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Reusable containers are a great way to reduce waste when packing lunch. Photo by Stefanie Keeler. Looking for ways to pack lunch without adding single-use plastics to the landfill? A recent study highlighted the amount of trash created by weekly use of disposable items at lunchtime alone, and found an average family of 3 generates 18 pieces of trash per day, or 3240 pieces annually by using items such as plastic baggies and utensils, paper napkins and single use beverages. A typical American child generates 67 pounds of discarded lunchbox packaging waste per school year, which is more than 18,000 pounds annually for an average elementary school and over 1 billion pounds nationally. Here are some easy tips for reducing your packaging footprint: 1. Shop locally at farmers’ markets and buy fresh unpackaged produce. 2. Bring reusable bags. Always! 3. Buy bulk and cut back on pre-packaged snacks and goods. 4. Opt for reusable beverage bottles, such as stainless steel canteens or Mason jars. 5. Switch to reusable utensils. Set aside a set of utensils just for lunch away from home. 6. Look for condiments, jams and jellies in reusable glass containers or make your own mayonnaise, ketchup and dressing. 7. Say no to baggies. Use Mason jars and stainless food containers instead. 8. Pack lunch in a reusable container. Metal lunch boxes are making a comeback, and Bento boxes have separate, stackable compartments for all your lunch goodies. 9. When home, recycle any used packaging and compost any leftover food. 10. Let your produce loose! No need to bag your produce twice. Put it in your cart, then bag it once asyou pay and leave the store. 11. Eat lunch from a food truck daily? Bring your own dish or plate. 12. Request minimal packaging when ordering food to go.

Reduce food waste by composting leftover food scraps, then use the dirt for your garden. Photos by Lexi Mire. Composting leftover food scraps helps reduce trash in the landfill and creates nutrient-rich soil. Think those extra bits of food you leave on your plate at a restaurant, or those slightly blemished veggies you toss from your fridge don't have an impact on the environment? Think again. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, food waste that goes to landfills breaks down anaerobically and produces methane, which is 21 times more potent than CO2 as a greenhouse gas, and in the U.S., it's becoming a significant ecological problem. Additionally, wasted food is an economic concern. In the restaurant world, reducing food waste is a priority, given its impact on profitability and the bottom line. Yet even those eateries which plan menus based on total utilization (that is, using every part of an ingredient, such as carrots and carrot tops) deal with the reality of foodscraps and unused surplus heading to the landfill. Such was the situation Tiffany Bess found when she started work managing a local restaurant in 2014. Having assessed their operations over time, Bess took steps to change their practices and pursued alternative ways to deal with scraps. When initial searches for an organic waste recycler proved futile, Bess launched her own in-house composting initiative. A few years later, her passion propelled her into a full-time business pursuit. As the owner of Apple Rabbit Compost, Bess collects food scraps for a small but growing number of residential and commercial customers. Throughout Northeast Florida, efforts to compost and help reduce waste are largely independent initiatives, as there is no policy mandating reduction of food going into landfills — for now. Some advocates say they believe the region shows promise for more widespread progress. “The missed opportunities to divert food from landfills is something to be concerned about,” says Laureen Husband, who works with Feeding Northeast Florida and is a member of the Duval County Food Policy Council. “We are looking to identify opportunities for small farms, businesses and individuals like you and me to prevent food from being discarded into a landfill and otherwise use it to replenish the earth to make more healthy food.” Composting is a natural way of recycling organic matter, and often includes grass clippings, coffee grounds and leftover vegetable scraps. The result is a nutrient rich, dark soil amendment with myriad benefits. It promotes soil microbes that aid plant growth, helps balance the soil’s pH level, reduces pests and otherwise fosters a more sustainable ecosystem. Husband, who has spent years working in the community health sector in Northeast Florida, says she is not aware of any government-led initiatives to divert food scraps from landfills in any of NortheastFlorida’s counties. Joseph England, chair of the policy and issues committee for the Florida Food Policy Council, said many local-level composting efforts operate outside of state regulations. Currently, food is characterized as solid waste by state statute; therefore, anyone transporting food waste — even small composting efforts — is required to be certified as a solid waste hauler by the state. Even if official changes are made at the state level, Florida still lacks facilities that can process food, either though composting or anaerobic digestion, England said. The lack of infrastructure and widespread public support haven’t deterred many Northeast Florida food-related businesses from cultivating their own ingenuity.

