Recipe For Change

I recently participated in an event called 'Recipe for Change', a campaign organised by 1 Million Women. It's about changing your lifestyle to reduce waste and pollution, save energy and save money. I discovered some great ideas to reduce food waste and wanted to share some tips which you can start right away, you may already be doing some, which is great!

Plan your meals and write a shopping list – check what ingredients you already have in the cupboard and only get extras you need.

FIFO first in first out – when putting ingredients in the fridge/freezer/pantry move older ingredients to the front so these get used up before the expiry date.

Compost or get a worm farm – you don’t need to buy something expensive from the shop, try making a DIY compost bin. This provides fantastic food for your plants and if you don’t have space outdoors get one that you can store under the kitchen sink.

Be creative - before throwing out food consider what else it can be used for – broccoli stalks or ageing celery can be used to create vegetable stock, over ripe fruit can be used to make smoothies and stale bread can be wizzed into breadcrumbs.

Portions - serve smaller meals and freeze leftovers, or create a yummy leftovers sandwich for the next day.

Grow your own food, gardening is therapeutic and you will save money by reaping the rewards of your edible garden.

Reduce food miles by shopping at local famers markets. This produce will last you longer because it’s fresher too!

Bag free - invest in reusable shopping bags to avoid using plastic bags. Where possible buy products with minimal packaging or recycled packaging. Ecosilk bags are my favourite as they fold up really small and are made from super strong parachute silk.

Store food properly and use food safe practices to ensure your food lasts.

Here is a quick recipe which users stale bread, perfect for an indulgent weekend brekky.

French Toast with banana and frozen berries

serves 2

3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup cream
1 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 slices thick day old bread
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup frozen berries, thawed
1 banana, sliced
Pure maple syrup
1 tbsp icing sugar

1. Combine eggs, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon in a large jug. Whisk with a fork until well combined. Pour mixture into a shallow bowl.

2. Dip bread slices in milk mixture until well soaked. Heat butter in a large frying pan over medium heat until bubbling. Add soaked bread. Fry for 1-2 minutes each side or until golden.

3. Place French toast on plates, serve with banana, berries, maple syrup and dust with icing sugar.

If you have any more tips to reduce food waste please share in comments below.