• Blog
  • Book
  • Workshops
  • Sourdough
  • Recipe Index
    • Blog Index
    • 7-Day Menus
  • 50 Ways to Kick Plastic
    • Challenges
    • Reusa-Bags Map
  • About/Contact
    • Media/Press
Zero-Waste Chef

frugal

  • Zero-Waste Basics

11 Kitchen Tools You Already Own

Posted on February 9, 2021February 9, 2021by The Zero-Waste Chef

Need a new gadget to execute a kitchen task? With a bit of creativity, you may fashion a fix using stuff you already have on hand.

Read More
8 Comments
  • Zero-Waste Basics

7 Zero-Waste Steps That Cost Zero Dollars

Posted on February 4, 2021February 4, 2021by The Zero-Waste Chef

Living a lower waste lifestyle should save money, not bankrupt you. These seven zero-waste steps cost zero dollars.

Read More
6 Comments
  • Zero-Waste Basics

You Saved All Your Vegetable Scraps for Broth. Now What?

Posted on January 28, 2021February 5, 2021by The Zero-Waste Chef

Good job saving your vegetable scraps for making free broth. Now what do you do with it? Here are 9 ideas.

Read More
6 Comments
  • All Recipes

Plastic-Free Glue and Homemade Paper Tape

Posted on October 7, 2020December 24, 2020by The Zero-Waste Chef

Keep money in your pocket and plastic glue bottles out of landfill with this simple, 2-ingredient homemade wheat paste.

Read More
16 Comments
  • Fermentation

Sourdough Discard Vegan Carrot Cake

Posted on May 6, 2020June 17, 2020by The Zero-Waste Chef
frosting a sourdough carrot cake in the pan with coconut buttercream frosting

If you’ve adopted a pet sourdough, you’ll need to find recipes for the discard you accumulate from feedings. This carrot cake makes your discard disappear.

Read More
24 Comments
  • Fermentation

Sourdough Discard Vegan Chocolate Cake

Posted on April 27, 2020December 11, 2020by The Zero-Waste Chef
sourdough discard vegan chocolate cake

Whether you’re new to sourdough or you’ve baked it for years, you can likely use another recipe for your discard, especially one for an easy chocolate cake.

Read More
76 Comments
  • Fermentation

Bake Sourdough Bread Without the Expensive Tools

Posted on March 29, 2020January 12, 2021by The Zero-Waste Chef

Don’t let a want of fancy tools squelch your dreams of baking delicious sourdough bread. You may have most of the gear you need.

Read More
19 Comments
  • Zero-Waste Basics

Wash Laundry, Not too Much, Hang to Dry

Posted on January 22, 2020March 1, 2020by The Zero-Waste Chef

Wash dirty laundry in cold, use as few products as possible and hang to dry. You’ll save money and your clothes will last longer.

Read More
20 Comments
  • Zero-Waste Basics

49 Zero-Waste Ways to Save Thousands of Dollars

Posted on September 9, 2019February 12, 2021by The Zero-Waste Chef

Some aspects of zero-waste living cost more but most cost less.

Read More
19 Comments
  • Zero-Waste Basics

Simple DIY Bread Slicing Guide

Posted on April 11, 2019April 11, 2019by The Zero-Waste Chef
loaf of sourdough bread being sliced with a serrated knife

Cut smooth, even slices every time with this simple wooden bread slicing guide.

Read More
6 Comments
  • Zero-Waste Basics

How to Live Zero-Waste on a Budget

Posted on April 4, 2019November 4, 2019by The Zero-Waste Chef
buy quality, not too much, mostly used

A zero-waste lifestyle is by nature a frugal one. These 16 tips will help you adjust to the program on a budget.

