under-used treasure or garbage? what ingredient do you think people are wasting?

[thew]

2 nights ago i made a really delicious gnocchi dish, with shrimp and leeks served in a lightly spiced shrimp stock, made from the shells of the shrimp and a few aromatics and spices. (so yummmy) I use a similar stock often as a base for sauces when I cook shrimp, whether stir-frying sauteing or whatever. It took maybe 10 minutes to make, and always adds such depth of flavor.

So i would say shrimp shells get my vote for the most under-used treasure in the kitchen, more often just tossed in the garbage, than mined for flavor.

what gets your vote?

[Paul Weller]

The green leaves from celery stalks. They work well in some boquet garni if you want to incorporate the bitterness of celery without including it in the dish.

[moh]

on a similar note: Fennel fronds. I chop them up to add to my fennel salad.

[wonderwoman]

and not just the fronds, but the stalks, as well. when i make chicken stock, i use the bulb, then make chicken veggie soup with the fennel stalks, which i use as celery -- along with carrots and spinich or kale.

makes me crazy when i see the cooking show people just toss them.

[guerrilagourmet]

Parsley and cilantro stalks are great too!

[toodie jane]

I've mentioned this before, but conventionally grown celery is one of the most heavily chemical-doused (had this from a grower) veggies on the market. Find organically grown celery especially if you want to use the tops. Farmers' markets are a great place to buy quality clelery.

[MB fka MB]

the updated worst pesticide veggie list is here:
http://www.foodnews.org/pdf/EWG_pesti...

The shopping guide gives the "dirty dozen" to buy organic and the "cleanest 12" fruits/veggies where conventional ain't so bad...

[maplesugar]

I've always wondered if I was wasting money buying organic (DH isn't as concerned about the junk in our produce as I am) and the list supports my point of view. Thanks for the link. (:

[Rhee]

When I look at this list, I think "should I stop buying peppers and spinach if they aren't organic?" Keep in mind that most people who have studied this say that we should eat more vegetables and more fruits..the proven health value of fresh fruits and vegetable far out weighs the uncertain risk of eating herbicides or pesticides. So don't pass up a fruit or vegetable because it not organic..especially if you are an adult. They say the same thing about mercury in fish.

[soupkitten]

unless, of course, you're pregnant. in that case, you should think pretty durn hard about it. they say the same thing about mercury in fish.

[powella]

Since discovering organic celery and carrots, I can eat them again. For years I avoided them both b/c of a perfumy taste I never knew was attributable to pesticides.

[scubadoo97]

Have to agree. The leaves on the celery stalks are so full of flavor. I use them like I would parsley. In salads, stock and soups. Never throw them away.

[Val]

Yep and my current favorite way to eat them is to sort of bend them in half and scoop into hummus...really great! Celery stalks in hummus is very good but I love the leaves with hummus even better!

[Gooseberry]

I put the celery leaves in pesto, too. Works well with marjoram and parsley.

[FoodieKat]

I always put celery leaves and stalks in soups and stews. I also use the full stalks from green onions.

[somervilleoldtimer]

If I don't have an immediate use for the celery tops, I throw them in the freezer where they sit happily until I'm ready to make soup.

[kittywithawhippet]

I don't remember if I got this from The Gift of Southern Cooking or Cook's Illustrated, but I put celery leaves in my frying oil when I make fried chicken, and it adds a sweet, clear note to the flavor.

[JungMann]

Bones are incredibly under-utilized. Whenever I roast chicken or get a rotisserie bird from the store, I save the carcass for stock. Friends always throw out what I consider gold!

And in the vein of using shrimp shells, when I was learning to cook as a kid, I was taught never to throw away shrimp heads because that was where all the flavor was. Throw them in a little hot water and pound with a mortar to extract.

[Patrincia]

Amen to that!!! I get so many comments when I cook using homemade stock. "how do you get it to taste soooo good???"

[linguafood]

The delicious tidbits (neck, stomach, liver, heart) that come with a whole bird. Neck and heart go in the water for a quick boil, neck gets gnawed off, heart eaten in 2 bites. Stomach and liver are added to gravy. Nice.

[uptown jimmy]

I think you mean "gizzard", not "stomach".

[linguafood]

Oh well, whatever that rather chewy intestinal thingee is besides the usual neck, liver and heart. Call it what you want.

[uptown jimmy]

It's not "what I want". It's called a gizzard. Chickens also have an actual stomach, and the gizzard fills an ancilliary role in helping to process food.

I grew up eating them, and I love them passionately. I can't count the number of times I've purchased packages of gizzards and hearts, fried them up, and eaten them with gusto.

It's one of my pet peeves that the "humane" chickens I buy at Earth Fare don't include the giblets. What are they doing with the giblets, throwing them away? I want my giblets.

[linguafood]

Thanks, jimmy :-D. As a non-native speaker, I appreciate the correction.

I understand your disappointment over left-out giblets. What IS up with that, anyway?

[soupkitten]

have you guys ever had gizzard sausages? *drool* :)

[jvozoff]

Bacon fat. It's like throwing butter in the trash!

[monkeyrotica]

Yup. I bake my bacon in the oven, and use the fat to season my cast iron and fry my tatercakes.

[BesottedGourmet]

Amen to that! Frying potatoes or a grilled cheese in bacon fat is heavenly!

[scuzzo]

All good suggestions so far. I would add the stem of brocolli! Peel the thick skin and savor the fresh, crispy inside! The BEST! My dog loves veggies, and I've found she digs the lettuce core, diced, so I never toss that now.

[MplsM ary]

Amen! When my mom and I used to cook dinner it was understood how broccoli division went - she got the florets and I got the stalks. Better to me than artichoke hearts.

[chef chicklet]

The stems make the best broccoli slaw! Just peel and slice super thin.

[TorontoJo]

Agreed! My mom always peeled the stalks, sliced them and included them in her stir-fried broccoli. When I grew up, I never understood why I never saw anyone else cook the stalks. The first time I cooked the stalks for my husband, he was so surprised at how good they were. He had always just thrown them out. Such a waste.

[soypower]

my mom's favorite part of a cabbage is the core...she steams it and dips in soy sauce, sesame oil, green onions and red pepper flakes. yum.

[Emme]

mine too... i make sweet n sour cabbage and love the core pieces... in fact, i covet them!

[FoodieKat]

I use broccoli stalks in my stir frys. It has a pleasant crunch.

[Caroline1]

They also make a good cream of broccoli soup. I've also diced them fairly small, saute in butter until tender, then use them with cheddar cheese as an omlette filling.

