Ramsey/Washington Recycling & Energy

I made a vinegar-based cleaning solution out of the grapefruit and orange peels I saved this winter when citrus was in season.

Learning what parts are edible has not only affected my cooking habits, but also has reshaped my opinion of produce in the grocery store. I treasure summer when I can get beets in season with the stalks and leaves still attached and now get bummed when the stalks/leaves aren't kept on the beets in a grocery store. Same thing with carrots and...

Today's lesson: Sometimes preventing food waste means making a borderline bad meal and just dealing with it...

A quick meal for me is a sandwich and some finger food, whether fruit, veggies or chips. This is a nice no waste meal because I make and take just what I want, and not more.

I challenge you to post every day until the challenge is over! On your marks, get set, GO!

On a bike/walk last night I noticed two apple trees by the side of the road. I'd love to glean from them, but they are very hard to reach (high and set back on a bluff). The trees are noticeable because the fruit falls on the sidewalk, but by that time it's not good to eat.

Last night I threw away an entire English cucumber because it was moldy and mushy from sitting in my refrigerator too long, under other veggies.

Over the weekend I ordered nachos and wings at a restaurant. We couldn't eat is all in the time we had, so we took it all home, including wings, ranch dip, celery and nachos. I ate the nachos right away, but saved the rest: wings for tomorrow's lunch, ranch for dipping pea pods in. The olives were the only food scraps for composting. But, it...

I did not freeze fruit for smoothies, but had 2 tomatoes that were super ripe and I had no plan for them so I tossed them in the freezer. I will add them to a soup, stew, or sauce.

Tried storing carrots in water to prolong their freshness and learned a few valuable lessons. I left on vacation for a week and the carrots definitely started fermenting a bit during that time... I'll drain the water before a longer trip in the future. I found that peeling the carrots removes the outer layer that fermented and they have been...