Time to bake the doughnuts, and turn them into a new twist on a classic summertime treat. Photo by Wesley Parsons Makes 6-12 Sandwiches, depending on doughnut pan size Ingredients 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup sugar, divided 1 cup blueberries 1/4 cup water 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 1 egg 1/2 cup heavy cream 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons lemon juice Zest of one one lemon 2 to 3 cups vanilla ice cream Additional lemon zest or sprinkles, optional Instructions Preheat oven to 350°. Grease doughnut pan and set aside. In a large mixing bowl whisk dry ingredients with 1/2 cup sugar. Purée blueberries and water with hand mixer or blender. In a medium bowl, mix together butter, egg, heavy cream, vanilla extract, lemon juice and blueberries. Fold wet ingredients into dry until combined, then add zest of 1 lemon (reserving some for garnishing). Spoon batter into doughnut pan. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Carefully remove the doughnuts from the pan, toss them in the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and place on a baking rack to cool. Once completely cooled, place a heaping scoop of vanilla ice cream between two doughnuts and press together lightly. Repeat with remaining doughnuts. If desired, roll the sides of each ice cream sandwich in a little fresh lemon zest or sprinkles. Securely wrap with aluminum foil, wax paper or beeswax wrap and place in the freezer for at least 2 hours before serving.

Mint adds a refreshing layer to this drink featuring St. Augustine Distillery Florida Cane Vodka. Photo by Amy Robb. Makes 1 cocktail Ingredients 1-1/2 ounces St. Augustine Distillery Florida Cane Vodka 3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice 3/4 ounce simple syrup 6 blueberries 5-6 mint sprig s Instructions Shake all ingredients and strain into a glass with ice. Garnish with mint and blueberries.

Always be prepared to head out on your next excursion by having some grab-and-go goodies on your checklist. These hand pies are perfect travel companions, as a fruit-filled breakfast on the go or a tasty snack to keep you energized to your next destination. Photo by Stefanie Keeler. Makes 12 pies Ingredients For dough 3 cups flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup butter 1/2 cup ice water For filling 4 cups fresh blueberries 1 cup white sugar 1 cup brown sugar 2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 tablespoon vanilla 3 tablespoons dried lavender 1 egg, beaten For glaze 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar 4 tablespoons milk Instructions To make dough: Combine flour and salt in a bowl. Add cold, cubed butter and work into the flour with your hands. Gradually add ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough comes together. Chill dough for at least one hour. While dough is chilling, prepare filling. Mix all ingredients except lavender and beaten egg in a bowl. Preheat oven to 375°F. When dough has chilled, roll out and cut into 24 (3- by 4-inch) rectangles. To assemble, spoon filling onto half of the rectangles, leaving a little room around all edges. Sprinkle lavender over the berries and brush egg wash around edges of dough. Place remaining rectangles over filling and crease all edges with a fork. Brush remaining egg wash on top of pop tarts and place on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Bake for 30 minutes. Immediately place blueberry lavender pop tarts on a cooling rack. While pop tarts are cooling, make glaze. Sift powdered sugar in a medium bowl and whisk in milk until it is pouring consistency. When pop tarts are completely cooled, cover each with glaze.

These muffins are a perfect grab and go snack. Photo by Miya Kusumoto. Makes 12 INGREDIENTS 2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup light brown sugar Zest of 1 lemon 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 1 cup ricotta cheese 1 large egg 2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 1-1/2 cups fresh blueberries Instructions Preheat oven to 400°. Line a muffin tin with paper liners or lightly oil each cup. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In bowl of stand mixer, beat brown sugar, lemon zest and butter together until fluffy. Add the ricotta cheese and beat on low speed until combined. Add egg, lemon juice and vanilla and beat until just combined. Add dry ingredients andmix until uniform. Add blueberries and mix by hand. Spoon batter into each baking cup, about ¾ full. Cook the muffins until they are starting to rise, about 5 minutes, and decrease the heat to 350°. Cookfor 10 to 15 more minutes, until tops are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool for 10 more minutes.