[saltwater]

Diced broccoli stems has never occurred to me. Hmmm. I could probably put that into fried rice.

[Patrincia]

I've always peeled them and sliced them into coins.

[lgss]

We take the "bark" off and then just cut them up and use them in whatever we're having the florets in.

[ebelgian]

peeled and shredded broccoli stalks make brocco-slaw.

[foxy fairy]

I have made a really yummy broccoli slaw from the stalks... very pretty too

[jenniesue]

yuumm the stalks are so good for soup.

[powella]

steamed and chopped broccoli stalks are one of my favorite ways to stealthily get veg into my preschooler.

[somervilleoldtimer]

Hmm. I never put broccoli in my soups, because I'm afraid the flavor will take over. Fine if it's something like broccoli/cheddar/potato soup, not so fine if it's something like chicken broth, or a minestrone. You don't have this problem?

[NYCkaren]

Radish greens. I used to throw them away, then it occurred to me that I could cook them just like any other greens.

[chef chicklet]

Good one, I keep these as well! A while back, I read a recipe using them, I never knew they were edible!

[Gio]

I use radish leaves in salads. They add a bit of peppery bite when arugula is unavailable.

[livetocook]

ohh I didn't know that! I'll will so do that now. Thanks

[marcharry]

ya - why do i throw them out??

[garfish]

Beet greens too. IMHO the best tasting cooked green.

[CookieWeasel]

Absolutely! I LOVE beet greens! My favorite cooked green as well.

[toodie jane]

ladies past menopause should not go overboard on beet greens, spinach or chard, though--it ties up the calcium and makes it unavailable. We need our bone food!

[moh]

Oh, but they are so good for the eyes - beet greens, kale, spinach, chard... Really good for slowing progression of macular degeneration. Is it possible to eat the greens separate from calcium sources to try to get benefits of both? Cause Caucasian ladies past menopause are higher risk for macular degen...

[Brandon Nelson]

Bones, shells, fat, giblets and old bread. All backbones of fabulous cuisine bougeoise recipes that affluence has forgotten.

[lhb78]

the green tops of scallions- lovely in salads, soup and on tacos.

[linguafood]

Whoa. I've never heard of anyone throwing out the green top of scallions. I only know people (myself included) who throw out the white stump on the bottom.

The green stuff is what you're supposed to use ----

[thew]

supposed? supposed?

thats a funny concept. supposed to by whose rules?

the white part and the green part arent the same but both parts have uses

[linguafood]

Let me put it this way :-D

*Suppose* a recipe mentions the use of scallion, it is generally the green part that's used. At least in the recipes I know, or have seen. I tend to chop down fairly low, including some of the white stuff.

But throwing all the green stuff out? What's the point? Buy a shallot or regular onion if that's what you need.

[MMRuth]

Huh - most of the recipes I have call for the white part, and throwing the green part out. But I notice in Dunlop that she uses both.

[Gio]

I use both the white & green part of scallions - whether I'm cooking or adding them to a salad. The only part I throw into the compost heap is the root end and maybe the very tip.

[linguafood]

Well, yeah -- I guess that's what I do, too. But to throw out all of the green part just sounds ridiculous to me... I don't care what recipe you're using (in response to lhb78).

[GSDlove]

Don't throw out those root ends! Plant them in your garden or even in a pot and they will grow. When ever you need them, just cut them above the white part and the green tops keep growing back - you will never run out or have to buy them again.

[linguafood]

Ha. That would be the first plant EVER to survive my gardening "skills" (including pre-potted basil, and the occasional palm tree).

[starlady]

Seriously?? OMG I never knew!!!!!
That will be added to my balcony garden this summer that's for damn sure! How well do they do inside? (runs to plant some in a pot she justs happens to have!)

And to add my 2 cents, my brother nad Dad both just toss the green part away, so whenever they come to my house I precut the white parts and hide the green parts in the fridge!

[soleado123]

I stuck some from the Asian market in the ground... They are the best growing thing in the garden. Cut and come again... they grow back so quickly... :O).

[starlady]

The ones I planted just last week are already growing really well. Not tall enough to eat yet but they are poking out of the ground etc.. :)

[steinpilz]

thanks for a great tip, my holiday narcissus is getting a bit ragged now -- I'll just plant the ends of those scallions in my fridge!

[The Old Gal]

It works with leeks, also. You need about an inch of white above the root. Also, I save the tough part of the green on leeks and use that when I make stock. After it is cooked I toss it, but still have the flavor.

[bastet212]

I dont think most people throw out the whole green top- but most recipes DO call for the "white and tender green parts" only. Depending on what im making, ill use more or less of the green tops.... Ive never seen a recipe call for tossing the white part.... ever.

[lex clibanus]

hmmm. not sure about this. I've definitely seen lots of recipes calling only for the white/pale green part of leeks, but rarely for scallions. I definitely fall in the "generally only use the green part" camp.

[Patrincia]

Funny story - when I got married my MIL thought you were supposed to throw away the green tops, and I thought you were supposed to throw away the white bottoms.... so glad we both know better now.

[linguafood]

Yea, because it sounds like if the two of you were working together on those, you'd be left with nothin'.

[Miss Needle]

Koreans use the green parts of scallions in cooking. When I was a kid I would read recipes about where you just use the white part of a "green" onion. Had no idea that a green onion was a scallion as we always used the whole thing. I couldn't even fathom at that point that some people threw them out. Same with leeks as well. My mom would save the green parts of the leeks, shred them up into yuk gae jang (spicy Korean soup with green onions).

[livetocook]

LOL funny, just last year I figured out that scallions were green onions. I grew up with them being called green onion. In fact, I don't know anyone who uses the word scallion. And we usually used the whole thing too.

[kiwiFRUIT]

In some places green onions/scallions are called spring onions. Just to add to the confusion...

[linguafood]

Yeah, that's what they're called in Germany. And I have honestly never heard of anyone who tosses out the green. Again, what's the point? Any Stir fry "recipe" that asks for green onion is talking about the green stalk finely chopped. Notice the green little rings in a stir fry, or fried rice. Not white little rings ---

[thew]

i see both used
and use both

[aletnes]

Actually.. Spring onions and scallions are different.. both are just called "Green Onions" colloquially. Spring onions are usually slightly bigger, with more of a knob at the bottom (white) end. Scallions are almost perfectly straight. Here is a link to an article on it: http://archives.record-eagle.com/2007...

