Minneapolis Recycling

Minneapolis residents

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
514 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

74

zero-waste meals

consumed
UP TO

86

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

45

pounds

food waste prevented
UP TO

10

minutes

spent learning

Minneapolis's actions

Planning

Create a Weekly Meal Plan

I will reduce food waste and save money by planning a weekly menu of meals and ingredients for my household of 2.

COMPLETED 27
DAILY ACTIONS

Planning

Make Time for Meal Prep

I will set aside time to prepare meals in advance.

COMPLETED 27
DAILY ACTIONS

Planning

Plant a Garden

I will plant an herb or vegetable garden at my home or community garden.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Planning

Keep a Food Inventory

I will take a fridge and pantry inventory to stay up to date with what I have at home before I go grocery shopping.

COMPLETED 27
DAILY ACTIONS

Planning

Sign up for Fridge Check Fridays

I will sign up for Fridge Check Friday emails, sent by Hennepin County but open to everyone, to prompt me to check my fridge for food that needs to be used up and for hacks on storing food to keep it fresh.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Planning

Plan a Leftovers Day

I will plan a meal to use up leftovers by creating a tasty smorgasbord or using a recipe that repurposes them.

COMPLETED 23
DAILY ACTIONS

Planning

Find your meal planning personality

I will explore different meal plan techniques and choose one that works for my household.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Shopping

Glean or Forage

I will learn about the foods that grow locally and try gleaning or foraging.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Cooking

Cook From Snout to Tail

I will try a recipe that utilizes parts of an animal that are typically wasted (skin, bones, organs, etc.).

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Participant Feed

REFLECTION QUESTION
Planning

Besides having access to fresh herbs and vegetables, what benefits will you see from growing your own garden?
Minneapolis Recycling 8/26/2025 8:44 AM
Mental and emotional well-being. Also benefits for butterflies and bees as I often see them come to the garden to drink water shortly after watering. And less chemicals, less transportation and energy for food to get to my plate.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Planning

What kinds of foods do you like to eat as leftovers? If you or your household members don't like eating leftovers, are there any foods you would be more willing to try than others?
Minneapolis Recycling 8/26/2025 8:41 AM
I love leftovers. I feel lasagna tastes better as leftovers than right out of the oven. Recently I took a cooked leftover ear of corn on the cobb, roasted it and made an elote mix to put on top of nachos (which also used up other leftover ingredients). It was spectacular.

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- Mary Ann Knox 8/26/2025 1:25 PM
  Me, too. I love leftovers. As I live alone, I always cook a big meal and then eat it for 3 or 4 days....when I think about dinner, I think "ooh, I have that delicious X, just need to reheat."
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Planning

Do you have days when you don't have time to spend making food? How has meal prep helped one those days?
Minneapolis Recycling 8/26/2025 8:37 AM
Absolutely! I tend to cook ahead when I know I'm not going to have time to make food OR make it a leftover day and eat whatever's in the fridge.

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- H McCrillis 8/27/2025 12:51 AM
  Indeed, Captain. 🙂
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Planning

An average American throws out about 240 lbs of food per year. The average family of four spends $1,500 a year on food that they throw out. Does this surprise you? Where would you rather use this money? How has meal planning helped you avoid waste?
Minneapolis Recycling 8/18/2025 1:06 PM
I keep an ongoing grocery list of ingredients I run out of in a note on my phone. In the same note, I keep a list of meals (plan 3 for the week) and always have staples around. It helps make sure I only buy ingredients I'm out of when I need them and helps me make sure I'm using up all of the food I buy.

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