In this uncertain time, I thought writing a blog post about the different ways to repurpose the goods in your home would be helpful. Because as we social distance and only leave the house for necessary purchases, we need to think more consciously about using what we have to it’s fullest. It’s almost as if we are living in a time before convenience was at our fingertips. So let’s get back to being more resourceful and pay attention to what we are using.
1. Use your vegetable scraps + make your own vegetable broth
I’m seeing a lot of people make hearty soup these days or large dinners filled with fresh nutritious veggies, so why not create your own vegetable broth with all of those leftover scraps? Before you compost or throw your scraps away, you can get one more use out of them!
Here’s a quick recipe I used a couple of weeks ago. I was able to fill 4 mason jars with the vegetable broth. I felt so proud and less wasteful 馃檪 Over the next couple of weeks, save your food scraps in a glass container as you cook. These are the best vegetables to use: onion peels, onion ends, garlic peels, carrot peels, carrot ends and celery ends. If you don’t use these foods often, collect them over the next few months and store them in the freezer, so the produce doesn’t go bad.
place all food scraps in a large pot
pour water into the pot so that the water is just covering the scraps
Add fresh or stored herbs: thyme, bay leaves, pepper, salt
put the pot on high with the cover until it boils
once it boils, place it on medium – low for 1.5 hours (you may need to go 2 hours if you have a large batch) keep the cover on
then strain the food scraps into a container or mason jars (only if you’ll use up quickly) You’ll want to freeze your broth if you don’t use it within 4-5 days
2. Make your own cleaning spray + soaps
Here are some really helpful recipes and resources on how to make your own cleaning products with your typical home goods. I have a bunch of essential oils that I just use for diffusing, but I can also use them for cleaning.
- DIY liquid hand soap with castile soap + essential oils
- Recipe: Citrus + Thyme Disinfectant Spray
- The Best Essential Oils For Cleaning: What You Need To Get Started Today
- Or use these easy essentials: vinegar, baking soda and lemon. Click here for the many ways you can clean with it (ie: microwave, remove burnt food on pans, remove stains from grout).
3. Learn how to preserve your produce, correctly
This might sound like a no-brainer, but a lot people store their produce incorrectly (myself included). And now is the prime time to learn because we shouldn’t be going to the grocery store as often as we like. This also helps to control your food waste. Here are some helpful tips:
- Store your greens (lettuce, spinach, mixed spring mix, etc.) in glass containers instead of leaving them in a plastic bag or container. The glass keeps the green fresh for a longer period of time).
- Put your kale, asparagus, spring greens in water to last longer so they don’t wilt.
- This IG account and blog has great tips on how to perverse the nutrition of fruits and vegetables. I just read this blog post on how to organize your fridge (functionally + aesthetically) and now, I want to rearrange everything!
- I also just bought this eBook on produce prep and storage ($10). After this quarantine, I’m going to be an expert…. LOL
4. Utilize your cloths + towels over paper towels
I started to make this switch a few months ago (as I mention in my Zero Waste Swaps post) but now more than ever, we should be using cloths or linen napkins over the paper versions. You’ll use less of your paper towel stash, so you won’t need to panic. Remember, people survived before paper towels were invented! It’s just another convenience that’s crept into our lives. And if you are worried about germs, you can easily wash your towels.We got this.
5. Ditch your conventional skincare items + use coconut oil
We all know that coconut oil is pure magic and it can be used in many ways in the kitchen. But coconut oil is also pure magic when it comes to skincare. I use a big jar of it as my makeup remover. It’s zero waste, clean, cheap and it last for a very long time. I recently ran out of my body lotion and I’ve been using my coconut oil instead. If those aren’t enough examples, here’s a list of 30 ways you cause apply coconut oil (outside of the kitchen). Lather up!
Now is the best time to make your home the coziest and most efficient home out there – and I hope these tips will help you just do that! Stay safe + healthy out there. We can beat this together.
xx
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