[thew]

i believe that is, to some degree regional
from the cooks thesaurus site:
green onion = scallion = bunching onion = shallot (in Australia) = spring onion (in Britain) = Chinese onion = stone leek = cibol Equivalents: 1 bunch = 1/4 pound = 1/2 cup sliced Notes: These are onions that have small bulbs and long green stalks. They're usually eaten raw, but you can also grill or sauté them. Some people also use the term green onions to refer to onion tops, shallot tops and young leeks. Substitutes: spring onions OR leeks OR shallots OR chives (if used raw)

[Emme]

charring them on the grill... so tasty!

...and if i'm really lazy, i take a whole scallion, toss it in the microwave for 20-30 seconds til it chars... yum.

[Oh Robin]

Chicken Fat

Your matzo balls will thank you.

[Miss Needle]

Oh yes. I save the rendered chicken fat from a chicken and roast my potatoes in it.

[MMRuth]

I have all sorts of little bags in my freezer labelled "chicken fat" and "duck fat" - for the same purpose.

[thew]

yea potatoes get all lacey crispy in duck fat

[ldkelley]

Oh, you mean it isn't just me?

[steinpilz]

me too!

[danna]

I froze some chicken fat for the first time Sunday. I felt really guilty, 'cause my cooking life generally revovles around getting RID of fat, not adding it...but DAMN potatoes are good roasted with a chicken. Now I'm planning to make some even when I don't have the benefit of a chicken.

[maplesugar]

Along the same lines - I just read a recipe in one of the Barefoot Contessa books for make-ahead gravy where Garten says she freezes roast drippings for use in gravy later. Brilliant idea.

[foxy fairy]

Saving a bunch of chicken fat, first time, after making a big pot of stock. Can I just save it in a can?

[chef chicklet]

I think that herbs before you toss need to be looked at for pesto or pistou.

Along with fresh herbs, scallions, leeks, shallots, garlic are aromatics that I buy every week (if I need them). What I'm doing lately is if they are looking a little old, I'm tossing these along with leftover parsley, basil, mint and cilantro into a blender with oil and salt and pepper. Give it a whirl, to a nice thickness with olive oil, and then you mix it with cream cheese or mascarpone. It makes a pretty decent herbal spread for breads. Or you could hide it inside dough for a nice herbal bread or focaccia.

Or without the cream cheese, a nice dollop to soup and eggs is perfect. At times you can drop it in to pasta, rice or potatoes the only problem is the herb/aromatic ratio will vary so I never can give an exact recipe, but I'm finding that its sure worth it to save it.

Almost forgot, makes great run for lamb chops, chicken, or beef. (especially lamb!)

[yamalam]

I do this too and I love it! The pesto/pistou ia great with everything...in addition to what ou mentioned, it makes great rub or stuffing for roast chicken, is great with white beans, either whole or mashed. I've started throwing arugala and spinach bits in mine too, with good results.

[missfunkysoul]

Chard stems/stalks, I love to chop + toss in w/stir-fries... or sautee with a little butter and onion, and add to scrambles eggs... so many uses!

[jennywinker]

I never knew you weren't "supposed" to eat the stems. I always just saute them up first, then add the greens.

[danna]

The very last Gourmet (Nov) has a nice recipe for chard that includes the stems.

You fold up the chard, "stuff" it in a pot, fill 1/3 full w/ water, boil /simmer until the stalks are tender, rinse , drain, chop. To the pot add a bit of olive oil and some chopped bacon, (the recipe didn't call for it, but I rendered most of the fat and then drained it) add chard and garlic and cook 3-4 minutes. I over cooked mine a bit, but it was still quite good.

[dani_k]

wow, reading the responses, i kept thinking "me too! me too!" except maybe the shrimp shells, as i rarely cook with fresh shrimp (paste or dried tends to happen more often). i spent my learning-how-to-cook-from-your-mom years on a farm with a low budget and lots of mouths to feed. we didn't use as much as someone raised with depression-era cooking, but a far sight more than your average joe nowadays. i'd have to say the most common thing i run into is poultry bones and organs.
like many here, i tend to use most of a veggie. green onion tops are used as garnishes, green leek tops are used to flavour light stocks, broccoli stems are used in a variety of ways, celery centres for stock, chard stems in stir fries, carrot tops/bottoms in stock, onion skins left on onions for stock (nice color), etc.

[saltwater]

Pot Licker and other flavored liquid items. Also, I'd like to collect all those turkey frames and ham bones that get tossed.

[livetocook]

Yeah, I was a little surprised at my first thx giving meal with the In laws. My MIL threw out her turkey carcass. My mom, grandma, aunt etc always froze theirs and made soup later. I thought everyone did that.

(Now that I know her better it doesn't surprise me. She makes little to nothing out of scratch. This is a woman that would choose low cal cool whip over real whipping cream. She thinks it tastes better)

[JudiAU]

Argh. MIL does the same thing. I mourn the loss ever year.

[RWCFoodie]

I've always made soup from the turkey carcass, and as I'm the one who roasts the birds, etc., the carcass always comes home with me - my husband's family still think I'm incredibly weird but they sure like it when I send some of the resulting soup up to them!!!

And they like cool whip too! Just no accounting for some folks' tastes... :-)

I just remembered that another thing they think is weird that I do is save the bone(s) from the ham to use in beans or bean soup! I just don't get them...

[LolaP]

Me too! I actually found myself asking for the chicken carcass after my first passover with my bf's sister. They both looked at me like I was nuts...until they had a bowl of the soup!

[steinpilz]

I've read a lot about using shrimp shells for stock, my experience is that I get a sort of ugly dirty smelling soup. Lately I've thought this was due to using farmed shrimp, but it will take some time for me to use shrimp shells for flavouring.

[thew]

maybe you're cooking it too long? I find you can extract a nice delicate flavor in 10 to 15 minutes. I usually put some garlic and a few other flavors in there as well

[steinpilz]

Thanks very much, I'll keep this in mind. If you don't mind, what other flavours do you add?

[thew]

i never work from a recipe, so its always fairly ad hoc, dependent on what i'm making it for, and what i have in the house.a bay leaf, a lemon peel, fennel seed, lemongrass, salt and pepper (natch), garlic, a dried chile pepper, keffir lime, konbu, carrot, and many others have all found their way on there one time or another.

this is a case where less is definitely more, as the shrimp flavor is both delicate and easily overwhelmed, as well as distinct and easy to clash with

[steinpilz]

Thanks very much Thew!

