You're Throwing Away Hundreds of Dollars of Food Every Month — Here's How to Use Odds + Ends

When you're on a tight budget, you know that every penny counts — so then why do so many of us throw away perfectly edible food?

Those broccoli stumps — eat 'em!

The skins left over from that peeled potato — fry 'em!

Get creative and use it all up — after all, you spent hard-earned dollars on it, right?

"Scraps are just as tasty!" says Rach. "Never throw a nickel of food away."

Chef Curtis Stone and Rach have a few clever ideas — by finding ways to use up those scraps, you could save yourself hundreds of dollars in the long run!

HOW TO USE UP: Potato Skins

"[The skins] are full of nutrition, in fact, the most nutrition of the potato is in the skin," says Curtis.

So save those skins and fry 'em up like you would fries or potato chips! Now you have a quick, crunchy snack.

RELATED: 13 Bottom-of-the-Jar Tips to Make Your Grocery Budget Stretch Further

HOW TO USE UP: Leafy Carrot Tops

Rach's favorite use for leftover leafy carrot tops is to turn it into pesto!

"I know, it's delicious!" she says.

Pour it over pasta, smear it on sandwiches — the choice is yours! And, since pesto freezes beautifully you could easily make a few batches and stash 'em in the freezer for whenever the mood strikes you. Get Rach's recipe for Carrot Top Pesto here. 

HOW TO USE UP: Miscellaneous Veggie Scraps

We tend to waste the hearts of vegetables (think the core of iceberg lettuce and broccoli stumps). Go get yourself a mandoline and thinly slice 'em up to make a pretty salad, or as Curtis calls it, a carpaccio. Get Chef Curtis Stone's recipe for Carpaccio here.

"This would otherwise be trash, that's what's so awesome!" he says.

RELATED: See How This Mom of 5 Turns Leftover Flank Steak Into 2 New Meals

HOW TO USE UP: Garbanzo Bean Juice

This one is pretty cool — next time you go to drain a can of garbanzo beans, save the juice! Simply whip it up and turn it into a meringue. Use it for macarons or even a savory pie topping.

"Anything that you can think of as a meringue, you can use it sweet or savory," Curtis says.