Recycling, reusing and decreasing the amount of trash you create are popular ways of being eco-friendly. Even the foods you eat can produce waste that, while biodegradable, doesn't necessarily need to become trash. The grapefruit you eat, for instance, is nutritious, but its rind typically finds its way into your garbage can. There are a variety of ways you can use that peel, helping you to create less waste.
Candied Grapefruit Peel
Your sweet tooth with thank you for making candied grapefruit peel from the rinds of your used fruit. Candied rind can be eaten plain like candy or used to decorate cakes, cookies and other desserts, lending them a tangy sweetness. The Food and Wine website shares chef Jacques Pepin's recipe for candied grapefruit peel, a process that should take you less than an hour to make. The website recommends storing them in the refrigerator in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Serious Eats says that grapefruit peel can also be candied and then covered in chocolate.
Grapefruit Peel Tea
Use your leftover grapefruit rinds to make grapefruit peel tea. This tea breaks up mucus and helps with your allergies, according to Terra Turquoise Healing Arts. Mincing the peel of one large grapefruit and boiling it with six to eight cups of water will create a good-for-you tea after letting it simmer for an additional 15 minutes. While this tea is bitter, drinking it may help remove toxins in your body. There is no scientific proof that drinking grapefruit tea has any health benefits.
Grapefruit Marmalade
Saving grapefruit peels can be useful if you like to make jams and jellies at home. The New York Times says that winter, the citrus season, is a popular time to use grapefruit peel for making marmalade, a jam with bits of peel in it. The article shares a recipe for grapefruit and Meyer lemon marmalade that should take you approximately one hour to make, and -- when properly stored in sterilized jars -- can last for months. If you do not can the marmalade, it can be stored in the refrigerator. The recipe calls for the rind of 5 lbs. of grapefruit.
Grapefruit Salt Scrub
Leftover grapefruit peel can help you take care of your skin. The Gloss website says that whipping up a salt scrub using grapefruit rind is a way to use up those peels in a concoction that moisturizes, exfoliates and smells good. One tablespoon of grapefruit zest combines with sea salt, oil and ginger and will store well in an air-tight container. The Gloss cautions you not to use this salt scrub on your face or freshly shaved legs.
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