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Bridging Global Nutrition Gaps: From Waste to Worth

January 8, 2025

What if something as simple as growing a garden or reducing food waste could change lives? At DIG, we see it happen every day. For Adji in Senegal, learning to grow her own nutritious food didn’t just improve her health, it gave her family hope. And the best part? We can all take small steps to make an impact. Nutrition.

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No-Waste Baking

Banana Peel Cupcakes 

By turning what’s typically thrown away into a key ingredient, Chef Suzanne Vizethann highlights how creativity can redefine our approach to food waste. This philosophy resonates deeply with Development in Gardening (DIG), an organization dedicated to teaching communities how to cultivate regenerative gardens and reduce food waste. By soaking banana peels to soften them, blending them into a smooth puree, and incorporating them into a batter made with staple ingredients like eggs, sugar, and flour, these muffins not only cut down on food waste but also become a conversation starter. Together, these small, creative steps—whether in the kitchen or the garden—show how sustainable practices can lead to a healthier, more nourishing world. Give these cupcakes a try and join the movement toward delicious sustainability!

No-Waste Baking Recipes

Chef Suzanne Vizethann’s Banana Peel Cupcakes from Buttermilk Kitchen prove that creativity in the kitchen can also be eco-friendly! This recipe transforms banana peels—often discarded—into a delicious puree that adds moisture and flavor to cupcakes. It’s a fantastic way to embrace the no-waste philosophy while baking something unique. 

Ingredients

1 cup puree from banana peels
4 egg yolks
4 egg whites
2 ½ cups sugar (granulated)
3 cups flour (all-purpose)
5 tablespoons butter (unsalted)
2 tablespoons baking powder

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350.
Cream butter and sugar together in stand mixer with paddle attachment.
Add egg yolks, one at a time.
Mix until fluffy then add banana peel puree.
In separate bowl mix together the flour and baking powder.
In clean stand mixer bowl whisk together egg whites with whisk attachment to stiff peaks.
Fold the flour mix into the butter mix and mix until combined, then add egg whites.
Fold together carefully; don’t over mix.
Scoop mixture into prepared muffin liners.
Bake for 20-30 min, rotating half way in between.

Banan Peel Puree:

  • Soak leftover banana peels in water for 2-3 days changing water everyday.
    Puree peels in food processor with a little water to thin out until smooth consistency, strain.

 

Meet Chef Suzanne Vizethann

Suzanne Vizethann a native Atlantan, is Executive Chef and Owner of Buttermilk Kitchen, the North Buckhead restaurant she opened in 2012. The beloved neighborhood restaurant serves brunch and lunch. True to Suzanne’s mission to nurture people through food, all dishes are made in-house from scratch with sustainably grown ingredients from nearby farms. Suzanne also opened The Hungry Peach, a lunch spot in the Atlanta Decorative Arts Center in Peachtree Hills. She was a winning contestant on The Food Network’s cooking competition “Chopped.” She has been featured on NBC’s “The TODAY Show” and on The Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives,” in Martha Stewart Living, Atlanta Magazine, Creative Loafing, The Atlanta Journal Constitution, and many more.

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