Green Your Thanksgiving: How to Manage Leftovers

Today is Thanksgiving! This week’s tips have been about how to stay green during your mad rush to prepare.

Tip #4: Prevent food waste. 

We Americans toss out an extra 5 million tons of household waste during the holidays — a number that can be slashed by following a few simple tips. To start with, if you’re the one cooking, use a party-prep calculator to make sure you’re not overdoing it. Another waste-reducing strategy is to tell guests to bring Tupperware so that you can conquer excess by dividing it. If you do find yourself with mounds of extra food, look up creative recipes for Thanksgiving leftovers. You can carve turkey (or Tofurky) into melty sandwiches, or fry up mashed potatoes for a hearty breakfast. If you’re feeling generous, a quick search should lead you to nearby homeless shelters or senior-citizen programs that accept donations of leftover food.

Tell us: What do you do with your leftover food?