It’s a common situation: You bought too much produce. The cabbage at the back of your fridge is going bad and your bananas are turning brown. Or there’s the tail end of a loaf of bread that you don’t know what to do with …
Thankfully, there are recipes you can make to use up ingredients that you might otherwise toss. This kind of cooking helps prevent food waste and save the money that you spent on groceries.
I get into how to use up specific ingredients below. However, if you’re trying to figure out what to do with a collection of ingredients, you can also try tools like SuperCook, MyFridgeFood and RecipeRadar, which suggest recipes based on the ingredients you have available.
There are also certain types of dishes that are great for hiding ingredients past their prime, such as soups and stews, hashes, stir-fries, chili, pasta dishes and baked goods.
Let’s get cooking!
Apples
Add apples to applesauce, apple crisp, apple cake or apple pie.
Avocadoes
Use up extra avocadoes in guacamole, avocado toast, bowls, salad or, if you’re feeling adventurous, homemade sushi.
Bananas
(Over)ripe bananas make a great addition to muffins, banana bread, pancakes or smoothies.
Berries
Try adding berries to a crisp or crumble, smoothies, pie or homemade jam.
Bread
Turn leftover bread into bread pudding, French toast, breadcrumbs or croutons. If you have leftover pita bread or tortillas, you could also make homemade pita chips or tortilla chips.
Broccoli
Use up broccoli in a soup, stir-fry or pasta dish, or try roasting it for a delicious flavour.
Cabbage
Add cabbage to a stew, stir-fry, coleslaw or tacos, or try frying it in olive oil with paprika. You can also check out the PEI Cabbage Club Facebook group for more cabbage inspiration.
Carrots
Try adding carrots to a soup, stir-fry or salad; roasting them; or making carrot cake or muffins.
Cranberries
Turn cranberries into cranberry sauce, pie, cobbler or scones.
Eggplant
Try making eggplant into baba ganoush, grilling it, or adding it to ratatouille or a pasta dish.
Green beans
Add green beans to a stir-fry, curry, casserole or pasta dish. You can also roast them to enhance their flavour.
Greens (lettuce, spinach)
Try adding wilting greens to pasta sauce or a curry. You could also add leftover greens to dishes that put them in the spotlight, like salad, spinach dip or spanakopita.
Herbs (fresh)
Fresh herbs make a yummy addition to mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, soup or frittata. You could also try making pesto or a herb dip.
Lemons
When life gives you lemons, make … lemonade, pie, cake, lemon squares or lemon poppy seed loaf. You can also add a dash of lemon juice to savoury dishes for an extra kick.
Milk
Add milk or milk alternatives to pancakes, French toast, scalloped potatoes, or macaroni and cheese.
Mushrooms
Use up mushrooms in a stir-fry or curry, a pasta dish, risotto, mushroom gravy or shepherd’s pie.
Onions
Use up onions in French onion soup, onion dip or an onion tart. You can also chop and freeze onions to add to dishes.
Rice
Turn leftover cooked rice into fried rice, Mexican rice, beans and rice, or rice pudding.
Root vegetables (potatoes)
Add potatoes and other root vegetables to soup, roasted vegetables or a hash. You could also make potato salad or mashed potatoes.
Tomatoes
Turn fresh tomatoes into tomato sauce, gazpacho, tomato soup, salsa or bruschetta.
Zucchini
Add zucchini to ratatouille, chili, a stir-fry or a pasta dish. Alternatively, turn it into zucchini bread or muffins.
How to use up different foods
Throwing out foods that have gone bad is no fun. Try some of these suggestions instead to clear out your fridge and try new dishes while you’re at it!
I want to know: What recipes do you make to finish foods past their prime?
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