Banana peels are often discarded but they have so many uses both in the garden AND the kitchen! This Banana Peel Chutney is just one way to use up your leftover Banana Peels. This chutney has a warming, spicy kick to it and would go great served with fish or just on a platter with cheese. The banana peels are cooked down to be soft and have a similar texture to cooked onions. Give this Banana peel chutney recipe a try to produce more food and less waste.
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Banana Peel Chutney
Yield: 3 cups
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Warming Banana Peel and Onion chutney with turmeric and chilli.
Ingredients
3-4 Yellow Banana Peels
1 Mashed Banana
2 Brown Onions
2 Garlic Cloves
1 Medium Green Chilli
1 tsp Dijon Mustard
1 tsp Ground Turmeric
1 TBSP Raw Sugar
1 TBSP Coconut Sugar
1/3 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1 TBSP Oil
1 tsp Salt
Instructions
Wash your Banana Peels well. It is best to use yellow-greenish organic Bananas. Cut off the ends and place the peels in a saucepan of water. Simmer on low-medium heat for 20 minutes. This helps soften the skins.
While your bananas are cooking, slice up your onion and cook in a frypan with oil. Stir regularly until onions have softened and started to brown (approx 20-25 mins)
Remove the Banana Peels, strain, and slice into small strips or chunks approx 1cm.
Add the garlic (crushed or finely chopped) to the onion pan. Stir for 1-2 minutes.
Add in the Tumeric, green chilli, and stir to combine.
Add in the mustard, vinegar, salt, and sugar. Mix to combine.
Add in the Banana Peels and mashed Banana, stir to combine. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until all the flavour has been incorporated into the banana peels. Taste and add extra salt or sugar to your liking.
Spoon into Sterilised Jars and allow to cool before placing in the fridge.
Notes
To sterilise your jars either run them through a hot wash on the dishwasher, cover them in boiling water, or clean and heat them in the oven at 110 degrees Celcius for 10 - 15 minutes.
Cucumber salad is a quick and easy way to use up your summer harvests. This salad is a light and refreshing side dish that would go great with any summer BBQ or rice dish. Simple, vibrant, fresh ingredients are what make a salad!
Cucumber Salad with Ginger Tamari Dressing
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Light and refreshing cucumber salad with ginger, tamari dressing.
Ingredients
1 - 2 Cucumbers
1 TBSP Tamari or light soy sauce
1 tsp Olive Oil or Seasme Oil
1 tsp fresh grated Ginger Root
1 fresh Red Chilli
1/2 tsp Honey
1 tsp Sesame Seeds
1 tsp fresh Lemon juice
1 small sprig of mint
edible flowers to serve
Instructions
In a small bowl mix Tamari, Oil, Honey, Lemon, Ginger, and 1/2 the Red Chilli sliced. Stir to combine.
Cut thin ribbons of cucumber length way using a peeler or the thin setting on a mandoline.
Dress the Cucumber and top with the rest of the fresh chilli, mint sprigs, and sprinkle over sesame and edible flowers to serve.
Garnish with the curled tendrils of the cucumber plant for extra detail.
Notes
This dish is best prepared right before it is ready to serve so that the cucumber stays fresh.
Rainbow slaw not only looks amazing but it’s also packed full of nutrients. Just like planting diversity creates a healthy garden, eating diversely also has many health benefits. Each vegetable has different levels of vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, dietary fibre, and antioxidants. This slaw can be adjusted to suit your seasonal produce – see the notes for other vegetables to try out. Rainbow slaw is very quick and easy to make and can be a delicious and wholesome accompaniment to any meal.
Rainbow Slaw
Vibrant and full of nutrients, this Rainbow Slaw is the ultimate Spring side salad.
Ingredients
1 cup shredded Red Cabbage
2-3 Carrots
1 cup chopped Lettuce
1 medium Red Beetroot
3-4 Radishes
5cm cube Butternut Pumpkin
2 TBS Sunflower Seeds
Dressing
3 TBS Coconut (or greek) Yoghurt
1 tsp Lemon Juice
1 Clove Garlic
2 tsp finely chopped fresh Fennel Frond or Parsley
1 TBS Water
1 Tbs Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Chilli Flakes
Salt and Pepper to season
Instructions
Rinse your veggies and clean off any grit or soil.
Finely slice the Cabbage using the thin-medium section of the mandolin. If you don't have a mandoline, you can either grate or finely slice using a knife.
Peel the Carrot, Butternut, and Beetroot (The skins dressed in olive oil and seasoned make delicious chips - see notes below).
Using the Julienne teeth on the mandoline, finely slice the Carrot, Radish, Butternut, and Beetroot into thin strips. Use a grater if you do not have a mandoline.
Roughly chop your lettuce into small pieces.
Add a little of each vegetable to a bowl so they are all mixed without having to stir through (otherwise the beetroot will turn everything red and you will lose some of your colours).
