Make January a bit better for the planet by using our 3 zero waste recipes for your breakfast, lunch and dinner.3 Recipes For a Zero Waste Day

Making the most of the ingredients in your kitchen is a great way to save money, time, and food waste. Use these recipes as inspiration, and challenge yourself: can you go a whole day using just what’s in your cupboard, using ingredients you’d frequently throw away?

Breakfast: Chocolate banana peel pancakes

Usually toss your banana peel into the bin? Think again! Banana peels are both fully edible, and pumped with antioxidants, making them the ideal addition to these healthy breakfast pancakes.

Ingredients:

• 2 organic or well-washed bananas, peel on
• 2 tbsp cocoa
• 1 egg
• 6 tbsp oats
• 2 tbsp milk or plant milk
• 1 tsbp butter or oil
• Toppings of your choice

Method:

1. Whizz all ingredients in a blender until smooth.

2. Heat oil or butter in a frying pan on medium heat.

3. Drop tablespoonfuls of pancake batter into the pan, and fry until bubbles form on the surface. Flip, and fry for a further minute.

4. Pile the pancakes into a stack, smother with favourite toppings, and enjoy.

Lunch: Past-its-best yoghurt pizza

Didn’t get through your yoghurt before the Best Before date? There’s no need to throw it away - if the yoghurt still looks, smells, and tastes fine, it’s perfect for making this too-easy pizza dough. Top it whatever you have in the fridge - think leftover cooked meat, veggies, or the end of a block of cheese.

Ingredients:

• 150g yoghurt
• 150g self-raising flour
• Pinch of salt
• Your favourite pizza toppings

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 220C.

2. Mix flour, yoghurt and salt together to form a rough dough - flatten into a flat pizza base.

3. Top with your favourite toppings.

4. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the dough and toppings are brown and bubbling.

5. Cut into slices and serve.

DINNER: MASHED POTATO PIE

Made too much mashed potato, and got some leftover veggies in the fridge? There’s an easy - and delicious - way to put it to use: a warming veggie pie. The quantities used in this recipe are flexible, depending on how many leftovers you have, and how many people you have to feed. Bend the recipe to suit your needs.

Ingredients:

• Oil
• Leftover vegetables: we used a broccoli stalk, a carrot, and a courgette
• 1 clove garlic
• Approximately 100g lentils
• Approximately 250ml veggie stock
• 200g chopped tomatoes, fresh or tinned
• Mashed potato
• Cheese (such as gouda or cheddar) grated

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C.

2. Saute all vegetables on a low heat until softened.

3. Add lentils, veggie stock and tomatoes. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer until lentils are soft.

4. Pile the mixture into a baking dish, then smooth mashed potato atop the mixture to top the pie. Sprinkle cheese on top.

5. Bake the pie until the top is gold and bubbling - about 20-30 minutes.