Read More
9 Comments
  • Zero-Waste Basics

How to Equip a Kitchen When You Start Out or Start Over

Posted on November 14, 2018March 27, 2020by The Zero-Waste Chef

When you choose kitchen tools, look for multi-purpose items. Yesterday on Instagram, two people sent me messages asking how to equip a kitchen from scratch. One was moving to a new apartment. The second? The Camp Fire had razed her home in Paradise, California. I can’t imagine losing my home in one of these mega-fires—the […]

Read More
10 Comments
  • Food Waste

How to Invest in (Fennel) Stalks and Fronds

Posted on November 6, 2018January 10, 2020by The Zero-Waste Chef
fennel bulb with stalks and fronds

Never waste fennel stalks and fronds again! For the last few weeks, after I’ve returned home from the farmers’ market, I’ve roasted lots of vegetables such as potatoes, eggplant, peppers, onions, zucchini and fennel—but not all together. My daughter and I love them. I will slice up a fennel bulb, roast it with olive oil […]

Read More
10 Comments
  • Zero-Waste Basics

How to Sew a Bento Bag

Posted on October 10, 2018December 2, 2020by The Zero-Waste Chef
bento bag filled with fruit

Family, friends and coworkers, please stop reading now… And if you don’t sew, you can also skip this post and buy an original, proper bento bag from Ambatalia, a small, locally owned producer of gorgeous textile goods made from natural fibers and purveyor of daily essentials to help you live “a non-disposable life.” Check out […]

Read More
19 Comments
  • Rants
  • ...
    • Zero-Waste Basics

Kitchen Gadgets You Didn’t Know You Already Own

Posted on September 19, 2018September 20, 2018by The Zero-Waste Chef

A flimsy plastic kitchen gadget that should not exist inspired this post: the Evriholder Avo Saver Avocado Holder. Shaped like one half of an avocado, with a round indentation for the seed and an adjustable rubber strap, this gadget buckles in the half avocado you didn’t eat so you can store it in the refrigerator and […]

Read More
17 Comments

Posts navigation

Older posts

My Book Is Now Available for Preorder!



LEARN MORE

Follow Blog via Email

As Seen In

Top Posts & Pages

Sourdough Discard Pizza: How to Sourdough-ize a Recipe
Sourdough Crackers 2.0
Make-a-Dent-in-Your-Discard Sourdough Pita Bread
Ginger Bug
Sourdough Discard Vegan Chocolate Cake
Sourdough Bread
How to Prevent Your Sourdough Starter from Taking Over Your Life
Sourdough Pancakes
23 Simple Ways to Reduce Planet-Heating Wasted Food
Compost for the Lazy: Throw It on the Ground

Recent Posts

  • The (Literal) Ins and Outs of Curbside Composting
  • Save-All-the-Greens Turnip Top Pasta
  • Why I’m not Excited About Coca-Cola’s 100% Recycled Bottle
  • 11 Kitchen Tools You Already Own
  • 7 Zero-Waste Steps That Cost Zero Dollars
  • You Saved All Your Vegetable Scraps for Broth. Now What?
  • One Woman Making a Difference
  • Forever Chemicals Everywhere: What We Can Do
  • 8 Reasons to Be Cautiously Optimistic about the Environment in 2021
  • Make-a-Dent-in-Your-Discard Sourdough Pita Bread

