Cut back on waste and make cooking and serving easier with these handy suggestions…
ALSO SEE: Food Waste: What You Should Do With Too Much Food
1 Ginger peeling
Next time you need to peel ginger, try using a spoon. It removes the thick skin easily, even from the knotty bits. Use with the concave side facing you and pull towards you.
2 Freeze your own healthy snacks
Frozen fresh fruit makes a brilliant alternative to an ice lolly – with far fewer kilojoules. Line a rimmed baking sheet with non-stick baking paper and arrange sliced raspberries, peaches, blueberries or grapes in a single layer before freezing. Once frozen, transfer to small freezer bags. Keep for a month.
3 Scale down the pasta and rice mountain with these measuring guides:
- Adult portion sizes are 100g of pasta or 75g of rice per person.
- A mug is handy for measuring uncooked rice – a full mug is perfect for four adults.
- Use handfuls for measuring shaped pasta – two handfuls per adult and one handful per child.
ALSO SEE: The Three Worst Clutter Areas and How To Sort Them
4 Cut down on food waste by thinking laterally…
- Blitz up any extra berries with some butter to make a colourful and delicious spread for bread or scones. Refrigerate in an airtight container for three days or freeze for a month.
- Biscuits that have lost their crunch can be mixed with melted butter and used as a cheesecake base.
- Use the last drops of jam by rinsing remnants with warm water and adding to a gravy pan.
- The cake past its best could be used in a trifle.
- Add some paprika or chilli to that almost empty marmalade jar, put the lid on and shake to create a marinade.
5 One-off vintage teacups?
Don’t let them languish at the back of the cupboard – get them out and use them as dessert dishes. They make ideal individual pots for refrigerated desserts, such as a decadent chocolate mousse or lemon posset.
TRY THIS: Chocolate Mousse With Honey-Hazelnut Praline Recipe
Words Victoria Young
