Zero Waste Recipe Roundup!

A modern illustration of different cuts of a lemon alongside lemon tree leaves.

In honor of Stop Food Waste Day, follow these savvy, scrappy recipes to bring the zero-waste approach to your own kitchen! At Bon Appétit Management Company, our approach to waste reduction prioritizes preventing waste at the source, which includes cooking from “stem to root and reimagining delicious uses for lessconventionally-used scraps.   

Salad made with celery leaves, beans, and radishes promotes whole-plant, low-waste eating.
Celery and Cauliflower Leaf Salad  

Don’t toss those leaves! Celery, carrot, and cauliflower leaves are actually edible and add a pop of flavor to your meal. Use them in place of greens like in this celery and cauliflower leaf salad.

Toasty meringue waves on lemon bars—crispy, creamy, and ready to disappear.
Waste-Free Whole Lemon Meringue Bars

Stop food waste and use the entire lemon – peel, pulp, juice and all – in these Whole Lemon Meringue Bars, created by Pastry Chef Jenn Bullard.

Fresh chimichurri in a glass jar with herbs, garlic, and oil on a light surface.
Radish Greens Chimichurri 

When the tops of root vegetables such as radishes and turnips are in good condition, don’t let them go to waste! This recipe transforms radish greens into a bright and simple chimichurri sauce that is a delicious and refreshing topping to many foods from omelets to roasted potatoes.

Golden beets and carrots tossed with beet greens—root to leaf, bold and beautiful.
Golden Beets with Carrots and Beet Greens

Prepare earthy beets with their edible, tasty greens in this simple roasted winter salad.

Plant-based sliders made with chickpeas, piled high with crispy onions and creamy goodness.
Garbanzo Bean Sliders with Aquafaba Mayo 

The garbanzo bean slider recipe uses ingredients that are commonly found in your kitchen, and is ready to be customized to your liking, so have fun with it! Just remember to save the liquid from your cans of garbanzo beans to make the homemade aquafaba mayo.