How To Be A Food Hero - Make Vanilla Sugar

Working in the service industry you can't help but to see a lot of waste. With every table I clear I find myself wincing as I scrape unfinished steak, risotto, pasta, pizza and more into the garbage from customers not wanting to bother taking it home (despite my constant encouragement!). Don't get me wrong, the food at the restaurant I work at is absolutely fantastic and certainly not worthy of ending up in the trash, it's simply thoughtlessness on the part of the paying customers that results in such horrific waste. 

Seeing so much waste each time I come into work kills me, so I'm always trying to find ways of rescuing the high quality food at work so that I can sleep a little more soundly at night. Sometimes that means drinking a latte that was made by mistake (despite my minor lactose intolerance), eating the remainder of the chocolate pudding that's stuck to the inside of the piping bag, or taking home the half of baguette that was never sliced up for any diners, it all adds up in my mind! 

Last week while clearing some dishes in the kitchen at work, I saw one of our chefs scraping vanilla beans for our Tiramisu filling. Intrigued, I asked her if she does anything with the pod after scraping out the insides. After learning that they just end up in the trash, I eagerly asked her if she would mind if I took the empty pods home. Being the second most expensive spice next to saffron, I couldn't imagine tossing away those pricey beans, even without their aromatic filling. I immediately thought to make vanilla sugar with the leftover beans. By simply scraping whatever remained from the inside of the beans into some sugar, tossing in the empty pod, sealing in an airtight container, and allowing to sit for a week or two, you have successfully made vanilla sugar, perfect for adding to coffee, topping creme brûlée, or adding to other subtly-flavoured desserts!

Other Ideas:
Toss the pod into hot chocolate, dessert sauces, pastry creams, or simple syrup.

Ingredients:

1 cup granulated sugar

1 vanilla bean 

Directions:

1. Place sugar in a small mason jar. If using a fresh vanilla bean, slice down the centre of the bean using a pairing knife, being careful not to cut through. Using the tip of the dull end of the knife, scrape your knife along the bean to remove the aromatic filling. Add the filling to the sugar. If using an empty pot, scrape your pairing knife along the inside of the pod to remove any remaining filling and add to sugar.
2. Add the empty vanilla bean to the sugar and seal. Shake to disperse the sugar. Allow to sit for 1-2 weeks until fragrant and ready to use. 

Listening To:

First Aid Kit - My Silver Lining

The How To Be A Food Hero Series

Did you know that an average of 13% of all groceries purchased by Canadians ends up being thrown out, resulting in an average of $725 worth of food items ending up in the garbage each year? Being someone who has made food a significant part of my daily life, as well as someone who gets sick at the thought of food waste, those figures are staggering! 

As you may already know, I recently declared September to be a month of having zero food waste in my home. I created a system of tricks on How to Be A Food Hero that I was sure would enable me to make it all the way to October 1st without throwing out a single food item. Though I was determined to literally have zero food waste at all, inevitably I did end up having to toss some food here and there, which trust me, was not easy for me to do! It was hard not to beat myself up about not being able to fulfill my challenge, but I have to give myself credit for doing so well! I get an odd sense of pride when I think of the clever food combinations and dishes that I created in order to rescue certain food items from the trash. What I learned from my month of attempting to be a food hero is that the key to finding success is all about creating good habits and a daily routine. You have to get in the habit of looking through your fridge and cupboards each day to take inventory of what you have, and you have to take those few extra minutes each day to attempt to do some food rescuing, which can often be as simple as wrapping something up for the freezer. 

Even though I didn't achieve my goal of having zero food waste, I was so ecstatic over the incredible response I received from readers for taking on the challenge! It was so great to know that others are struggling with the same issues as I am and to know that I was actually able to provide helpful advice to aid people in reducing the amount of food waste in their own homes. With so much love for this challenge from both myself and my readers and with such a fantastic outcome to look forward to, I've decided to continue to battle with food waste and start a series on my blog entitled How To Be A Food Hero, featuring tips, tricks, and advice on how to reduce food waste in your own home. I hope that you benefit from these posts as much as myself and my wallet will! 

Listening To:

CHVRCHES - Leave A Trace

Rosh Hashanah-Inspired French Toast

Being raised with a Christian mother and a Jewish father, religion in my home was more about upholding traditions and building strong values rather than following a more traditional path that many of my friends experienced. With a powerful spirituality within myself, I never felt like I was missing out on anything not following a specific religion. My family still celebrated and participated in as many cultural holidays as we could, meaning lots of valuable family time and, as with most holidays, lots of delicious food! Though I write this on Yom Kippur, the holiday that most non-jews know of as "the fasting holiday" (I should note that Yom Kippur is actually known as the day of Atonement, as well as being the holiest day of the year), I'm going to throw things back to a week ago when we celebrated the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. 