[lilingenue]

My mum uses shrimp shells and heads to make stock for certain Chinese noodle soup dishes...she also adds pork ribs to give it a richer flavor. She actually starts with a few pork ribs, a few cloves of crushed skinless garlic and a pot of water. Bring it to a boil, reduce to a simmer and skim all the gross stuff that floats to the top. After the first half hour of consistent skimming is generally when all the prawn shells/heads go in, and it's simmered for another hour. To get a better looking stock, strain it through a cheesecloth.

My favorite way of using this stock is in prawn noodles - yellow chinese noodles boiled (separately), with thin pork slices, boiled prawns on top, served with a generous helping of the above stock and shallot oil, a sprinkling of fried shallots and chopped green onion. A dash of white pepper and fiery little red chilis on the side and you're good to go!

[steinpilz]

Thanks for the recipe!

[torty]

I had the same experience when I used the shells from farmed shrimp. I try to avoid the farmed stuff but sometimes the craving has to be fed and there are no nice wild ones around.

[Kagey]

Stale bread. I put it in the food processor and make crumbs. These go into meatballs, meatloaf, treacle tart, and any other recipes that call for crumbs. I keep them in bags in the freezer for when I need them.

[scuzzo]

Toast bread crumbs in a pan with a bit of butter and top pasta!!! I like it best on a white sauce type pasta.

[Kagey]

Great idea. And I think there was a recipe not too long ago in the NY Times for pasta with breadcrumbs and chorizo, and I think chickpeas, if I remember correctly. Must dig that up.

[starlady]

Buzz up some dried mushrooms in the food processor add it to the breadcrumbs, toast it all up and toss over braised leeks. YUM!

[Cheflambo]

My grandmother (and later my mom) used to save the heels of loaves of bread and freeze them. When she had "enough" they came out and were thawed, then spread with butter or margarine and some garlic salt and baked in the oven to go with spaghetti or chili. Each slice was cut into about 3 strips, and we always called these "gramma specials". Since we were 5 kids who ate a LOT of sandwiches, there was no shortage of these. Im sure if I looked in my mom's freezer today (she now lives alone) I would certainly find a ziplock bag with at least a few of these bread slices in it.

[Smileelisa]

stale bread is also good for making french toast. The bread doesn't fall apart when you soak it in the egg mixture.

[phoenikia]

I love my beet greens. In the spring, when the beets are too small to be picked, but the row needs to be thinned, I bring home the greens and cook them up.

Are tough, thick stems/stalks from Kale an underutilized treasure? No one has mentioned using them yet. They are much tougher than chard stems, so I'm not sure I'd be inclined to use them the same way.

How would you use them if you had them on hand? I snapped the leafy parts of my Kale last night, but I have a couple dozen tough stems left over.

Thanks for any suggestions;)

[abud]

veg stock?

[jennywinker]

Yes! The beet greens! I'm disappointed if I have to buy beets with no greens. Fortunately, my garden and my CSA usually supply me with plenty. I was thinking about the kale, too. That's one thing I do toss, but would be interested to hear "uses" for them. Would they be too bitter for stock?

[soupkitten]

if you are stir-frying your kale, or using in soup, or whatever, cut the leaves off of the stems, chop the stems small, fry the stems with other veggies, add the leaves later. exactly as if it was chard, just need a bit longer to cook if the stems are huge. adds some celery-esque texture to the dish or side veg and you use the whole vegetable. i don't use kale in stock, but would add chopped stems to a soup's mirepoix and finely chopped/shredded leaves at the end, just before serving, as if it was fresh spinach (but will need a few more minutes to cook than spinach). i would leave kale leaves out of any soup i was freezing or making in advance-- when a soup with kale is reheated it can seem "muddy" so it's better to add the leaves shortly before serving.

[phoenikia]

Thanks for your suggestions re: the kale stems. I'll give it a try tonight;)

[erica]

What a fabulous thread..I learned so much! Thanks!

[phoenikia]

Just wanted to thank you for your suggestion to fry the kale stems first. I just made a Coconut and Kale soup that used up all my stems. I fried the chopped stems with some other veggies (onion, garlic, carrot and jalapeno) in olive oil until softened, then added the other ingredients. Just before serving, I blended the soup with my hand blender. Turned out great!

[Val]

!!! Coconut & Kale soup???!!! Can you please post recipe??? Sounds so intriguing! Thanks!

[phoenikia]

Coconut & Kale soup- this was based on http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/is...

ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeño pepper, seeds removed, finely chopped
1 bunch kale, tough stems finely chopped (I had about 1 1/2 cups of chopped stems), leaves washed well and chopped
1 cup cooked rice
3 cups water
1/2 chicken bouillon cube
1/2 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk
Limes, cut into slices to serve with the soup

directions
In a large saucepan, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion, carrots, kale stems, jalapeno, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent and other vegetables have started to soften, about 5 minutes.
Stir in water, kale leaves and bouillon, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered about 20 minutes. Use a handblender to puree to desired consistency. Add the coconut milk and cooked rice and heat through.

I had cooked rice on hand, but you could easily add uncooked rice when you add the water, and bouillon, but you should then also increase the amount of water.

I served the soup with slices of lime on the side. Found a squeeze of fresh lime juice really brightened it up.

[soupkitten]

awesome--glad it worked for you :) the soup sounds delicious btw & i'll print a copy of it, so thanks back at you

[Aromatherapy]

When I'm boiling/steaming large, curly kale with thick stalks, I chop the stalks crosswise and add first, cook 5 minutes, then add the leaves.

[oakjoan]

Ditto on the beet greens. I use them for a salad borrowed from A-16 Restaurant in SF. I bake the beets ala Alice Waters (foil-covered baking dish, a bit of water, beets. Bake at 350 for (she says 1 hour but I don't like them that squishy - which they get if they're not huge) for 30-40 minutes (start checking at 30 mins.

Cool, slice and dress with vinegar, olive oil and crushed garlic. I sometimes put the greens in with the beets and bake/steam them all together. Other times I steam them separately. Chop beet tops into salad-size pieces and mix into the salad. Outstanding!

[Paul Weller]

One time I went to a pig farm and had them butcher a pig for a hawaiian style pit roasting. There was a group of asian men that were asking everyone for the organs and blood. They had a huge cooler full of them they had gotten for free because people were throwing them away.

[Pat Hammond]

The crowd that gathers here most likely wouldn't do this. But I've been to lobster fests where so many people ate only the claws and the tail, leaving the bodies for the gulls. I've been known to pan-handle around for leftover lobster bodies, much to the embarrassment of my family. There's lots of good stuff in those bodies!

