15 Ways To Reduce Your Kitchen Waste
Here at LaurenConrad.com, we’ve always tried to find new and interesting ways to reduce our waste and incorporate more eco-friendly and sustainable practices into our lives. We’ve tried ways to use less plastics, and focused on incorporating non-toxic beauty products into our routines to help our carbon footprint. However, today we’re talking about another incredibly important way to reduce our carbon footprint: reducing our kitchen waste. A lot of us throw away perfectly good foods and items that can simply be repurposed for another use. However, all we really need is a little more time and creativity to turn something that could have ended up in a landfill into something tasty, delicious, and useful. For a look at how we’re trying to reduce our kitchen waste, keep scrolling for 15 tips and tricks…
1. Use Carrot Tops And Random Herbs For A Pesto
Basil isn’t the only green that can used for pesto. If you have any leftover herbs or greens like carrot tops, you can easily swap them in to create a new and delicious pesto recipe, like this one.
2. Use Coffee Grinds As A Body Scrub
Instead of just throwing your coffee grinds away, you can turn it into a nice morning body scrub. Our editor-in-chief, Lauren, loves to add coconut oil and brown sugar to her mix for the best smelling DIY exfoliator.
3. Use Milk Cartons or Used Containers For Your Seedling
Take it from Lauren herself and try this tip: If you’re in a green thumb phase, try saving your old coffee bags, milk cartons, or other used containers to grow your seedlings. This way, you don’t have to purchase so many little planters either.
4. Make Candied Oranges With Orange Peels
We’re really enjoying our winter oranges, and another great way to savor them even longer is to make candied oranges with any leftover peels. You can use lime, lemons, or any other citrus too.
5. Use Eggshells to Feed Your Garden…
6. …Or Even To Enrich Your Bird Feeder {If You Have One}
Yes, really. If you have a bird feeder, eggshells are a great way to help nourish birds since they are so calcium-rich.
7. Use Vegetable And Allium Scraps For A Stock
Leftover celery tops, onion and garlic skins, mushroom stems, and carrot peels? Get a stock boiling. Always having some stock on hand is perfect for impromptu soup-making too. Add umami flavor like miso paste or more mushrooms to flavor it.
8. Use Leftover Fruit Scraps To Flavor Your Water
If you’re not using your leftover orange peels for candied oranges, use them, and any other fruit scraps, to flavor your water for a refreshing sip.
9. Take Potato Peels And Make Crispy Potato Skins
We’d argue that frying or crisping up some potato skins is better than actual potato chips, so definitely don’t throw these away. You can also use them as toppers for any of your other dishes too. Try this recipe if you’re in the mood for crispy roasted potato skins.
10. Turn Stale Bread or Bread Crust Into Bread Crumbs
If you’re not a huge bread crust person {we understand} or have some old bread, using it as bread crumbs for your next delicious recipe is a great way to reduce your kitchen waste.
11. Use Stale Bread For French Toast…
For our French toast fans, use any old or stale bread for a tasty breakfast treat like this one. You won’t be able to tell if the bread was a little past its prime.
12. Shred And Fry Up Your Mushroom Stems
Don’t throw it away! Shredded and fried mushroom stems can be a tasty treat to top your pastas, salads, and pizzas with.
13. Throw Your Veggie And Fruit Scraps Into Smoothies
Have kale stems, celery tops, or carrot peels? Add a few more nutrients to your smoothies by adding in a bit of your fruit and veggie scraps into your smoothies. You won’t even be able to taste them but will benefit from extra vitamins.
14. Roast Your Squash Seeds For Dressings, Toppings, Or Dips
Ever scrape out the seeds of your squash and wonder what you can do with them? Here’s the answer: roast them. You then can add them as a topping, include them in dressings, or blend them to create a creamy dip.
15. Save Your Asparagus Bottoms And Make An Aioli
Ever heard of this one? Instead of tossing your asparagus bottoms after cleaning them, use them to make an aioli. Try out this recipe to start.
Let us know in the comments below. We’d love to hear.
XO Team LC
Photos: Lauren Conrad, Lauren Conrad
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