Pembrokeshire County Council is reminding mums and dads that there’s no need to spend a fortune this Halloween.
With household budgets tight for many people, the Council has teamed up with the Waste Awareness Wales campaign to help people have a happy Halloween without breaking the bank.
The average family with children wastes a scary £12 every week on food that they never use. If you’re catering for lots of people at a Halloween party the chances of food going to waste are even greater, which means more money thrown away.
What’s more, many of us throw away food without thinking when we start carving the pumpkin lantern, which is where Love Food Hate Waste’s celebrity chef Kevin Woodford and Waste Awareness Wales’ Reduce and Reuse expert Georgina Taubman can help.
Georgina said: “Halloween should be a bit of harmless fun; there’s no need to be scared about the cost. By planning ahead and making the most of leftovers when the party’s over, you can relax without worrying about what you’re wasting.
“With Kevin’s recipes there’s no excuse for throwing pumpkin flesh away, and my tips will help you save money and avoid the horror of wasting food.”
Pembrokeshire County Council Cabinet Member for Environmental and Regulatory Services, Councillor Ken Rowlands, said: “I know that lots of families are feeling the pinch at the moment and saving hard for Christmas gifts.
“At the same time many of us are still throwing too much food away. This is an issue, as not only are families wasting their hard earned cash but the extra waste produced means that we are at risk of missing our tough recycling and waste reduction targets.
“That’s why the County Council is teaming up with Waste Awareness Wales and reminding families that you can have all the fun of Halloween without the cost to your pocket and the environment.”
Georgina’s tips
- It’s impossible to prepare the right amount of food if you don’t know how many people you’ll be feeding. Send out invitations via email or Facebook and ask for responses so there’s less chance of being caught out by cooking too much or too little.
- Next step is writing a shopping list. It will help you buy just the right amount, stick to it and resist those impulse purchases.
- Having a quick check in the fridge, cupboards and freezer before making a list will remind you of what you already have to avoid doubling up.
- Freeze leftover cooked meats or fish. Let them cool before popping in the freezer, cut up into smaller pieces so they will defrost quickly, and seal well in a plastic freezer bag with the date written on.
- Why not take some leftover party nibbles to work or pop them in the children’s lunch box? It makes a welcome change from the normal packed lunch.
- Make breadcrumbs for use in cooking by blitzing up any leftover or stale bread and store in the freezer until needed.
- Slice up any leftover vegetables and stir fry with a store-cupboard essential – noodles.
- Don’t forget, leftover cream can be frozen. It is a good idea to whip it a little beforehand.
- Why not send guests home with any leftover slices of cake? It will be much appreciated the next day and a happy reminder of the party
Pumpkin recipes from celebrity chef Kevin Woodford
Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
- 275g plain flour
- A pinch of salt
- 125g unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small cubes
- About 10 tablespoons of cold water
- 1 whole pumpkin
- 2 eggs
- 100g caster sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- Pinch of nutmeg
- 25g sunflower seeds
Instructions
1. First make the pastry. Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Add the butter and gently rub into the flour until it looks like fine breadcrumbs. Add enough water to make dough and form into a smooth ball. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for an hour.
2. When the pastry has relaxed, roll it out on a lightly floured board to ¾ mm thick and line a 20cm loose bottomed fluted flan ring.
3. Cover the pastry with baking paper and fill with baking beans. Cook blind on a baking sheet in the oven set at gas mark 4/180C/350F for about 12 minutes, then carefully remove the beans and the paper and return the case to the oven and cook for a further 5 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the filling using the flesh scooped out from the pumpkin. Steam the flesh for 15-20 minutes, drain and then mash. Leave to cool and then beat the eggs together with the sugar and stir into the pumpkin mixture. Add the cinnamon and nutmeg.
5. Pour the filling into the pastry case, sprinkle the seeds on top and bake in the oven set at gas 5/190C/375F for about 45 minutes until the filling has set.
Roasted Pumpkin and Coriander Soup
- 1 small pumpkin
- 2 red peppers
- 2 tablespoons olive
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- ½ teaspoon juniper seeds
- 100g celery, chopped
- 2 small red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 litre vegetable or chicken stock
- Large bunch of fresh coriander
- Salt
- Black pepper
- 2 tablespoons of crème fraiche
- Pinch of paprika
Instructions
1. Quarter the pumpkin, remove the seeds (don’t discard them, they are lovely when roasted and make a great nibble). Cut the red peppers in half, remove the seeds and place them with the pumpkin onto a roasting tray. Drizzle the flesh with a little olive oil and place into a pre heated oven set at gas mark 6/200C/400F and roast for about 40 minutes.
2. Remove from the oven. Scrape the flesh from the skin of the pumpkin and place to one side along with the roasted pepper.
3. Heat a little olive oil in a saucepan; add the chopped onion, crushed garlic, juniper seeds, celery and red chillies. Cook for a few minutes until the onions and celery are soft. Add the pumpkin and red peppers, the stock and finally the chopped coriander. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and then process the soup in a blender to make it smooth.
4. Serve with a spoonful of crème fraiche over the top sprinkled with a little paprika.
For more Love Food Hate Waste recipes visit www.wasteawarenesswales.org.uk/
