Easter is a special time of year to spend with family & friends. Enjoying delicious hot cross buns, decorating the house, long lunches & of course lots of chocolate are all part of the celebration, but this time of year can generate a lot of waste.
So, whether you are getting together with friends & family, cooking up some delicious goodies or simply grabbing a hot cross bun on your way to a friend's place - we've got some ideas on how you can reduce your waste this year.
1. Enjoy Hot Cross Buns - the Plastic Free Way!
We tried to find an easy Hot Cross Bun recipe...but turns out they are harder to make than we thought. So we went to the next best thing, buying them plastic-free! Fresh is always best with Hot Cross Buns, so treat them like bread. Take your Organic Bulk Food Bag to the bakery and ask them to add the Hot Cross Buns straight in.
Add your Organic Hemp Bread Bag to your Bread Box (with a handy wood chopping board lid) & enjoy Hot Cross Buns with a friend at the park or at home with butter.
Or for those more daring, Tess from @eden.vegan has a few recipes Hot Cross Bun recipes you could try.
2. Recycle Your Easter Egg Foil
Easter chocolates that are wrapped in foil are the best eco-friendly option as foil can be recycled! Save all the wrappers into a ball the size of your fist and add to your recycling bin.
If you don't have enough chocolate to make it to the size of your fist - add the wrappers inside an aluminium can. By recycling aluminium we can recycle 95% of the energy it would take to make new metal! [1]
3. Make Your Own Chocolate...
Have you tried making your own chocolate before? It’s a great activity to do with the little ones and this recipe is simple and allergy friendly as it’s vegan, gluten free & only 5 ingredients.
Homemade chocolate is easier than you think! All you need is:
- 1 cup cocoa butter
- ⅔ cup cocoa powder
- 6-8 tbsp maple syrup
- 1-2 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅛ tsp pink salt
Full method can be found here. We'll be giving this a go this year too!
4. Use What You Have
Tea towels are super versatile - they're a great option for wrapping & covering food for parties or lunches this Easter. They're also super handy for wrapping gifts such as pot plants, and using as table decorations.
5. Get Crafty
No one has the perfect plastic-free past, and no doubt you'll have some plastic decorations lying around. Instead of throwing them away and adding to landfill, use them!
They might need a fresh lick of paint, or do a little DIYing to put a new spin on them but instead of going out and buying new decorations, we encourage you to use what you have. Or better yet, use some items you have in your pantry - like eggs! They're a great way to incorporate an Easter theme into your table setting.
6. Make Use of Your Carrots
Not only are carrots on theme this Easter (winner) they're also one of the most common veggies to go limp at the back of your fridge.
Use them up and deliver a delicious waste-free salad or dessert this Easter that your family & friends will love. Tess from @eden.vegan has shared three delicious carrot recipes with us that are super quick & easy to make this Easter. Check them out here.
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