Rosh Hashanah marks the first day of a ten day period where we are to reflect on ourselves and our actions and repent for those in which we are not proud of. The ten day period leads ups to today, Yom Kippur, where we are to spend the entirety of the day fasting and in prayer before indulging in a festive meal to break the fast (also known as the break fast...no relation to breakfast). With religion being more about building values in our home, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur were understood to me through their symbols. Rosh Hashanah was always known to me as "the apples and honey holiday," as the two are traditionally eaten together to symbolize a sweet year. Yom Kippur to me was known as "the fasting holiday," as well as the holiday that I was allowed to stay home from school if I participated in the fast and took time within my day to reflect on my year, my actions, and myself. 

Though I will not be participating in the Yom Kippur fast today, I will certainly take the time to uphold the tradition of self reflection and examination. To begin the ten day holy period on Rosh Hashanah, I took a bit of an unorthodox approach to celebrating the holiday, with the symbol of apples and honey as my inspiration. To ring in the Jewish new year in the sweetest way I could think of, I whipped up a Rosh Hashanah-inspired french toast featuring, of course, apples and honey! A slice of some raisin challah (a Rosh Hashanah tradition!), a quick chop of an apple, and a little time spent caramelizing with some butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon was all I needed to take my regular french toast up a notch and make it appropriate for the Jewish New Year. As well as drizzling some local Maple Syrup on top of the warm and spongy treat, I also drizzled a little bit of honey for traditions sake. My Rosh Hashanah-inspired french toast was incredibly delicious, and a wonderful way to start this holy period of the year!

Ingredients:
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
dash of cinnamon
2 thick slices raisin challah
1 tbsp butter
maple syrup, for serving
honey, for serving
Apple Compote:
1 apple, small dice
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp brown sugar
splash of water

Directions:

1. Add beaten egg to a shallow dish and add milk, vanilla extract, and dash of cinnamon and beat. Add challah slices, one at a time, and turn to coat. Allow to rest in egg mixture to soak up as much as possible.
2. Meanwhile make apple compote. Heat a small pot to medium heat. Add apples, cinnamon, brown sugar, and splash of water and stir. Cook, stirring occasionally, until apples are soft and tender. 
3. Heat a non-stick skillet to medium heat. Melt butter and add egg soaked challah. Brown for about 2-3 minutes on one side, then flip and brown the other side. Serve immediately topped with apple compote, maple syrup, and honey.

Listening To:

Ryan Adams - Shake It Off

How To Cut Down On Food Waste: AKA How To Be A Food Hero

Without a doubt guilt is one of the worst, if not the worst, emotions on the planet. Unlike other emotions, which can often be fickle and easy to shake off, guilt has a way of sticking to you like that bit of glue from a band-aid that just won't seem to wash off. It eats you up inside, forcing you to obsess about it and think of nothing else. Of course we all make mistakes that can lead to us feeling that dreaded guilt, but the number one thing that makes me feel guilty more often than anything is the guilt from watching food in my home go to waste. 

I know, I've written about it so many times before, because, quite frankly, I haven't been able to fully break my habit of stopping food waste all together. It's not an easy thing! After a year of slacking on my food rescuing ways (I used to be so good!), I've decided to get my act together and take a stand to stop (or at least significantly reduce) the food waste in my home or, as I like to say, become a food hero! My first step to becoming a food hero was to declare September as No Waste September, using this month to aggressively tackle my food waste and see if I can carry this promise through to October. I'm hoping that by sharing my own personal tips and tricks for cutting down on food waste I'll be able to inspire my readers to do the same! Now who's ready to become a food hero with me?

Alert family members, live-in partners, and roommates of what foods need to get eaten

One of the biggest issues that leads to food waste has got to be a lack of communication. It's hard to know what needs to be eaten and what's about to go bad without clear communication amongst family, live-in partners, and roommates. I have a big chalkboard wall in my kitchen which allows me to very clearly communicate to my boyfriend Chris what we need to be eating. When we have an overflow of certain foods, leftovers that need to be eaten, or produce that's about to go bad, I immediately write it on the wall to give Chris guidance on what he should be eating. I love this idea because it forces those foods that can often get lost in the back of the fridge to be brought to the forefront and given the attention they need before expiring. 

