Ways to Use Fruit & Veggie Scraps

2018 Holiday Sale on herbal courses!

I would like to offer some inspiration to stop throwing out perfectly good food. Are you tired of spending lots of money on fruit that goes bad too quickly? Do you throw out your spaghetti squash when you spot a bit of mold on it? Is a soft apple doomed to the landfill instead of your plate?

Ways to Use Fruit & Veggie Scraps

Raise your forks- you CAN eat veggie scraps, even from less than optimal produce. How, you ask? Let me give you some examples.


(No fruits or vegetables were harmed in the making of this post. I did not purposefully let things mold for photo-taking purposes. We have neighbors who give us their old produce for the chickens- and often, we find that at least half of it is fit for human consumption with a few minutes of prep work. Almost all of the food pictured is from that stash.)

August 2015 030The zucchini. It was molded and wrinkly on the ends. I shaved off those parts, and it’s like a whole new veggie.

August 2015 031Wilted, pale celery? No problem. Chop it up anyway- you likely won’t notice once it’s cooked. Or use it when you make homemade chicken stock. August 2015 032Don’t throw out your broccoli stems!! Peel the tough, outside skin and chop the inside, like so:August 2015 034Ta-da! You now have perfectly edible broccoli.

Speaking of cauliflower or broccoli, use the leaves too if you have them. They’re a delicious addition to whatever you’re cooking, and it adds some texture too. Got bug spots in the leaves? Just cut around them.

August 2015 039(This one was starting to open a bit, too. Whoops. We used it anyway!)

Here are some more specific ideas for places to put your veggie scraps:

  • Cook them in stock to add flavor and nutrition.
  • Add scraps to soups and stews.
  • Throw them in a stir fry.
  • Add them to pasta dishes.
  • Include them in your morning eggs.
  • Chop or grate as an addition to breads, biscuits, or muffins.
  • Cut out the spots and eat them raw as a snack or part of a salad. Who says it has to look pretty to be enjoyed?

Here’s the beginnings of a stir fry I made the other night with mostly scraps. Just think how much it added to our meal by doing a little chopping and peeling beforehand!

August 2015 038

And what do you do with tired old fruits? You can always cut out a soft or moldy spot and eat it anyway. If the whole thing is getting soft, it might be perfect chopped up and used for cooking or baking.

August 2015 037(My bruised apple that got eaten regardless.)

Cut out the spots and use your fruit scraps in dishes like:

  • Oatmeal
  • Crisps or pies
  • Breads or muffins
  • Smoothies
  • Homemade juice
  • Applesauce (or other fruit sauce.)
  • Syrups
  • Pancake or waffle toppings
  • Pie fillings

There are SO many places for your fruit and veggie scraps to go besides the garbage. If all else fails, there’s always the compost. At least your plants and/or chickens will enjoy the scraps!

August 2015 035

How do YOU use your fruit and veggie scraps? I’m always looking for new inspiration to save more food and pinch more pennies. 🙂

(Here are some more ideas to help avoid food waste.)

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8 thoughts on “Ways to Use Fruit & Veggie Scraps

  1. Amber

    Old fruit or veggies that aren’t molded can be used in a juicer! I save the pulp for a meal later. If I’m only making a fruit juice, I will save the pulp for addition to a dessert recipe 🙂 Carrot & apples make a really tasty applesauce!

    Reply
    1. Abi Post author

      That’s also a great idea! I used to have a juicer, but it didn’t work very well so we passed it on. I’ll keep that in mind if I ever get another though!

      Reply
  2. Adriana

    A couple years ago I realized I was taking out a bag of vegetable waste every other day and was not happy with that idea, it just seems so wasteful! So I cut off any inedible bits and dehydrated whatever was leftover.

    The result is a very tasty soup base or spice mix that keeps indefinitely in the cupboard.

    Now the whole household takes the extra step to store all those bits in a baggy in the fridge, and once a week it gets dehydrated!

    I love it, except there is almost nothing left for chickens or composting lol.

    Reply
  3. Michelle

    Woohoo for ugly food! I am a huge fan of NOT sending our food to the garbage can/compost. I find that veggie pieces make for a great quiche/veggie pie (layer all the veggie pieces in a savory pie crust, dot with small pieces of cheese, and pour 1-2 eggs over it all. Either cover with another layer of crust, or bake open-faced. Super tasty with hot sauce and tomatoes!)

    And finally–so glad to hear other people valuing broccoli stems.

    Reply
  4. Pingback: 40+ Amazing Ways to Eat Root to Stalk! - HealthyGreenSavvy

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