Friday, January 22, 2016

Waste Not Want Not

Yesterday was a very typical Seattle winter day. It rained buckets all day. Not a drizzle, but a pretty heavy rain. I needed to get some bulk beans so I decided to go to Whole Foods. Not sure what I was thinking. I have to take two buses to get there, and it's only the second time I've made the trek by bus. Anyway, it wasn't the most pleasant day for a bus adventure. I was drenched and feeling trampled on when I got home, and I wanted something warm and comforting. I also had some odds and ends around that needed to be used. I had half a can of white beans some celery that was begging to be used, and in my freezer I had two halves of some puff pastry, and also peas. I also of course had potatoes, so I decided to make a pot pie! I didn't follow a recipe, and I also unfortunately didn't write anything down because I was a little flustered. I basically just simmered celery, potato and onion in some water with a not chicken bouillon cube and some S&P, poultry seasoning and a little cumin until the potato was almost done. I turned down the heat and whisked some flour and almond milk and stirred that in. I let that simmer until it thickened, and then poured it in a dish, popped the pastry on top and baked until the pastry was nice and brown.  It turned out really tasty, and you would never guess that it came from stuff that needed to be used.
Since I know puff pastry gets it's puffiness and flakiness from some type of vegan fat, I went no fat with the filling. I didn't sautee the onions and celery first, which is what I would normally do. Nothing was missed. I've said it before, and I know I'll say it again, but some of my best meals have come from just throwing things together. Unfortunately that way of cooking is usually spontaneous and nothing gets written down.
I'm trying to be better about using everything, and trying to reduce my waste. Sometimes I forget about that half can of beans, or a half of an onion and I always feel bad. Instead of just blindly thinking about what I want to eat, I'm first taking a mental inventory of what I have floating around that needs to be used. I've been reading about a lot of people doing pantry challenge things, and I watched a few videos on YouTube of people living a zero waste lifestyle, which is A LOT of work. I would love to be there someday, but for now I'm very inspired to at least lessen my waste.
I know that the rain here in Seattle is nothing compared to the winter some places are having. It was just last winter that I was dealing with weather conditions that I hope I never see again. I hope everyone has a warm and safe Friday!

21 comments:

  1. Great job throwing together a Pot Pie. Nice comfort food.

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    1. Thanks! Pot pies, mashed potatoes and mac and cheese are three of the best comfort foods in my opinion!

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  2. I live alone and hate wasting food too but don't you get tired off making something and eating it for 3 straight days and what you made doesn't freeze?. I'm really impressed by your dinner! Did you ever see that documentary about a couple who wanted to show how much food is wasted in this country and lived for several months by picking food out of grocery store dumpsters? It was so interesting. Food is actually still safe to eat after the "sell by" date but stores have to get rid of it. He found a huge box of chocolate bars in the garbage! Can you imagine?

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    1. I am the only human in my house too! I don't like eating things for days on end either. I need variety. That's one of the reasons I don't always use recipes in cookbooks because often it serves six or more, and I just can't do it, but I don't want to waste! I saw a show on the food network of all places about food waste, and it was shocking, and very depressing. They found some amazing things that had been thrown away too.

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  3. You sound like the lazy green girl. Is that your blog also? Anyway, zero waste helps the vegan movement because its a planetary benefit, which is harder to argue against than diet or ethics. Even High Carb Hannah quit La Croix because of the huge waste (The carbonation may even harm teeth over time). We vegans need to add zero waste to our message. I like both your blogs.

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    1. Thank you so much! I am not the lazy green girl, but I'm going to check her out! I love High Carb Hannah. I also have given up my beloved La Croix. It's very hard, but I felt too bad about the cans, and the packaging.

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    2. I love high carb Hannah too! I've been binge watching her all day! I've been toying with the idea of starch solution for a little while now :)

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    3. I've been loosely following the starch solution for awhile, and I have to admit I feel great. She and her husband have a blog channel called Life inside a box that I also love.

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  4. That's not me but I am a lazy girl - thanks for the link! That documentary is called "Just eat it - a food waste story". Let me tell you, when you think about all the resources it took it get that little red pepper or peach into your fridge, you will beat yourself up if you let it go to waste (at least I do).

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    1. P.S. Awwwww, man!!! I love La Croix pink grapefruit :(  (but thanks for the info)

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    2. I'm going to watch that documentary for sure! I remember in the food network special, it was shocking how many perfectly good fruits and veg get tossed just because they aren't "perfect". I think it's shameful.

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  5. Ooh yes please!! This looks incredible! This would definitely be perfect blizzard food, it looks so comforting and warming.

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    1. It was very soothing. I feel so bad because the other day it was raining here in Seattle, and I was feeling grumpy about it, and thought of what so many on the East coast are dealing with. UUGH! And I so do not miss shoveling!

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    2. Much agreed. I love the snow, but I understand that a lot of people aren't freaks like me who love to shovel. XD I felt bad because today I was talking to a person from Ireland who was excited to see snow for the first time... and then was like "IT JUST DIDN'T STOP!!!" I wish he didn't have to deal with 2 feet for the first snowfall lol

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    3. That's too funny that you love to shovel. I am no good at it, I hate doing it with a passion! That is a bit much to deal with on your first snowfall!

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  6. Living waste-free can be hard. I felt pretty bad because I tossed a bunch of stuff the other day because it was sitting in the fridge for so long. I am pretty good in the sense I try hard to use leftovers in lunches. Like if I make curry I make a ton of rice with it, so then I can make a wrap for lunch. (the wrap kind-of steams the rice back to life!) And if I can't finish leftovers before they get bad, they get wrapped up and frozen. There is always some night where I am sick and just can't make a dinner for my husband and he doesn't have enough time himself to make it so we can just microwave and eat.

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    1. I agree. I think living waste free is definitely a full time job. But when I hear about it, it does inspire me to take a look and see where I can cut down. I always feel bad when I have to toss food too.
      I tried freezing some stuff when I still lived in PA but the problem was I forgot about it for like over six months!

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    2. lol sometimes I do the same. Last night my husband and I had veggie burgers and the buns were frozen for like ever ago.... it was awful tasting. My husband took the bun off and at the burger with a fork and knife. It was a little sad to toss 3 buns.

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    3. I just had the same thing happen not to long ago with buns from the freezer too! I didn't even realize bread could get that freezer burned tasting! It made me so mad at myself!

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  7. thrown together - LOVE it! Live it!

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