Treehugger Newsletter on Sept. 1 said this:
Eating Leftovers is Climate Action!
Using up small portions of leftovers may not seem like such a big deal, but it adds up. Food waste is a tremendous climate problem. As Treehugger reported earlier:
"The U.S. alone wastes 133 billion pounds of food every year. That's $161 billion worth, or 31% of the entire food supply and a quarter of all municipal solid waste ... Thirty-one percent of food wasted means 31% of the energy, water, and materials used to grow, harvest, package, distribute, and store it is also used in vain. The result is the weight equivalent of 5.5 million school buses worth of discarded nourishment, left to fester in landfills where it will emit catastrophic amounts of greenhouse gases."
They were also giving a push for using leftovers in tarts,
- Use your favorite savory pastry dough... - and little scraps of dough become balls which become tarts.
- Vegans can start with a layer of smashed beans, pureed vegetables, or mashed potatoes instead of cheese. The idea is to have a solid-ish base.
- If you have a bunch of small things—for example, herbs, olives, corn kernels, nuts, etc.—chop them coarsely into a crumble and add it as a layer.
- If you have anything crunchy, like leftover tortilla chips, croutons, or stale bread, use it for the top layer.
- For anything especially watery—like raw leafy greens, summer squash, tomatoes, etc.—consider salting/draining or quickly pre-cooking so that the tart doesn't get soggy.
- Don't forget grains! While grains in a tart may seem counterintuitive, whole grains like quinoa or barley are nutrient power hitters and can add some extra bulk to the meal.
Pastry chef Natasha Pickowicz is known for making savory tarts with leftover prep ingredients for restaurant staff meals.
Pickowicz's method goes something like this, according to Tajal Rao of the New York Times :
Start with a cold pâte brisée, then go from there: Spread a fine layer of cheese such as ricotta or mascarpone, then season it with lemon zest, salt and pepper. Now move onto a denser layer of cooked vegetables, such as cauliflower, potato, leek or squash, lightly seasoned with olive oil, salt and pepper. Fill the gaps in the vegetables with pieces of cheese. When the tart comes out of the oven, consider a topping of herbs, lightly dressed salad leaves or even a couple of fried eggs.
Well, that's enough quotes of quotes of quotes! Glad I didn't play with parenthasees!
I never have bits of dough but I do like the idea of using Philo dough, or maybe puff pastry. Wait wait...I do have a frozen pie shell. I could at least do a quiche! Now do I have any left over veggies besides green peas? Time to go buy some quiche veggies...so I can have left overs from them!!
Today's quote:
Clouds come floating into my life from other days no longer to shed rain or usher storm but to give colour to my sunset sky. |
RABINDRANATH TAGORE |
