Zero Waste Post #3: MOre ways not to waste Your garden Harvest and How Kitchen WAste can Help your Garden!

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     I have begun harvesting the beet roots now and that means there are plenty of beet tops that also need to be used!   
      I pulled about 8 beets today with the plan to pickle some!  (Check out my recipe on this post)  After I picked them, I had them waiting in a colander until I was ready to clean and process them.  There were so many green tops that my husband thought that i was using them as a flower arrangement!  (They did look beautiful!)  But nope, I had other plans for those beauties!  ​

• First, I cut off the roots and put them in a pot to cook so that I could peel them for my pickled beets recipes. 
• Next, I cleaned all of the greens and filled my dehydrator with as many beets and some spinach as I could so that I could make more greens powder. 
• Next, I shelled the peas that I had picked.  I had about 3/4 cup of shelled peas.  I restrained myself from just dumping them into my mouth because they are so sweet and delicious.  But, it is nice to share. 
• Then,  BING!, an idea came into my head!  What if I made Pea and Beet Top Pesto?  I'd never even made pesto before, but I had always wanted to because I love to eat it.  I don't have any pine nuts, but I knew that I could substitute a different kind of nut.  I had almonds.  What a great idea! 

     That is how my brain works.  I think I've told you that before.  So, I made pesto!  

I know, it isn't green. That is because of the red beet top stems. They colored it kind of reddish brown. It still tastes delicious!

     Making the pesto was so easy!  I simply dumped all of the ingredients into the food processor and whizzed it on high until it reached the right consistency.  I made this first batch with 3 cloves of garlic.  that made it a little garlic strong for me, so I cut the recipe back to just 2 cloves.  You can cut it back even more if you would like. 
       As a nod to original pesto, I did put in some dried basil.  If I had fresh, I would have thrown some of that in.  
      My husband had never had pesto, but I tried it out on him and he is a fan now!    
     I love pesto on naan, so I need to get some of that.  Other ways to eat pesto are

• on a baguette
• Tossed in Pasta 
• As a dip on chips and veggies

And, you can freeze half of this recipe for later!  That is what I did.  It freezes beautifully! 
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    The last of my harvested beet tops are going to be in a salad with tonight's dinner.  
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How Kitchen Waste Can Help Your Garden:

Don't forget not to just throw out the peels or spoiling veggies.  They still have value!  Here are some ideas:

• Create a compost pile for your garden
• If your potatoes get old and start to sprout, plant them and grow more potatoes!
• Regrow veggies like green onions, carrots or celery from their root or stem ends.
• Crunch up your egg shells to add to your garden to add calcium and to repel pests.  

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     Anymore ideas to share?  Please drop them in the comments!