Writing what needs to be used up on the chalkboard wall is also a fantastic way to inspire new meal ideas, allowing you to visually group certain foods and flavours together. For instance, I recently had zucchini, chopped onion, strained tomatoes, and ground beef written on the food hero wall, immediately that inspired me to make a bolognese sauce with diced zucchini thrown into the mirepoix. Just like that I had tackled four things on my food hero list!

Label everything in your fridge, including a date

Before packing leftovers or bits of remaining goods like broth, tomato sauce, or beans in the fridge, I always write a label for the container so I know 1) exactly what's in the container and 2) when it was made or first placed in the fridge. How many times have you found a random tupperware container in your fridge and not known what the hell was in there? Rather than playing the guesswork of the this-may-lead-to-food-poisoning game, 9 times out of 10 you will toss the anonymous tupperware container. 

A messy fridge can encourage people to only look at the front row, leaving plenty of good food to rot in the back of the fridge. I like to organize my fridge in sections grouping dairy, condiments, drinks, meats, leftovers, sauces, and so forth together so it's easy to get a quick inventory of what you have on hand. I like to place foods that need to be eaten the quickest right at the front of the fridge so it's the first thing you see when you open the door, often with a label that reads "EAT ME!" Keeping your fridge organized is also helpful in cutting down energy costs, reducing the amount of time you keep your fridge door open. It all adds up after all! 

Smoothies are a fantastic way to use up fruit about to go bad or frozen fruit previously rescued

When life gets hectic it can be difficult to cook every day of the week, making it hard to rescue food before it goes bad.  When I have a busy few days and food that's about to go bad, I try to take a few extra minutes to toss those foods in the freezer so that they don't end up in the trash. Frozen fruit is perfect for freezing for smoothies or that bit of summer freshness in a winter dessert. An ice cube tray is also your friend when it comes to freezing, acting as the perfect vehicle for freezing leftover broth, wine, herbs, and even juices for future use. When you come across a recipe that calls for a splash of wine, you'll be thankful for those frozen cubes of wine that you saved in the freezer!

Refrigerated biscuit dough or puff pastry are great things to have on hand for making quick pot pies

When I have to get creative with using up food, I'm always grateful that I think ahead. I always like to keep a package of puff pastry in the freezer, biscuit dough in the fridge, fresh herbs growing on my balcony, canned or jarred tomatoes and broth in the cupboard, as well as a wide selection of various condiments and sauces. These are the things that you don't have to worry about going bad that will save you when you need to use food up and don't want to make a trip to the store. Think of what ingredients you find yourself using most often that help to perk up meals and make sure you keep them stocked!

Here are some of my favourite ideas for how to use up leftovers!

• Croutons & Crostini - Before bread becomes mouldy, cut it into cubes or thin slices and brush with olive oil to toast into homemade croutons or crostini. I like to brush on some minced garlic or use infused oils like rosemary olive oil to add an extra hit of flavour.
• Shepherds Pie - The classic dish can be made with more than just ground meat and potatoes! Try making shepherds pie with leftover pulled pork and sweet potatoes. Get creative and play around with all sorts of different meats and vegetables. Why not short rib and turnips?
• Stir Fry's - Stir fry's are one of the best ways for getting rid of a lot of vegetables in a hurry. Pretty much anything goes with a stir fry, so toss in whatever veg you can get your hands on!
• Smoothies - Before your fruit (or even some vegetables) goes bad pack them up in freezer bags for quick and easy smoothies. I like to freeze spinach before it wilts to add some green to my homemade smoothies. 
• Pot Pies - Whether it's chicken, beef, lamb, or even just a bunch of veg, pot pies are a great way to use up leftovers. I love adding leftover takeout curries to my chicken pot pies to instantly revamp leftover chicken into a curry pot pie!

Who want's to become a food hero with me? Tell me about how you cut down on food waste on Twitter: @thisgingerrose.

Listening To:

Miguel - Coffee

Viva Italia - Part 2 - When Fantasy Becomes Reality

Exhausted from a 14 hour travel day, and lost sleep due to the stress of being rejected from my flight, racing to get an emergency passport, and finding a new flight, Chris and I decided to spend our first full day in Italy relaxing on the white sandy beach. It was so great to have an umbrella, two chairs, beach towels, and a spot on the beach reserved for us as apart of our accommodations with the Hotel Adriatico, and not have to worry about having to secure all that on our own. Finally we could truly relax with the feeling of the waves from the Adriatic sea rolling through our tired bodies.