[KRS]

The tenderest, sweetest lobster meat is in the body above the tops of the legs. Once you learn lobster anatomy, you can bend the interior piece and push the meat out with a fingertip. Don't put on any butter or lemon juice. It's too good to do anything but eat it just as it is.

Ditto for crabs, by the way.

[Pat Hammond]

I agree. For me the real treasure is the lobster's liver, i.e. tomalley. I don't turn up my nose at lobster roe, either! It sounds like we get our money's worth from a lobster, KRS!

[Passadumkeg]

Bumper sticker in Maine: Vote for Tomalley, the Greenstuff Party.
We fry Maine shrimp with the shells on in hot olive oil until chrunchy and eat, shells and all.
Great roughage!

[soypower]

i love the brown, crunchy rice left on the bottom of a non-stick pot after making steamed rice. add a little barley tea, and somehow it just tastes like heaven...you could also use it to make sizzling rice soup.

chili pepper leaves...great stir fried/stewed in soy sauce, garlic and sugar or made into kimchi...

[toodie jane]

what do they taste like? (seeing as how it's winter and I can't run out to the garden) are they hot?

[Egg]

Do you mean leaves of peppers from the capsicum family? I would be hesitant to eat these--capsicum is in the nightshade family, and relatives such as tomatoes have poisonous leaves.

[soypower]

as far as chili leaves being poisonous, i believe you have to eat large quantities to achieve a toxic level of capsaicin...also, the 'poison' is in both the pepper and the leaves...

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/co...

[JungMann]

Chili leaves are definitely eaten in Southeast Asia.

[fmed]

I should be dead by now then! ;)

Don't worry about chili leaves. Great in stir fries and my favorite: Corn soup (chicken broth) and Fresh Chili Leaves.

[Sam Fujisaka]

Young/newly emerged leaves of mango, coffee, and avocado are edible--the two former can be served with Lao food in rural areas.

[scubadoo97]

Completly agree about the shrimp shells. I keep a bag in the freezer. When peeling shrimp, if I'm not going to be using the shells that night they go into the freezer bag. When there is a full bag then I have the makings for some fantastic shrimp stock.

[starlady]

I do that too!!!
I also keep crab shells in a bag in the freezer so after I eat the crab in the summer I can make crab bisque in the winter!

I love the West Coast!

[fruglescot]

DONT THROW A WHEY!
When pressing yogurt (straining) to make Labneh the liquid whey makes an excellent marinade. The high quality bacteria breaks down and tenderizes the meat. Apparently there is a kind of cheese that you can make from it as well. I heard about it somewhere here on Chowhound.It's called panir.
Out of the range of food use, whey is good for chapped skin as well.Rub it on.

[dani_k]

good thought. i usually toss the yogurt whey.
panir the same as paneer? if so, you make it more along the lines of labneh, i believe.

[Gio]

Imagine, something I didn't know about. LOL Thanks FS.... I usually drain about half a large container of plain fat free yogurt...now I can use the whey too.

[fruglescot]

IS FAT FREE YOGURT, REALLY YOGURT
So Gio you're a pressed yogurt lover as well. Much less expensive than purchasing the labn-eh, eh? You are, very well informed by my observations so I'm pleased that I was able to pass on some useful information.
Here is a bit more. I would recommend that you consider natural yogurt over the fat reduced types. Michael Pollan brought the point to my attention at his recent lecture by questioning what exactly is in, 'fat free' yogurt.
I don't mean to pontificate of course. You will be the ultimate decision maker.

[Gio]

Frugle.... My yogurt of choice is Stoneyfield Plain Fat Free. Here's a list of the ingredients:
CULTURED PASTEURIZED ORGANIC NONFAT MILK, PECTIN, VITAMIN D3. CONTAINS OUR EXCLUSIVE BLEND OF SIX LIVE ACTIVE CULTURES INCLUDING L. ACIDOPHILUS, BIFIDUS, L. CASEI AND L. RHAMNOSUS. (I apologize for the caps - I copied & pasted from their site). I'm pretty satisfied with that.

[dani_k]

i make my own yogurt at home, with skim [aka non-fat] milk. nothing in there but milk!

[jsaimd]

Same here. Homemade. Just milk and bacteria - definitely yogurt...

[The Old Gal]

question for you both.
If you use pasturized milk and just milk are you not missing the active bacteria which is, in my mind anyway, the purpose of consuming the yogurt? Should you not add a tablespoon or so of acidophilus?

[Gooseberry]

Italian ricotta is traditionally made from whey, too. The milk is first used to make traditional firm cheeses, the whey is then used to make ricotta, and then the left over liquid from that is fed to pigs. Nothing goes to waste, and those pigs taste really good too...

[starlady]

OK a Whey question:
Can you freeze the whey to then reuse as a marinade later or does the freezing make the marinading qualities moot?

Cause when I drain off Yoghurt I only do a little at a time as I live alone....

[fruglescot]

GOOD TILL THE LAST DROP
On another thread there is a discussion under the heading of "Cooking with Coffee"
where several uses for left over coffee come to light. My favourite use for the brown brew is to add it to gravy for colour and flavour.

< http://www.chowhound.com/topics/497225 >

[amymsmom]

I drink the water from cooked veggies - my family thinks I'm nuts, but it's tasty and surely healthy.

Almost all fruit/veggie scraps. Though we live in an upscale suburb where people turn up their noses at dirt or saving scraps, we save it all (as long as it's warm enough to go out/break down. I also add coffee grounds & filters, tea bags and egg shells. The only fruit/veggie scraps I won't add are avocado peels/seeds, mango pits and other large stuff that doesn't break down easily.

Every spring my husband mixes the whole thing together and spreads it over our veggy garden - we have great crops!

[starlady]

I always save the water from the veggies to use the next day in pasta water or risotto or just to cook more veggies in, and in the summer sometimes to slightly thin gazpacho. never thought of drinking it, though I put soup in a mug often enough why not, right?

[quirkybeijing]

I do this too! I often use the boiled water to add to pasta.

I also save the water from boiling dumplings, it's goes quite nicely as a drink with dumplings. I can't take credit for this though, I learned this from a dumpling restaurant chain here in China.

[moh]

Also the water from rehydrating Dried shitake mushrooms. We throw this into broths, and also use it as a base for soba noodle broth.

