It’s hardly breaking news that overripe bananas equal banana bread (lockdown déjà vu, anyone?). But what happens when it’s not bananas in your fruit bowl but a handful of soft, sulky grapes? Or maybe you’ve got a bit of Hero Sponge left over that’s gone stale, and throwing it away feels criminal?

Food waste makes me genuinely sad. And because I’d prefer not to be sad, I do everything I can to avoid binning ingredients. Even when something looks past its prime, it can almost always be turned into something delicious with minimal faff. As much as I hate wasting food, I’m also not spending hours resurrecting ingredients unless the payoff is worth it — life’s too short.

Revitalising leftover fruit

Fruit is the easiest place to start. We all have grand, wholesome intentions when filling the fruit bowl, but somehow it’s always the apples and grapes that linger. While so many fruits can be cooked into sauces or jams, here are a few of my favourite ways to rescue them.

Apples

We all know apples can be cooked down with cinnamon or ginger for pies or crumbles. But have you tried baking thin slices into apple crisps? They’re brilliant for snacking or sprinkling over cereal, porridge, or ice cream — and you can crumble them on cupcakes for a gorgeous finish. Just slice through the core (a mandolin helps), then bake the slices for 40 minutes at 140°C (120°C fan). Leave to cool completely, then store in an airtight container.

Berries

Whatever berries you have knocking around, put them in a saucepan with a splash of water and gently cook them down. You’ll get a glossy, syrupy sauce perfect for yoghurt or porridge. Add a little sugar and reduce further and you’ve got a jammy layer ideal for sandwiching between cake sponges.

Grapes

Yes, grapes freeze beautifully — even the soft ones. Straight from the freezer they’re unbelievably refreshing.

You can also roast grapes into caramelised little jewels for cake fillings or to dot into your cake batter. Wash and dry whole seedless grapes, toss with a little olive oil, and roast for 20–30 minutes at 170°C until they wrinkle and slump. One note: grapes ferment faster than most fruits, so cakes using them won’t keep quite as long.

Citrus Fruit

Tough, wrinkled oranges, lemons, and limes still have plenty to offer. Reduce their juice into a syrup to drizzle over cakes — orange drizzle is heaven — or use the syrup in cocktails. You can also zest them and add that fragrant burst to sweet or savoury dishes, from crumble toppings to whipped cream and icings.

Bananas

No, we don’t need another banana bread. Instead, caramelise overripe bananas in a saucepan until soft and jammy and spread it on toast. You don’t even need sugar. Honestly, you’ll start hoping your bananas go brown.

Unlocking the sweet potential in vegetables

I know not everyone warms to the idea of vegetables in cakes. But sweeter veg — sweet potatoes, butternut squash, pumpkins and, of course, carrots — are fantastic baked into cakes or even brownies. They bring moisture, depth, and balance, and when paired with nuts, spices and tangy icing, they’re wonderful. If you’re tempted, here’s our go-to carrot cake recipe.

Reimagining leftover cake batter and cake

For some people, leftover cake or batter is an impossibility. But if it does happen, don’t panic — it’s basically bonus dessert.

Pancakes

Pancakes are always popular with us. But if you’ve run out of ingredients to make batter and you’ve got leftover cake mix? Heat a frying pan, melt a knob of butter, pour in a ladle of cake batter — the result is ridiculously fluffy pancakes with perfectly crisp edges.

Literally — pan cakes. Add your cooked-down fruit, the last scrape of a yoghurt pot, or even bacon and maple syrup for a breakfast of champions.

Muffins

Most cake batters translate beautifully into muffins. Our Hero Sponge batter does especially well — just reduce the baking time to 15–18 minutes depending on your case size. Add tired berries for an easy win, and freeze the baked muffins for later.

Leftover Cake

In a recent post we shared our favourite stale cake recipes, from bougie cake French toast to crisp cake rusk for the ultimate tea-time dunk, plus impressive cake pops. You can also layer leftover cake into a bread and butter pudding or a trifle.

Don’t waste that last handful of crumbs!

That final handful of crumbs doesn’t deserve the bin. Blend them with half a cup of milk and two scoops of ice cream or thick yoghurt for a cake milkshake or smoothie. Or freeze the crumbs to sprinkle over puddings or ice cream for deluxe dessert vibes while you Netflix and chill.

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So yes, there’s absolutely no reason leftovers should go to waste. You might even create something so delicious you forget it began life looking a little sad.

Love,
Reshmi xoxo

If you’re in the mood to bake something fresh after rescuing your leftovers, our Hero Sponge recipe is the perfect base for all your fruity, jammy creations — baked to order in your own kitchen, of course.