By Farah Stack
Orange you pumped for Halloween? We know we sure are! Not only will we be making some tasty meals with all of our leftover pumpkin scraps but we’ll also be fighting the food waste and climate crisis with just a couple of tricks and treats!
Carving out ghoulish faces into pumpkins might be scary but it’s even more of a nightmare for the environment. In the United States alone, more than 1 billion pounds of pumpkins get tossed out and left to rot in landfills contributing to 30.3 million tons of annual food waste. When food waste is left to decompose in the environment it produces a greenhouse gas called methane, which is known to be far more potent that carbon dioxide.
Of all the food produced in the world, an estimated one-third of it goes to waste. When we waste food, we also waste the energy and resources, like water, soil, land, and fertilizer it takes to grow, harvest, transport, and package the food. About 6%-8% of all human-caused greenhouse gas emissions could be reduced if we stop wasting food. In the U.S. alone, food waste generates the equivalent of 32.6 million cars’ worth of greenhouse gas emissions.
Now THAT’S scary!
Good thing that anyone and any person can help address both the issues of food waste and climate change this Halloween just by thinking creatively and upcycling some pumpkin leftovers. Yes, that includes YOU!
This Halloween and fall season, you can help reduce food waste and curb methane emissions just by upcycling leftover pumpkin flesh, scraps, seeds, and skin. Not only will you be making a delicious and healthy recipe, but you will also be combatting the climate crisis and preventing quality and tasty ingredients from going into the landfill.
Check out these 5 amazing recipes that turn your jack-o-lantern into a delicious meal.
Pumpkin Soup
This pumpkin soup is creamy, healthy, and a classic you can never go wrong with. A warm loaf of bread or a salad pairs great with the sweet pumpkin taste. This is a great way to reduce your pumpkin waste this Halloween by utilizing the insides of the pumpkin. It’s gluten-free too!
Haunted Graveyard Tagine
Looking for more of a festive and fun food recipe to save those pumpkin scraps? Check out this delicious and decorative dish that uses the insides of a pumpkin! Yum!
Spiced Pumpkin Loaf
Spice up your life with this pumpkin loaf recipe that is the perfect treat for this Halloween! Pumpkin pulp is a key ingredient to making this a delicious snack.
Italian Pesto Sauce (with pumpkin seeds!)
This is a great recipe to put those pumpkin seeds to use!
Pumpkin Ravioli
Pumpkin ravioli is perfect for a Halloween dinner meal. This meal utilizes the pumpkin flesh and after some cutting, spices, and mixing of ingredients, this ravioli is ready to go!
Sources:
rotting pumpkins in landfills: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/11/where-pumpkins-go-after-halloween/601699/
Greenhouse gas emissions linked to cars: https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/fight-climate-change-by-preventing-food-waste
Pumpkin Soup Link: https://thepeskyvegan.com/recipes/halloween-pumpkin-soup/#recipe
Haunted Graveyard Tangine: Link: https://www.hubbub.org.uk/haunted-graveyard-tagine
Spiced Pumpkin Loaf: Link: https://www.taste.com.au/recipes/spiced-pumpkin-loaf/e621b112-30dc-4c20-b426-9880f123e858?r=recipes/qz2ujeo6
Italian Pesto Sauce: Link: https://www.finedininglovers.com/recipes/side/italian-pesto-sauce
Pumpkin Ravioli: Link: https://www.taste.com.au/recipes/pumpkin-ravioli/bdbb985d-172a-4373-9931-54f8cac094d7