[oakjoan]

My mother made and drank something she called "Gunk" every day. She simmered vegetable leaves, onion scraps, etc. for hours, cooled them, refrigerated the liquid and drank a glass a day. She learned it from a Dutch friend of hers whose mother drank it her whole life as well. Friend's mother lived to be very, very old. My mother died when she was in her late 70s. So who knows if either of them benefited from it. She was always trying to get me to drink it. I tried it once and that was enough. No salt even!!

[greygarious]

Mine made vegetables in the pressure cooker and drank that liquid - under a cup per day, until she was in her 70's. She lived to 91.

[Abby B]

Chicken skins. Whenever I cut up a whole chicken for pieces, I render fat from the skin and save it to make crust for savory pies and tarts. Especially good with whole wheat. (To render the fat, just put the skin in a pan and cook it at medium-ish heat until the fat all comes out as liquid. Give the cripsy skins to the dog as a treat and pour the fat into a jar.)

[moh]

The dog? Give the crispy skin to the dog???? The dog can fend for itself! I'm keeping the crispy skins for myself!!!!! The dog??????

[Cheflambo]

Woof! Sitting up and BEGGING here......

[notgreg]

I have to agree with the stale bread post, it seems that its almost always thrown out, and yet it is so easy to turn into breadcrumbs. I don't know if anyone has mentioned cheese rinds, such as those from a block of parmesan, yet. thrown into a soup, or even some roasts and braises they add amazing flavor.

[soupkitten]

oh yeah (parm rind). that's an old trick and a very good one!

[monkeyrotica]

Cheese rinds are an ESSENTIAL part of a good minestrone.

[Tonka]

Cheese rinds is a new one to me. Do they dissolve into the recipe?

[coll]

They can burn onto the bottom of the pot if you're not careful, but if you get them out in time (after an hour or so) they make a nice pre-meal treat. I cut them into bite size pieces before I put them in, and sometimes when I'm lucky they soften up just right and I leave them in when serving.

[fruglescot]

THE CRUST OF THOSE GUYS
Often the bread you leave in the restaurant bread basket will become dessert for the following day. Successful (read profitable) restaurant management includes providing uses for kitchen leftovers. Ever eat "Bread Pudding"?

[jennywinker]

Not anymore!

[misplacedamerican]

I use my veg water to water my plants in the summer - it has good nutrients in it and is organic (if that is what you buy). Also helps reduce my water consumption a bit. Every drop helps!

[steinpilz]

I agree about stale bread, duck/chicken/bacon fat, and broccoli stems, disagree about shrimp shells (see above), I'll add cheese ends (great for soups), and radish peels (recently read about this on a Japanese cooking blog).

[yamalam]

What do you use the radish peels for?

[steinpilz]

Here are two radish peel recipes (and one udo peel recipe, don't really know what udo is) from that japanese site -- there are many more recipes and the lady also blogs what she cooks daily, it's pretty interesting:

http://www.nsknet.or.jp/~tomi-yasu/recipe/068_e.html
http://www.nsknet.or.jp/~tomi-yasu/recipe/082_e.html
http://www.nsknet.or.jp/~tomi-yasu/re...

[Gio]

Udo is a tall leafy plant which grows on the banks of streams in Japan.
The stems are cut and used in soups, or the shoots are cooked like asparagus.

[steinpilz]

Thanks!

[fruglescot]

You really are knowledgeable Gio.

[Bunnyfood]

Citrus peels- I save enough every month(yes, in the freezer) to make enough marmalade to keep my neighbors friendly...I prefer to keep them seperate, because nothing, I mean nothing, beats grapefruit marmalade... but a mix of clementine, lemon, meyer lemon, orange, tangerine etc is pretty tasty too...

[Scargod]

Jacques Pepin believes there is hardly anything that should get thrown out before wringing out all the flavor first. I take pieces of hard asparagus, outer onion layers, broccoli stalks, herb stalks, etc. and make vegetable broth (or soup base) with them. I make chicken broth with remnants before and after cooking a chicken. The carcass always goes into a pot for stock or soup. Bones may be the most under-utilized items.
For me, because I do a lot of cooking (and because I have two refrigerators and a freezer) I can save and use all these things that many people feel they must throw out. Since I have a vegetable and herb garden I usually don't have to worry about pesticides and chemicals. When I'm done with veggies they go into my compost heap.
I use good bacon for salads and as flavoring for bean dishes, etc. I save the rendered fat and use a little to flavor food or add a little of it to the oil when I cook cornbread.

[Caroline1]

The great advantage of old fashioned French stove (a la Aga) that stayed on 24/7 was that French cooks always had a stockpot simmering on the back of the stove, and any and all peelings, parings, and trimmings went into the pot. More water was added as needed. Whenever stock was called for, it came from the pot. And the pot was never emptied. Well, wait a minute. Maybe every five years. Now that I think about it, I have never heard a French cook brag that their stock is older than that. Guess hygiene has to raise its head some time or another.

There was a time when I used to keep my own stock pot simmering, but at today's gas and/or electric prices? Hey, pass the box of organic chicken broth! '-)

[Gooseberry]

Whenever I see a recipe which says "simmer for four hours" I think the cook clearly wasn't dealing with an old, inefficient stove or my electricity prices. While I understand the benefits of a good, slow simmer, I usually make stock in 1hr30, tops. All the gelatine's been extracted from the bones, and it tastes good.
Although I sometimes dream of having a big fireplace, and just putting a cast iron pot on it, and letting the fire do the work for hours at a time...

[Caroline1]

Tote them ashes! Chop them logs! Of course, if you have a staff... '-)

[Gooseberry]

no staff, except a boyfriend to chop the logs! Although he complains he is overqualified as fireplace-manner, being an automotive engineer....!

[mateo21]

Stock in 1 hr and 30 mins? All the gelatin has been extracted? WHAT?!?!?!

Next time you make stock, pick up a bone and try to crumble it -- bones have a lot more tissue to dissolve. If they don't crumble, you aren't finished. What does your stock look like in the fridge? Or at room temp? Shouldn't have the viscosity of water... hell, when I braise chicken I usually give it two hours!

[Gooseberry]

Mateo, perhaps I should rephrase it: enough gelatine's been extracted, enough to make the chilled stock stronger than jello in the fridge.

I also tend to use chicken wings, which have a greater surface area so I feel cook quickly (and tend to have a lot of gelatine, in my experience).

I've tasted stock cooked for 3 hours, and for 1h30 - I can't tell enough of a difference to justify the extra time, so I'd say that most of the flavour (to my taste buds, at least) gets extracted in the first 1h30.

