup sugar or to taste.  Feel free to use another sweetener like agave or stevia 5 lemons, juiced (zest first to make Citrus…

Read More Read More

Feeding The 5000

Feeding The 5000

If you are in NYC you need to check this out today!  From 11am-4pm, Feeding the 5000 NYC will be taking over the North Plaza of Manhattan’s historic Union Square Park. Thousands of members of the public will be provided with a delicious free feast, sourced entirely from fresh top-quality produce that would have otherwise been wasted. But that’s not all: 5000 further meals will also be prepared and transported to City Harvest’s network of soup kitchens and food pantries…

Read More Read More

Chicken Pot Un-pie

Chicken Pot Un-pie

This is a great way to make another dinner from a Three Dinner Roast Chicken using pantry items and veggies that are easy to have on hand. It is a recipe inspired by Ina Garten’s Chicken Pot Pie recipe but much lightened up and extended with additional vegetables like carrots and frozen peas that are easy to keep around. 3-4 cups chicken pieces 4 tablespoons olive oil Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 5 cups chicken stock 2 chicken bouillon…

Read More Read More

Roast Tomatoes to Intensify Flavor

Roast Tomatoes to Intensify Flavor

I love roasting vegetables to concentrate their flavors.  All winter I roast root veggies and cauliflower and of course potatoes.  Removing water from vegetables through roasting intensifies the flavors and improves textures, so why not try this easy and inexpensive process to improve a vegetable that is usually not all that good at the supermarket. While everyone loves a gorgeous, in-season, heirloom tomato, sometimes that is just not possible.  Out of season?  Too expensive?  Hard to find?  Try roasting some…

Read More Read More

“Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.”

“Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.”

― Michael Pollan

Food Waste & How to Reduce It

Food Waste & How to Reduce It

20% of food consumers buy goes to waste.  WHAAAAT? Great infographic on food waste from Gracelinks Media.

Oven Mitts: Unsung Heros of the Kitchen

Oven Mitts: Unsung Heros of the Kitchen

I’ll face it.  I have before grabbed a damp kitchen towel and dropped my cookie sheet, spraying the floor with delicious cookies.  I am not too proud to admit it.  “Use an oven mitt doofus”, you may be saying (rightfully) right now.  But the reason I didn’t was because my oven mitts were so worn through that my finger stuck out if I didn’t tuck it in quite right.  Time to get serious.  So I did.  I got two that…

Read More Read More