Category Archives: Waste Reduction/Zero Waste

Roasted Almond Pumpkin Seed Butter


We always make homemade peanut butter and it was the easiest thing ever. I really like almond butter, so had to give that a try too. It was just as easy and turned out really good.

 I took a couple of large handfuls (about 1 cup) of raw almonds and one handful (about 1/2cup) of raw pumpkins seeds and roasted them for a few minutes in a 350F oven. Shake them around a bit and watch them carefully or they will burn! To make it easier you can just buy them already roasted. When you take them out you will hear the pumpkins seeds cracking and popping.

Let those cool a bit, just to room temperature. Put all of those into a food processor.  


While blending drizzle in some avocado oil, or any flavour neutral cooking oil. Only 2-3 tbsp. Blend until smooth, drizzling in a little more oil as needed.

Drizzle in a tablespoon or two of honey, to taste and a generous pinch of salt.


Blend until smooth


Place in a jar and keep in fridge

We like it on toast or apple slices

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Beet Potato Salad

This is definitely a Newfoundland recipe, or at least that is the only place I have ever had this type of potato salad. If it is made in other places please let me know, I would love to hear about it.  After our thanksgiving we had leftover turkey and potato so we decided to make a cold plate, which is cold leftover meat with a variety of salads. This is a great way to use up leftovers to avoid food waste.

To make this salad I don’t have a recipe, just eyeball and taste based on knowing what it should taste like.

Basically take a small (or large) bowl of leftover potatoes and mash them.  

Take a jar or pickled beets (mine have a slightly sweet pickled flavour) and place beets in food processor, or chop and mash if you don’t have one. You will have this beet pulp.

Add the processed beets to the little potatoes, add a table spoon or two of the beet pickling liquid if too dry. Add a large spoonful of mayonnaise and stir

Taste and add more beet, beet liquid, mayo and salt & pepper to taste 

You will have a lovely pink coloured potato salad.

Vancouver 

We arrived very late and very tired. I am attempting to do a post from my phone, not sure how that will work. We shall see.

Yesterday when we got up, very early as we were will on Ottawa time, we walked along the sea wall to stretch our legs.

Evie was thrilled to be so close to a heron. She will write it down in her birding book.


After walking for a bit since nothing was open we made our way to Save On Meats for breakfast. It wasn’t busy except for us and a few police officers having breakfast. 

I needed coffee, and it was strong and wonderful, along with a Benny.

Then we made our was to the aquarium. Evie just wanted too see the otters, she is mad about otters. After a short interaction with a whale she beelined to them and was not disappointed. There was one older otter who must have sensed her excitement because she floated around cleaning herself and then floated straight to Evie bumped her head to the glass then went under to swim and swam back to her smiling and clapping her little front paws! Evie was beaming! 

I didn’t get pictures on my phone of the otters but I have lots with me regular camera. I will have to post some later.

We went for a snack where we were very happy to see this sign.  

Evie promptly said “mom look they don’t use straws”. She wasn’t as happy later, at the market, when Dad gave her a smoothing with a straw in it. 


Very happy with a little otter and otter PJs! 

Fairy Garden

Evie wanted a little fairy garden for a long time, then she saw some pictures on pinterest, then our neighbor put some old pots out on the curb.  That was it, she became relentless, it had to be done.  Off we went to the garden centre for a few little plants and now we have this little garden sitting in our herb bed amongst the mint.

It was very basic to make and you can find endless instructions on the internet, but really you don’t need instruction to pour some dirt in a pot (broken or unbroken), we upcycled.  Tuck in a few little low growing easy care plants into the soil and there you have it.  We have since added a little bottle cap seat so a fairy can sit and rest if she needs to.