Drizzle with olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice. Lightly toss.
To make the dressing, add yogurt to a small bowl. Then add crushed garlic, finely chopped fennel frond, lemon juice, water, chilli flakes, and salt and pepper to season. Stir well and taste. Add extra salt or lemon juice if needed.
When ready to serve, drizzle the dressing over the salad and top with sunflower seeds and edible flowers - I used nasturtium petals.
Notes
- Use vegetable skins from Carrot, Beetroot, and Butternut to make vegetable chips
Coat your skins in a light drizzle of oil.
Place your vegetable skins on a baking tray and sprinkle with a little salt.
Cook at 190 degrees celsius for about 5 minutes turning once halfway through. Keep an eye on them as they are so thin they will overcook easily.
Remove when they are golden and slightly crispy. They will also crisp up as they cool.
- Other vegetables that would be great in this slaw are: coloured Capsicums, Fennel, Nasturtium leaves, other Beetroot Varieties.
Pick your fresh greens and herbs straight from the garden and turn them into these delicious green flatbreads. This recipe is quick and easy to make and can be used for a wide range of dishes. Roll thin for flatbread wraps or tear up and use as a dipping bread for hummus and other summery dips. These would also be delicious served with curry or stew.
Garden Green Flatbread
Yield: 8-10
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Additional Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Garden Green Flatbreads are easy to make and packed full of nutritious greens and herbs from the garden. These flatbreads are great for serving with summer dips, hummus or pile on your favourite salad for a healthy wrap.
Ingredients
3 cups Flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
4 TBS Vegetable Oil
2 cups mixed greens and herbs*
1 sprig fresh Rosemary
3/4 cup milk
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl add flour, salt, baking powder, and mix. Then add in the oil and mix to a crumbly dough.
Remove the stalk and roughly chop up the rosemary leaves and add to the mix.
Prepare a bowl of iced water. Blanch the greens in a large shallow pan of boiling water for 30 seconds then add to the bowl of iced water to cool.
Warm the milk in a saucepan and add to a Blender. Strain the excess water off the greens and add to the blender. Blitz until smooth and combined.
Add the green mix to the flour to form a dough. Add a little extra flour if it is too wet and sticky.
Roll the dough into a ball, wrap with film, and refrigerate for 15mins.
Lightly flour the bench, roll out your flatbreads using golf ball-sized amounts of dough. The thinner the dough is the easier it will be to bend and wrap.
Heat a large pan with oil then add your flatbreads for 30 seconds on each side or until slightly golden.
Tear up the flatbreads and serve with dip, hummus or add your favourite salad to use as a wrap.
Notes
- The darker the greens are you use the more vibrant the colour will be.
- *Use greens such as Spinach, Chard leaves, Asian Green leaves, Parsley, Nasturtium, Sweet Potato, Fennel Frond
Pickled Rainbow Chard Stalks are a great way to preserve and utilise the whole vegetable. If you have made a recipe or cooked a meal using only the leafy greens, then this quick pickle is the way to go! Rainbow Chard is such an abundant and generous vegetable. In many areas Rainbow Chard can be grown all year round. Choose a shady cool location during the warmer month and keep it well watered. A great staple to grow in any home garden.
Pickled Rainbow Chard stalks absorb all the flavour from the pickling liquid but remain crunchy and fresh. Delicious!
Quick Pickled Rainbow Chard Stalks
Yield: 1-2 jars
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Make the most of your Rainbow Chard and make these easy and delicious quick pickles. Pickled rainbow chard stalks stay super crunchy and absorb all the flavour of the pickling liquid.
Ingredients
8-10 Rainbow Chard Stalks
1 3/4 cup White Wine Vinegar
3/4 cup Sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Chilli Flakes (optional)
2 tsp Brown Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Fennel Seeds
Instructions
Rinse the Rainbow Chard well. Remove the green leafy part (see below for other Rainbow Chard Recipes). There are two ways to cut the stalks. Either slice into 1cm pieces or leave as long stalks. If leaving them long, make sure they will fit in the jar you have selected to use. Cut the stalks length ways down the centre.
Add the vinegar, sugar, salt, chilli, mustard seeds and fennel seeds into a sauce pan and simmer until the sugar is dissolved.
Sterilise the jars by heating them in the oven face down at 120degrees Celsius or in the dishwasher on a high heat. Sterilise the lids in a bowl by pouring boiling water on them.
Add your Rainbow Chard to the hot sterilised jars and pour over hot pickling liquid to fill. Place the lid on top tightly and sit the jars upside down to seal. Leave to cool and then place in the refrigerator.
Wait a couple of days to allow the flavours to infuse. Pickles will last in the refrigerator unopened 2-3 months.
Notes
Add in any other leftover vegetables you have such as red onion, carrot, cauliflower or zucchini.