The Man in Overalls helps neighbors grow their own food. Nathan Ballentine, also known as Man in Overalls, works in the first neighborhood garden he started in Springfield. Photos by Cole LoCurto. You may have heard about the movement to grow food, not lawns, which seeks to empower us to plant our own gardens to feed our households. How ideal would it be to live in a world where we have freshly grown produce and herbs at our fingertips without having to go to the supermarket? It would be great to live next door to your farmer, too! That's exactly the utopia Man in Overalls founder Nathan Ballentine has worked to create for the Springfield neighborhood in Jacksonville. Ballentine has built a business empowering and helping people grow their own food. From that experience he has launched a project to create what he calls a"viable community-based agriculture system” built “by neighbors, for neighbors.” As a farmer, he ran into similar issues that plague many small-scale, local farms, such as labor costs, waste and uncertain market days. He thought about ways he could remove those hurdles and landed on a new concept that’s taken root within Springfield. The idea is deceptively simple. It’s community-supported agriculture (commonly called the CSA model) on a micro level. Ballentine and his crew build the garden, plant the seeds, weed the beds and cultivate the produce. As a subscriber, all you have to do is harvest what you need at any given time. This service-based neighborhood farming model provides access to homegrown food without the commitment of individual time, energy and knowledge of tending to a garden full-time. Dubbed by Ballentine as a "neighborhood farm," you must be a resident of the community to join. Ballentine has observed that the closer a person is to the farm, the more likely they are to use it daily. The original and smallest neighborhood farm is in Ballentine's own backyard and supports about 35 families today. It was an iterative process to determine how many families the original 1/9 of an acre could feed; the project launched with five families, expanding each season as it became clear the yield could support more people. Now that Ballentine has expanded to a second farm within Springfield, the results are undeniable. “We’ve seen this community agriculture method increase the effect of our gardening model by five times," he says. Each farm grows about 20 different crops at a time with an aim to offer "a lot of different things to appeal to different household taste preferences." Ballentine says “the focus is on leafy greens" and produce that is "high-dollar value at the grocery store." A laminated sign in a garden patch alerts subscribers when a crop is ready to be harvested and includes information about the plant, how to harvest so it can continue to produce (for example, with kale, harvest individual leaves, don't pull from the root) and a recipe recommendation. A visit to the farm may find members picking fresh herbs for an evening meal or collecting greens for their daily salad, neighbors meeting neighbors who are invested in the same ideas about local food.The farm has a built-in community space with picnic tables amongst the raised beds available for group events. Everyone in the family can participate, allowing for opportunities to engage with the source of their food and perhaps expand their palates. Parents observe that kids eat peppers straight off the vine when they once wouldn't have dreamed of taking a bite. Ballentine said he knew he made it when he overheard a wandering pack of neighborhood kids saying, "let's go pick something!" as they slipped onto the farm. While Springfield residents are the first to have access to a neighborhood farm, other areas are in the works, with the waitlist getting longer. Ballentine has been in conversations with JEA and the Jacksonville Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Services to develop satellite neighborhood farms, possibly around Mayport Road near Atlantic Beach, in Arlington or in Murray Hill. His ultimate vision? “To build quality of life for members and shift the consumption of the community,” says Ballentine. Learn more about Nathan's project and services here .