Categories

Archives

Instagram

This year’s crop of preserved lemons. I used ove This year’s crop of preserved lemons. I used over 20 pounds of lemons. Preserving food is just one of many tools that we can deploy to reduce food waste.
.
This week, the UN revealed that the world wastes an astounding 1 billion tonnes (not pounds! I accidentally wrote pounds originally!) of food annually 😨 with households wasting more than restaurants and stores. This waste squanders the opportunity to feed those who are hungry, it wastes all the resources that went into producing the food and, according to the new report, food waste and loss accounts for 10 percent of emissions heating the planet 😱
.
The good news is that, by making the most of what we buy, we can reduce these numbers—and save money, make fewer trips to the store, harness our creativity in the kitchen, eat well, have more cupboard space... There really is zero downside to reducing wasted food. Link in profile for 23 simple ways to cut planet-heating food waste.
You know the old saying: When life hands you bitte You know the old saying: When life hands you bitter oranges, send them to a facility to generate enough energy to power a large water purification plant.
.
Unlike resource-hungry edible corn grown specifically to produce ethanol fuel, iconic Seville oranges grow all over the city whether they end up in marmalade, liqueur, a landfill or a biogas harvesting facility. The energy generated is a byproduct of the orange waste and the facility that will do the conversion for the pilot program already exists. In other words, the very efficient pilot creates energy from waste without building new infrastructure to do so. More of this please!
I had wanted an electric grain mill for years and I had wanted an electric grain mill for years and resisted buying a new one. Then one day, my neighbor gave me this beauty! She was moving and no longer ate bread. This Excalibur grain mill is at least 40 years old and works very well. I saw one on eBay the other day for $100. A new wooden grain mill costs about $800.
.
Here you see it with some teff I ground up. (To grind small grains, you reduce the distance between the grinding stones.) I somehow didn’t record the grinding of the teff, but you can swipe to see the result and a video of some mystery grains being ground up. I put those mystery grains into sourdough discard cracker dough last night. 
.
If you are looking for a grain mill, a pasta machine, a sewing machine or other small appliance—or really, anything at all—ask around, post your request in your Buy Nothing group, check Nextdoor, look at Facebook Marketplace and so on. Put it out to the Universe.
In my quest to squeeze as much goodness out of lem In my quest to squeeze as much goodness out of lemons as possible, I started a batch of limoncello, a lemon liqueur. With a vegetable peeler, I removed the peels of a bunch of organic, unwaxed lemons and am steeping them in vodka.
.
My lemons were massive so let’s say I used the equivalent of 7 medium lemons. I carefully removed the peel (not the pith) from the lemons using a vegetable peeler, placed the pith-less peels in a clean jar, poured 500ml of vodka (a generous 2 cups) over top and closed the jar. After this steeps for a month, I’ll strain the infused vodka and add a simple sugar syrup to it. I’ll start with 1 cup of sugar to 1 cup of water and add more sugar syrup to the lemony vodka to taste if necessary.
.
I plan on using a little bit of the finished limoncello to bake biscotti and a grown-up lemon cake. I think those will taste fabulous. The majority of the limoncello will go into the freezer. One day—soon, I hope—I’ll ply guests with it!
These pics for #EasyWhenYouKnowHow Sourdough Bread These pics for #EasyWhenYouKnowHow Sourdough Bread come from my book, which includes an entire section devoted to sourdough.
.
The book comes out April 13th and you can preorder now via the link in my profile (US, Canada and international). Thank you to everyone who has preordered! I am very grateful 🙏
.
📷: Ashley McLaughlin @edible_perspective
Good news! . Victoria will ban single-use plastics Good news!
.
Victoria will ban single-use plastics by 2023, beginning by phasing out banned items in its own government systems within a year.
.
The ban includes plastic straws, cutlery, plates, cotton ear bud sticks and polystyrene cups and containers. When announcing the ban on Saturday, the environment minister, Lily D’Ambrosio, said that these items account for about a third of litter in Victoria.
.
The ban includes bars, cafés and restaurants but not medical or scientific equipment and exemptions will apply for emergency, disability and aged care services as needed.
.
Plastic contributes to the climate crisis all along its life cycle and Big Oil is currently ramping up production of the stuff. Regulations like these will make a big dent in preventing plastic pollution at its source—production.
Our lemon tree didn't produce much this year so I Our lemon tree didn't produce much this year so I asked around and received 30 pounds of free lemons on Sunday 😮
