Smoothies

Making smoothies out of fruits and vegetables is a great way of reducing your food waste. Instead of peeling and de-seeding veggies, you can add most of them with their peel and seeds into a blender and it will do the rest (depending on the strength and quality of the blender).

For most fruits and veggies the peel often contains the most nutrients. The peel of an orange, for example, contains twice as much vitamin C as the actual flesh inside. If your fruits and vegetables are not organic it is recommended that you wash the peel very carefully before eating it to avoid any residue of pesticides.

Greens are great to use in smoothies as they not only give a fresh taste but can be thrown in the blender without cutting the stem. Examples of greens to be used in smoothies: Kale, Spinach, Parsley, Mint, etc.

Lunch Boxes

I usually prepare lunch boxes to work in the morning with whatever leftovers we have at home. It’s a great alternative to takeaway food, which in most cases comes in a lot of unnecessary packaging, implying waste. And, it’s budget-friendly!

Also, try to find a glass lunch box instead of a plastic one.

Two Green Smoothie Recipes:
(Recipes from Food Pharmacy)

“Green Secrets”
2 green bananas
1 avocado
2 1/2 dl frozen raspberries or grapes
1 handful of baby arugula
2 dl water or any type of plant-based milk (oat/almond/rice/etc.)

Peel and de-seed the avocados. Mix everything in a blender.

“Dinner Smoothie”
A perfect alternative when you don’t feel like cooking dinner.

1 small raw Jerusalem Artichoke (with peel)
1 small raw sweet potato (with peel)
1 small ginger (with peel)
2 kale leaves (with stem)
1 avocado (with 1/4 of the core)
2 celery stems (with the top part)
1/2 lemon (with peel and seeds)
1/2 liters water

Wash the root vegetables properly. Mix all ingredients until smooth. Add more water if you prefer it looser.

For other ways of dealing with organic waste, check out Backyard Composting & Don’t waste the pulp.