There are certain visions ingrained in my mind as true Italian experiences, ones that I had pieced together from film and photographs, that I was unsure whether they were a reality or just a thing of fantasy. Visions of dining at large banquet tables, surrounded by beautiful people, in small alleyways, being served family-style, traditional, rustic Italian food, and experiencing that feeling of sheer bliss. As much as I craved those experiences before coming to Italy, I really wasn't sure if I had seen Big Night and Bicycle Thief one too many times for my own good, and had a crazy fantasy in my head that real life could never live up to. It was on our very first full day in Italy that I feel so lucky to say I had the privilege of experiencing one of those magical moments.

Though many of the people in the group we were traveling with promised me that our meal at Trattoria Da Peppe that evening would be incredible, in my head I kept thinking "I just met you, I don't know if I trust your opinion on food." An embarrassingly snobby thought, I must admit, though I'd been warned of the many tourist traps within Italy that lack authenticity and quality, while still receiving rave reviews from the streams of tourist that walk through their doors.

Filled with a mixture of skepticism and hope, we passed the buzzing restaurants in the centre of the city of Vasto, and walked through a small, dimly lit alleyway to arrive at a large banquet table set out for us outside of the ancient converted stable, which is now home to the cozy and welcoming Trattoria Da Peppe. Upon our arrival we were immediately greeted by Peppe himself, Giuseppe and his wife Maria, who gave us a quick tour of the space, telling us about its history as a stable, and showing us the small Argentinian-wood-burning oven that Giuseppe does his magic in, as well as the tiny windowless church adjacent to the restaurant, and the exquisite private gardens directly across the alley. I was already swept up in the drama and romanticism that Giuseppe and Maria so beautifully created, and our meal hadn't even begun!

After settling into our seats we were presented with homemade wine, bottles of sparkling water, and crusty bread, followed by an elaborate selection of lovingly-prepared antipasti. When I say "lovingly-prepared" I mean to evoke that same feeling you get when diving into your grandmothers cooking, you just know it was prepared with love and care. You can taste that love!

Though all of the antipasti was fantastic, the one dish that stood out to me as one of the best bites of food that has ever crossed my lips was Giuseppe's famous Cheese and Egg Balls, also known as Pallotte Cacio e Uova, or a type of polpette (meatball), but without the meat. Pallotte Cacio e Uova are known as being a "poor mans dish," the type of dish one would make to use up stale bread, eggs, and cheese and reinvent it into something comforting and delicious. Crustless stale bread is cut into cubes and soaked in water or milk to soften. The liquid is squeezed out and the bread gets mixed with beaten eggs, parsley, garlic, and a mixture of hard sharp cheeses, and rolled into small balls. The egg and cheese balls are then fried until golden, and transferred to simmer in homemade tomato sauce until the balls puff up from soaking up some of the savoury sauce. It sounds simple enough, though Giuseppe's Pallotte Cacio e Uova were truly extraordinary! Despite the fact that they were one of the first dishes presented to us and I knew there were many more dishes to come, I couldn't help but get my hands on as many of those delicious little bites of heaven as I could!

Those little bites of heaven were followed by cornmeal flatbreads topped with cicoria AKA. chicory, veal simmered in sauce, stuffed eggplant, homemade sausages, a selection of thinly-sliced char-grilled meats, salad, rum cake, and blueberry cheesecake. SWOON! I wish I could accurately express to you how truly extraordinary this meal was. Every single dish was out of this world incredible. I know, the hyperbole is at all time high right now, but I am not embellishing by any means how special this meal  actually was. Just incredible, and unlike anything I have ever experienced.

We walked back into the heart of the city with full bellies and happy hearts, to drink into the evening while revelling in the experience that we had just shared. Though I knew there was a lot of other fantastic food in Vasto that I had yet to try, I couldn't help but wish that we could experience another meal from Giuseppe again during our short trip.

Other Things Of Note:
Since coming home from Italy I have tried to recreate Giuseppe's Pallotte Cacio e Uova, and though mine were very tasty, they were nothing compared to the perfection that Giuseppe presented to us!

What made our meal so special at Trattoria Da Peppe was so much more than the food. From the moment we arrived at the restaurant we were treated like family and received hospitality unparalleled from any other restaurant I have ever been to.

Stay tuned for Part 3 of my Italian adventure to hear about my visit to Pescara and exploring the Medieval city of Vasto.

Listening To:
Jamie XX - Gosh