. 
Earlier this week I made a large dent. I peeled 4 giant lemons with a vegetable peeler to start a batch of limoncello. I then juiced those peeled lemons to add to the jars or preserved lemons I also started. I needed more juice for those preserved lemons, so I zested all the additional lemons that I juiced and stashed the zest in the freezer. My kitchen smelled amazing!
.
I chop up preserved lemons to serve on the side of Indian dishes (or simply put them in the dishes, often when I've run out of fresh lemons), make dressing, start cultured cashew cheese or add to dips for some intense lemon flavor. Someone of Facebook told me today that she adds preserved lemons to pastry. I’m trying that next! Link in profile for the preserved lemons recipe.
Pasta that prevents food waste! . We had some wate Pasta that prevents food waste!
.
We had some watermelon radishes on hand with lots of greens attached so I used the leaves to make green pasta. Earlier in the week, the green leaves of mild white Japanese turnips turned our pasta green. MK made some kale pesto to go with this. So good! This pasta is perfect if you’d like to serve green food on St. Patrick’s Day next month—or if you like pasta. 
.
I did run this through my pasta machine but you can make pasta by rolling it out and cutting the noodles by hand. And if you are on the market for a pasta machine, check thrift shops or your Buy Nothing group. People often buy these with great intentions but end up never using them.
.
Link in profile for the recipe.
THREE copies up for grabs of the book “Plastic F THREE copies up for grabs of the book “Plastic Free: The Inspiring Story of a Global Environmental Movement and Why It Matters”...
🌊
One person can make a difference! In July 2011, Rebecca Prince-Ruiz (founder of @plasticfreejuly) challenged herself to go plastic free for the whole month. Starting with a small group of people in Western Australia, the Plastic Free July movement has grown to an estimated 326 million strong community across 177 countries, empowering people to reduce single-use plastic consumption and create a cleaner future.
🌊
From the book description: “This book explores how one of the world’s leading environmental campaigns took off and shares lessons from its success. From narrating marine-debris research expeditions to tracking what actually happens to our waste to sharing insights from behavioral research, it speaks to the massive scale of the plastic waste problem and how we can tackle it together. Interweaving interviews from participants, activists, and experts, Plastic Free tells the inspiring story of how ordinary people have created change in their homes, communities, workplaces, schools, businesses, and beyond.”
🌊
TO ENTER:
1. Like and comment on this post and tell us about one single use plastic item you are choosing to refuse. 
2. Follow @plasticfreejuly
3. Follow @zerowastechef
🌊
Conditions: This giveaway is open internationally and prizes will be shipped to all countries excluding Australia and New Zealand. There are 3 books in total to be given away. Entry closes on Saturday, February 27th at 11:59pm PST. I will randomly choose the winners and notify them by DM. This giveaway is in no way administered, sponsored or endorsed by Instagram.
This weekend’s shopping includes a smallish farm This weekend’s shopping includes a smallish farmers’ market haul on a new-to-me background. Total cost of the background: $0.
.
On Saturday, I “shopped” at something like a moving sale or estate sale where everything was free. A friend of a friend left town just as the lockdowns began last year and hasn’t been back since. She has decided to stay on the East Coast and from there is co-ordinating the move of her belongings from here on the West Coast. She’s leaving behind loads of stuff, a lot of which would go to landfill. So, on the weekend, several of us descended upon her home—masked and socially distanced—and cleared out boxes and boxes of useful stuff. I’ve posted just some of the things I grabbed.
.
I’ve wanted a table to put in the window for taking pictures and voila! (The burlap sac came from a local café that roasts its own beans and tosses these bags out.) We had no glasses; now we do (not shown: half a dozen more that I need to wash still). The little teabag rest is smaller than the ramekin I’ve been using (and it frees up a ramekin). My oven mitts are shot and this pair still has the tag on them. Charlotte needed a desk lamp; one magically appeared. Finally, I grabbed this never used, unopened Blu-ray player to post in my Buy Nothing Group (we don’t own a TV). Several people asked for this right away and I need to randomly pick a recipient today.
.
I say this all the time on here but when I need or want something, if I’m patient, it eventually shows up. I can’t tell you how often this happens.
.
I hope everyone’s week is off to a good start.
My Tweets
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
© 2021 Anne Marie Bonneau Theme by Colorlib Powered by Create a website or blog at WordPress.com