[mateo21]

When I do stock it bare-simmers for 8 hours... I've never done a test through this period but I have done a 1-2 hr stock and the difference between that and 7-8 hours is substantial, in the opinion of my tastebuds!

[Rhee]

Olive brine from green olives and even canned black olives. There's a lot of flavor in the brine. I add the brine from green olives to potato salad dressing, sauces and marinades. Its like adding olive flavored salt. Can you tell I love salt? As an extra treat, I drink the brine.

[soypower]

i do the same thing...also use the brine from pepperoncini peppers and the marinade from artichokes. they are great splashed on a salad or slaw...

[fruglescot]

Try adding a little bit o gin with the brine for a pseudo martini.

[jennywinker]

It's usually a race to see which runs out first - the green olives or the brine. Both go into our Bloody Marys. Same with dill pickles.

[Mellicita]

Along the lines of using leftover brine... I have been taking the brine from dill pickles, and adding thinly sliced zucchini. Let it soak for a day or more, and you get a delicious pickled zucchini! Obviously, other veggies would work as well.

[RWCFoodie]

I just recently read that the young tender tops of fava bean plants are edible... wish I had a place to grow them...

I do just about all of the things mentioned in this thread - always have - started the shrimp shell/head thing many years ago when I saw Jacques Pepin do it!

[fruglescot]

Well then RWCFoodie, you are now in company with a better informed group of chowhounds.
Are you sure you don't have a crumb or two of new information that you could toss us?

[RWCFoodie]

Hey fruglescot, I thought the info re fava bean tops was pretty good - had never heard that until just recently... I'll put on my thinking cap and see if I can remember any others. These things are so ingrained that they are not even conscious any more - I just do them as a routine. And you're right, I am in better company with a better informed group of Chowhounds - I've learned much about many things over the past 4-5 years from CH!

[scuzzo]

This reminded me that onion and garlic tops can be harvested once or twice before allowing them to grow and finish their job. Use the tops in cooking. Garlic greens are really nice to cook with!

[shallots]

The inedible poured off fat from ham, turkey,whatever for making soap.

[starlady]

I have a question!

I am trying my hand at growing potatoes this summer and with all this talk of eating beet greens, radish greens, etc. Can you eat Potato greens?

[soupkitten]

i wouldn't eat potato or tomato greens-- nightshade family--greens can be toxic

[steinpilz]

Green potatoes are poisonous, don't know if this applies to their "greens" though.

[starlady]

well it sounds like I won't be trying it anytime soon then LOL
Something I learned about potatoes last year while spending some time on a farm.

When harvesting potatoes from the ground, when you go to wash them put them in a sink full of water, the ones that sink aren't edible!
They could have been left in the ground from last year or whatever...

[tastelikechicken]

Potato leaves contain high levels of oxalic acid, same is true for rhubarb leaves, that's why you rarely see them on the stalks except maybe at a farmers market.

I see alot of the stuff here that I do. Here are a few of my favorite "saves"
Cilantro stems and roots, cleaned well in a pot of black or pinto beans
Broccoli stems use for a broccoli puree soup. When they are soft from cooking run thru a food processor
Rosemary stems, after removing leaves save the woody pieces for skewers for chicken pork etc.
lots more....just can't think at the moment.

[lgss]

Sweet potato greens however are tasty. We got some at the farmer's market last summer. I think they're primarily used by Asian cultures.

[chef chicklet]

Growing up in Oregon we had the most wonderful huge garden. I remember that my Dad planted potatoes. We harvested small red and baby potatoes. But I do recall after he used the fork to pull them out of the dirt, he layed the potatoes on burlap to dry for some time. How much I don't remember.

This year, as an experiment we cut up a couple of russets with some eyes and planted them. The greenery was huge and grew quickly, but after 4-5 months we were so impatient abd dug them up. There were perfect little potatoes on all the roots. About 6 potatoes per plant. I think it's defintely doable but ever so important to learn the facts about toxins and eating green potatoes. I have never heard that the plant part of the potato is edible.

[RUNNERFEMME]

parm-reg cheese rinds. great for flavoring soups (and then remove them).

[malabargold]

pineapple peels

[jpmcd]

what do you do with pineapple peels?

i've been eating a lot of them recently but can't imagine what to do with all of those spiny peels except maybe squeeze a little bit of of juice

[malabargold]

Haven't tried it myself, but according to a Dole website, it's good for things like rough heel skin! Then again they haven't been growing pineapples on Lanai for quite some time. In case you're curious
http://www.dolenutrition.com/spa_reci...

[saltwater]

You can make pineapple vinegar with them a la Diana Kennedy.

[Sharuf]

Tepache is a Mexican drink made from pineapple detritus. I think it has been discussed on chowhound a few times.

[Caroline1]

Well, with a bow to the esoteric and the arcane, how many of you have been saving your onion skins to dye your Easter eggs? Tomorrow's the day. Unless you don't celebrate Easter until April 27th.

[LizATL]

We do the onion skin dye every year! A couple of years ago I figured out to boil the onion skins in the water the night before, rather than trying to cook the eggs with the skins. I save the water overnight and the scoop out the skins and cook the eggs in the morning. The resulting dye water is a lot stronger and the eggs don't get over-cooked.

[Caroline1]

Interesting! Thank you. What kind of pan do you use? Stainless, enamel, glass? Curious minds, and all that jazz.

Also nice to know somebody knows what I was talking about!

[coll]

What color do they come out?

[LizATL]

I just use a relatively small stainless pot.

I got a kick out of seeing your post too!

coll - they come out a lovely rich brown color. Kind of hard to describe, exactly.

[coll]

That sounds so much prettier than bright artificial colors, I'll have to try it. I wonder if you do brown eggs, how they come out?

[LizATL]

I am not sure how they would come out with brown eggs. The onion skin color is more orangish than brown eggs are. You should try it and let us know!

Also, I haven't done it for a couple of years, but my uncle always used to use a pin or a needle to scratch a drawing or design on the dyed eggs. The pin scrapes off the brown, letting the original white of the egg show through. Fun memories.

[Caroline1]

Dying Easter eggs with onion skins and other natural dyes is an old tradition common to many European countries. The red easter eggs baked into Greek Easter bread are traditionally dyed with onion skin. The old way is to tie onion skins around each egg before boiling, but that's a lot of trouble. You can use rubber bands too. In either case you end up with interesting color variations on each egg. Boiling the onion skins and then dying the eggs gives a more uniform color.

