Waste Not: Making the Most of Your Produce

Idea: Put this on a wooden plank, call it a "Vegan Charcuterie Board" and you could sell this for at least $20 in Brooklyn
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If you're like me, sometimes you come up with a grand plan to cook meals for the week ahead or make a big-batch of dinner with enough leftovers to bring as lunch. However, life, being the nefarious, shady queen it is, often has other plans. The next thing you know, you have to stay late at work, friends invite you out (and you can NOT say no), or you just don't feel like it, and now it's Thursday and the food you bought earlier that week is still sitting in your fridge slowly turning brown. At this point, you have two options - you can throw it away, or, you can get resourceful and make some produce which is past its prime the star of a dish you would be proud to serve to friends and family.
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Let's try out the later

When you have produce which may be starting to wilt, bruise or just may not be pretty enough to serve whole or in big pieces, think small and think cooked to make the most of it. Many veggies and fruits not only change in appearance but also texture when they are no longer right from the market fresh. That does not mean they are bad or inedible, but cooking will hide many texture changes. Plus, if what you're making features your fruits and veg in small or pureed form, who cares what they look like whole? In short - long cooked dishes or smooth dishes like soups should be your go-tos.
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Consider some of these options when you need to find a way to clean out your fridge:

1. Chili - While traditional chili focuses primarily on the meat, tomato, and spice base, it's also one of the most versatile dishes out there. When incorporating vegetables into your chili, you want to cut them to a medium to small dice to make everything easily spoonable. Saute your vegetables along with aromatics like onions before setting it to slow cook or simmer. Stick with firmer vegetables rather than leafy (spinach, kale, etc) or mushy (eggplant) ones for best results. In the past I've added diced sweet potato, zucchini, and bell peppers to chili and they all blended in perfectly.
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2. Bread - You may have heard that overly ripe bananas are the best for banana bread, well the same can be true for things like zucchini and carrots. If you have some leftover carrots in the bottom of your crisper drawer or some baby carrots that you have not gotten around to eating - grate them coarsely (or finely to preference) and bake up a loaf of your favorite vegetable bread. I like this recipe for carrot bread and for zucchini bread, this recipe is a great base. To many vegetable bread, you can even stir in some chocolate chips if you are looking for something a little more indulgent. Anyways, summer is over; it's bulking season. Live a little.

​3. Soups - Soup is probably my favorite way to use any leftover vegetables, especially now that it is getting cooler and Autumn is in the air. Simply chop and slice vegetables into roughly bite-sized pieces and saute in a large pot or dutch oven in some olive oil over medium-high heat. After the vegetables turn tender, add your choice of vegetable, chicken, or other broth or even water until all the vegetables are just submerged. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until everything is tender but not mushy. At this point, you can serve as is, or if you have a regular or immersion blender, blend your soup until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve with a swirl of cream or sour cream and bread. 
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4. Smoothies - This may be the most obvious one on this list, but making mixed fruit smoothies (or fruit and vegetable if you're feeling bold) can be an easy breakfast, lunch, or snack. Peel, slice, and get your fruit ready in the blender, add ice, your liquid of choice like milk or juice, and blend until smooth. Voila. Pour into a big glass or mason jar and Insta the crap out of that creation. I suggest #HealthyLiving, #CleanEating, and #ImBasicAndIKnowIt. Who needs Tropical Smoothie Cafe anyway?

What if I don't want to cook right now?

Say you still are not in the mood to cook or don't plan on it for a while. What else can you do? Prep and freeze of course. For fruit, cutting it up and freezing it is perfect for smoothies - just wrap tightly in plastic wrap or in zip-top bags with as much air removed from them as possible to prevent freezer burn. For vegetables, freeze in large bags with as much air removed as possible. Since their texture will change and become softer after freezing and thawing, it would be best to use the frozen veg for pureed soups.

Now, with all these ideas now fresh in your head, I do want to make sure it's clear that these ideas and techniques apply only to produce just past their prime, not anything that is actually rotting or unsafe to eat. It may sound obvious, but if you are starting to see mold or puddles or brown liquid coming from mushy produce, at that point throw it out. There's no saving it. Throwing out a bag of spinach is less expensive and painful than having to deal with food poisoning.
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Alright, now that you have some ideas of how to make the most of the produce you buy, try out some of these methods above. Of course, they work just as well on fresh fruit and vegetables. To give you an idea of what is possible, even with less pretty veg, try out this recipe for Green Vegetable Soup. If that doesn't sound good enough for you or your guests, just call it Soupe des Legumes Verts. Everything sounds fancier in French.

​Recipe: Green Vegetable Soup
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 2 Medium Zucchini, halved and roughly chopped
• 1 Yellow Squash, halved and roughly chopped
• 1 Small Yellow Onion, chopped
• 1 Bag Spinach
• 1 Medium Russet Potato, chopped
• 1 Clove Garlic, Minced
• 5-7 Cups Chicken Stock or Broth
• 2 Tablespoons Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• Salt & Pepper to Taste

Directions:

1. In a large Dutch oven or Pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat
2. Add zucchini, squash, onion, potato, and a heavy pinch of salt and pepper and sauté for about 5-7 minutes until the onion turns translucent and the vegetables start to become tender
3. Add minced garlic and spinach and continue to sauté for about 1-2 minutes until the spinach is all wilted down and you can smell garlic from the next room over (or just until nice and fragrant, that's fine too)
4. Add in the stock until the vegetables are just covered. If you prefer a thinner consistency soup, add until covered by about 1 inch of stock. Cover and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce the heat the medium-low and simmer for about 15 minutes until everything is tender and the potatoes pierce easily with a fork
6. In batches, blend the soup in your blender, transferring the blended soup into a separate pot or large bowl until everything is the desired consistency. If you have a stick/immersion blender, you can do this right in the pot
7. Season with salt and pepper to taste and finish by mixing in two tablespoons of finely grated parmesan cheese
8. Serve in a bowl with more parmesan on top, fresh herbs, or a swirl of cream and plenty of bread

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Note: Substitute vegetable stock or water and omit the Parmesan cheese to make this soup vegan friendly.

Cheers Y'all. Stay Hungry