Parsnip leaves shouldn’t be thrown away as they make a fantastic salad leaf, once blanched. Toss them together with some other leaves and some crunchy vegetables, and add a nice dark soy sauce-based dressing, some hot Szechuan peppercorns, a splash of vinegar and garlic for a fresh and lively salad dish at Christmas. You can also add them to any leftover parsnips for a parsnip risotto with plenty of parmesan cheese.
Keep your onion skins and add them to the stockpot for colour and depth. You can also roast them on their own and then deglaze for an onion broth to add to ravioli. Or add them to your risotto pot while cooking and remove them before serving.
Whatever you do, do not throw away the fat that you trim from your ham. Keep it and render it down to keep as a versatile and delicious meat fat to give flavour to so many different things. Make sure your butcher leaves on the fat trimmings, which you can put in a deep pan and melt on a low heat, stirring occasionally. Skim off any impurities and strain before adding to a clean, dry jar. Allow to cool before storing in the fridge. Watch how chef Jessica Rosval renders beef fat in FDL's Why Waste? series with Massimo Bottura, below.
Celery leaves are actually the more interesting and delicious part of the vegetable. Add them to your stockpot for a delicate fresh note, or use them to make pesto. The freshness of the celery leaves works very well with pecorino cheese and a squeeze of lemon juice to bring them together.
Your potato peels can be roasted on a tray for crispy potato peel chips. Just lay on kitchen paper, make sure they are very clean, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Never eat the peel of potatoes that are green as they contain toxins. Drizzle with chilli oil for a spicy kick.
Any leftover bread can be used to make breadcrumbs for your stuffing and if you’ve still got some to use, make bread and butter pudding. Watch the below video from Why Waste? with Massimo Bottura and co. for ways to get the most out of leftover cereals, including bread.
This article was updated on 20/11/2023.
