Save Food, Spend Less Challenge 2026

Michelle's points

0 TODAY
40 THIS WEEK
229 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

2.0

conversations

with people
UP TO

10.0

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

5.4

pounds

food waste prevented
UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched

Michelle's actions

Community

Watch a Documentary About Food

I will watch 1 videos or documentaries to learn about the scope and scale of food waste in this country.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Planning

Find your meal planning personality

I will explore different meal plan techniques and choose one that works for my household.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Cooking

Swap This for That

If I am missing an ingredient for a recipe I will find a substitute I have on hand and use that instead.

COMPLETED 4
DAILY ACTIONS

Cooking

Reimagine Leftovers

I will learn about how to repurpose my leftovers into new meals and then try it.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Send it Down the Grape Vine

I will talk to 2 family members or friends about my experience with this challenge, food waste, and what I have learned.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Shopping

Stick to Your Grocery List

I will only purchase the items on my grocery list and avoid impulse purchases.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Cooking

Make Soup Broth

I will store vegetable scraps or bones in my freezer and use them to make veggie stock or bone broth. I will make 2 batches.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Participant Feed

REFLECTION QUESTION
Cooking

How have you modified what you do with leftovers to make sure nothing goes to waste?
Michelle Bruhn 10/10/2026 12:24 PM

I bought a whole rotisserie chicken two days ago (which I almost never do) and it leant itself perfectly to a chicken/celery/red onion/apple/walnut salad with a homemade creamy mustard dressing- it was great bc I still got to use ingredients fresh from the garden- and use up the last of the chicken!

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- Thuvan Vuong 10/10/2026 9:07 PM
  
  Sure! A whole chicken is very big. I usually slice breast for salad.
  
  Read More
Michelle Bruhn 10/02/2026 6:33 PM

Hello guys :-)
I just wanted to start by saying thanks for joining in on trying to waste less of your food this month! I hope the options offered here make sense and make a difference for you and your families! Share as much or as little as you want here - but I'll be popping on occasionally to check in. And of course, ask questions of me or the group anytime.
Cheers to using or preserving whatever food you've got!

( I am dehydrating parsely from the garden overnight)
Peas, Michelle

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Cooking

How comfortable are you with making ingredient swaps? Where do you go to find substitutes if you don't have what you need?
Michelle Bruhn 10/02/2026 6:28 PM

I kind of love making recipe swaps- especially when the garden helps me rethink recipes... I used fresh shelling beans instead of a can of cannellini beans and it felt so good!

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- Michelle Bruhn 10/10/2026 12:25 PM
  
  Oh I love that- planning ahead for special meals makes the time spent preserving even more worth it!!
  
  Read More