You can also do interesting "wax resist" designs on an egg before dying it. It's a method similar to batik. It originated in the Ukraine, where it's called Pysanka. You can see some interesting examples here:
http://www.tryzub.com/Sofia_Zielyk/
You can also use a lot more primative approach by simpy drawing or writing on an egg with wax or a crayon. Even a candle will work. Or you can coat a segment (or even a whole egg) with wax, then scratch designs into it with a sharp tool.

Here are a couple of websites with information on coloring eggs naturally using onions skins, among other plant materials If you have the patience (I hardly ever do), you can go beyond the brownish-orangeish-red and reach a deep red with onion skins.

http://greekfood.about.com/od/greekcookingtips/ht/redeggs.htm
http://www.marthastewart.com/dyeing-e...

[coll]

Now I'm psyched to dye Easter eggs, too bad I'll have to wait til next year!

[Caroline1]

Not really. Blow the eggs hollow and do them now. Next Easter you'll have lots of decorations!

[coll]

I might just do that, thanks!!!!

[scubadoo97]

My wife is very into fiber arts. We went around the yard picking berries and flowers to use for dyes. I also saved up a bunch of onion skins for her. The onions made the best dye.

[lgss]

I used to think one had to peel winter squash, in most cases, not so if organic. I also used to throw out the leaves on a cauliflower. One can just trim the edges, wash them, and cut them up to throw in toward the end of cooking whatever the rest of the cauliflower went into. For those who juice carrots, there are a number of good carrot pulp recipes (carrot bread, carrot cookies, etc).

[SharaMcG]

What a fascinating thread this is! So much great, practical info here.

I make all our bread and always chop up the stale bits for croutons or grind them for crumbs.

We eat turkey every few months (or whenever it's on sale), and I always use the carcass for homemade stock. Same with chicken although the turkey makes a richer tasting stock. Same also with ham or beef bones when we eat those meats. I never thought to use the shrimp shells for stock and will give it a try.

Ditto never thought to render chicken fat (and I grew up eating schmaltz) for matzoh balls, etc. What a great idea!

Also use cheese rinds in soup, parm-reggiano being my favorite, I usually take the rind out and eat it before the soup even gets to the table.

Whenever I buy preserved vegetables (artichokes, roasted peppers), I save the olive oil for salad dressings--it has wonderful flavor.

Thanks all for these great tips.

[fmed]

Save the water when reconstituting dried mushrooms like shiitake....natural umami. (Same goes for konbu water.) Use it in whatever dish you are making.

[eade]

Organs have rightly been mentioned, but one has mentioned cartilage or tendon. They are two of my husband's favorite cuts. Unfortunately etiquette prevents him from reaching over to other people's plates and picking up the cartilage and tendon they have left in a pile with the bones.

Certain areas of the world recognize cartilage and tendon are the tops, and highlight them on the menu. For example, this authentic Japanese yakitori place in NYC serves cartilage on its own (It is translated on the menu as "soft bone" on page 4 right about the items "neck" and "tail", which reminds me, no one has mentioned appendages either. . . ): http://www.torysnyc.com/totto.htm

Tendon can be sampled in better versions of the Vietnamese soup pho (if tendon is not listed as a pho ingredient on the menu, ask the server if the pho includes tendon).

P.S. In response to a post way above, not just pregnant women, but also those of childbearing age plus children who should avoid high mercury fish and non-organic produce. The link to the EWG's dirty dozen list is posted above (Although I wonder if the "clean list" took into consideration those fruits and veggies grown abroad and imported to the U.S. which are grown with types and amounts of pesticides that would often be illegal in the U.S., such as those that were the subject of the recent NYTimes article about heavy pesticides used in South America to grow the U.S.'s winter and spring produce titled "Did Your Shopping List Kill A Songbird?": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/30/opinion/30stutchbury.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=songbird&st=nyt&oref=slogin

the link to the mercury in fish information is at http://www.nrdc.org/health/effects/me...

[phan1]

On your comment about shrimp shells, I'd say the same thing about lobster shells. Out of all the crustaceans out there, lobsters are by far the most aromatic! Lobster meat is a bit overrated in my opinion and isn't as good as crab meat. But the flavor and the smell of the shells and stock is what makes lobster so different from the other crustaceans. People are just throwing out the best part of the lobster!

[steinpilz]

Thanks phan1, I enjoyed the discussion of shrimp shells here and will consider lobster now.

[lex clibanus]

Leek greens. No doubt. Slice across the grain into 1-inch strips and sautee or stir fry like any other green. They take a bit longer than chard/kale/etc, but very tasty, especially as a bed for a roasted meat (pork tenderloin? whole chicken?). I've also used them chopped up in dishes using the white part of the leeks. Toss them in at the end when making braised fennel and leeks for some extra color, and of course, to enhance the leek-y flavor.

[fmed]

A new one for me: I was making spinach lasagna a couple of weeks ago and I needed to cook down fresh spinach then squeeze out the excess water. Instead of throwing out this lovely green liquid, I put it into a couple of cups and we drank it like tea (it was already salted). It was great!

[pdxgastro]

I heard a while back that the water you boil your eggs in is full of calcium and what not from their shells. So I let it cool and give it to my plants. Is that crazy or what?

[chef chicklet]

We do the same. During the Spring and Summer I crumble the eggs into small bits and scatter them around my plants. I happen to elimated my slug problem, and I hear the shells are great for the soil.

[CookieWeasel]

Coffee grounds. Great for tomato plants.

[toodie jane]

...and blueberries, roses, camellias or azaleas, etc that like a slighlty acid soil; epsecially pertinent for us Arid West-ern U.S. gardeners, not so much for Eastern U.S. gardeners.

[LolaP]

I agree with all of these and just wanted to add one more: over-ripe bananas. Everyone has their threshold after which bananas are too ripe, and mine is fairly low--I like them with slightly green tips. Luckily, overripe bananas make the best baked goods. When my bananas pass their peak, I pop them into a bag in my freezer. Whenever I get the urge, I pull out three or four (they will have gone totally black, but no fear) and use them for banana bread. Just let them sit on a plate on the counter for a few hours or submerge in hot water. The peels will slide right off, and you can mash and use in your favorite recipe: banana bread, cake, muffins, whatever. I have actually come to think that the freezing enhances the flavor a bit. Anyway, don't throw away those overripe bananas! I also like to make applesauce with mealy old apples. Add some lemon zest--yummy!