The secret to Chef Scotty Schwartz’s soul-warming “Jewish penicillin” is a double chicken stock. Photo by Dennis Ho. Serves 8 Ingredients For soup Double Chicken Stock recipe Reserved chicken breast meat 2 cups (¼ -inch-diced) carrots 2 cups ¼ -inch-diced celery 1/8 cup minced fresh dill 1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced Matzo Balls (recipe below) Dill, for serving For matzo balls 1/2 cup matzo meal 2 eggs, lightly beaten 2 tablespoons reserved chicken fat or vegetable oil 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1½ quarts chicken stock Instructions To make soup : Put double dhicken stock in a large pot and heat, adding the diced carrots, celery, dill and parsley. Shred the reserved chicken breast meat into large pieces and add to the stock. Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes to cook the vegetables and reheat the chicken. Season to taste and serve as is, or ladle each serving over two warm matzo balls and garnish with a couple snips of dill. To make matzo balls : Mix matzo meal, eggs, chicken fat, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons chicken stock in a bowl. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Bring the rest of the chicken stock to a brisk boil in a medium pot. Reduce the flame. Run your hands under water so they are thoroughly wet. Form matzo balls by dropping spoonfuls of matzo ball batter approximately 1-inch in diameter into the palm of your wet hands and rolling them loosely into balls. Drop them into the simmering stock 1 at a time. Cover the pot and cook for 30 to 40 minutes.

This fresh and healthy take on a “rita” comes from the innovative team at Berry Good Farms, part of North Florida School of Special Education. Photo by Nick Hogan. Serves 2 Ingredients 6 ounces fresh carrot juice 1 ounce fresh lime juice plus lime wedge for garnish Juice of one orange 1 ounce simple syrup 4 ounces tequila 1 ounce Cointreau 2 peeled carrots with stem 2 pinches red pepper flakes Sea salt for rim Ice Instructions Wet rim of glasses with a little bit of lime juice and press rim into salt. Chill glasses. Combine juices, simple syrup and liquors in cocktail shaker. Add a small amount of ice. Shake until well chilled. Fill prepared glasses with ice and pour shaker contents over. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes and garnish with carrot and lime.

This delicious dessert shows you how easy making a soufflé really is — we promise. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with a scoop of ice cream such as vanilla bean or salted caramel. Photo by Amanda Lenhardt. Makes 6-8 Ingredients 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature 1 cup all-purpose flour 2 cups whole milk 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 cup freshly grated carrots 6 eggs, separated Instructions In a medium bowl, mix the flour and butter together using your hands to form a smooth paste. Reserve. In a medium-large pot, bring milk, sugar, spices, vanilla, salt and grated carrots to a boil over medium-high heat. Once mixture begins to boil, add the flour and butter paste and whisk over medium-low heat until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pot as it is being whisked. Turn off heat. Place mixture in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix over low speed for about 15 minutes, or until bowl is no longer hot to the touch. Add egg yolks 1 at a time to incorporate. Move soufflé base mixture to a large bowl. Clean and dry stand mixer bowl. Add egg whites to mixer bowl and whisk to form stiff peaks. Using a spatula, gently fold egg whites into soufflé base in 3 additions. Preheat oven to 400°. Brush ramekins with butter and dust with sugar. Fill ramekins with soufflé base and bake for about 18 minutes.

Take advantage of carrot season and make this creamy vegan soup for an easy mid-week dinner. Photo by Amy Robb. Serves 4-6 Ingredients 2 tablespoons coconut oil 1 small onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1 stalk celery, chopped 1 teaspoon grated ginger 1 tablespoon red curry paste 1 tablespoon salt 1 cup red lentils, washed 4 cups water or vegetable stock 1-1/2 cups carrots, grated 1 cup red pepper, chopped 1 cup coconut milk 2 cups chopped spinach, or other leafy greens 1/4 cup chopped cilantro Instructions In a large pot, sauté onions, garlic, celery and ginger in coconut oil for about 5 minutes. Add curry paste and salt. Sauté for 2 minutes, until curry starts to become fragrant. Add lentils and water/vegetable stock, then simmer for 30 minutes, or until lentils are soft. Remove soup from pot and blend with 1 cup shredded carrot and red pepper. Return blended mix to the pot. Add coconut milk, spinach or other greens and remaining 1/2 cup shredded carrots. Simmer for 5 minutes, or until spinach is wilted. Garnish with cilantro, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.