Free Baked Cinnamon Garbage

A local bakery used to throw out a lot of cinnamon bread. When someone comes back from that dumpster you hear "Any cinnamon?". But sadly no, there's never any cinnamon bread in those dumpsters anymore.

However, they do throw out a lot of dough when they're done filling the breadpans...

photo by Nagutron

Step 1 The Hunt

Dumpster Dowsing is a rare skill or rather a talent.

You must unhinge your third eye's lower jaw and swallow the universe with your mind, then dissolve yourself in it.

If you're a master of Filipino psychic surgery, you probably have this gift.

Today it's easy. The dough has risen enough to sploosh up through the loaves and reveal its cinnamony baby cheeks.

Comments

[TimAnderson]

You know where food comes from originally , right? It just grows on a big pile of shit and dirt that's left out in the sun. Or it's squeezed out of or chopped off animals that sleep in shit, have sex with other animals and never take a bath.
The fact that something is in a dumpster rather than your mom's fridge tells you little about whether it's good to eat. Most refrigerators have food in them that's years old, and such pathogens as Crohn's disease. A commercial dumpster that's emptied frequently does not.
You have to look at it, smell it, and use your animal skills to decide if you want to wash it, or cook it, or whatever.

[ilpug]

This makes me feel much better about dropping that sammitch and then picking it up and eating it yesterday.

[frenzy]

so sad semifreddies moved to Alameda :-(

[noelle_tan]

Do you pick up lets say an uneaten, wrapped, perfectly good sandwich or do you just not mind a half-eaten burger hastily dumped into the dumpster section for eggshells, dust, a used tissue, lint, and a stray-cat named Carl? No sarcasm intended. And not a rhetorical question.

[TimAnderson]

Eating trash is just like going to an art museum. They put all kinds of stuff in there, and it's up to you to figure out what you like or don't like. Or like looking for food in your Mom's fridge. That jar of mayo with the hieroglyphics on it might have been there from when the fridge was a space sarcophagus landing from planet Norge. You've got the animal senses to smell and detect what might kill you and what might make you vigorous and give you a shiny coat.

[Yerboogieman]

Uhh, Tim? Come back to earth..

[altgrave]

made sense to me!

[Pinky212]

I can't stqnd waste!  What a pity this is!  I'm glad you're getting something out of it.  I understand the liability concerns, but com'on, people have lost jobs and are hungry.  Couldn't they put it in another "clean" dumpster where they know people will get it but officially it's being stolen?.  It's not like they're going to lose business.  The wealthy don't Dumpster Dive!

[ixisuprflyixi]

Stupid question and I didn't read all the comments to find out if you already answered a similar question but, how do you know that the cinnamon wasn't in that garbage bag because it fell on the floor or the blew a snot rocket in that batch or something similarly disgusting? Just wondering. Also if anyone is in the mood look up the book   "the art and science of dumpster diving" by John Hoffman, Good book, fascinating really. 

[Berkin]

CINNAMON IS THE BEST

[wordgirrl]

dude--you know that garbage bags are made with insecticide in them to discourage pests, right? are you making this from dough that's directly inside the bag? it looks delicious, but...i'm a little worried about you and your friends!

[urbanhg]

why would garbage bags have insecticide on them it seems pretty wasteful to me to spray plastic bags with insecticide i dont think that would be a wise use of a company's funds when they could just bang out some plastic and call it a day

[wordgirrl]

to keep pests away from the garbage while it sits outside and waits for collection day. i've never read labels, but i took some classes through the community college and the health department here a few years ago when i was thinking about making my catering hobby a real business, and this is where i heard about the pesticides in trash bags. (the context being that caterers need to find solid ways of transporting equipment, tools, supplies, and ingredients, and trash bags aren't allowed because of this pesticide.) i suppose that it could be an urban legend, but i wouldn't take my chances with food.

[poi_pai]

That's not true, if it were, why would mothers make trash bag ponchos for their kids? I'd like to think that we aren't accidenally poisoning our kids by keeping them dry in a pinch.

[kirnex]

How many parents do you know who take classes in ecology before deciding on a rainy day to use a trash bag as a makeshift poncho?

[poi_pai]

I doubt they took the classes for that sole purpose, but three. Going to the beach and doing marine biology lessons with little kids is surprisingly fun as well. I miss being a kid now...

[kirnex]

Ah, you should move to a beach area so you can relive those times (as if it were just that simple)! Sadly, I now have to live it vicariously through college-aged step-kids and my own kids--all of whom's lives are MUCH more exciting and culturally varied than mine EVER was as a kid! You're right, though--it's more fun to be a kid: then people also don't look at you quite as strangely when you actually ACT like one. No one takes you quite as seriously when you're little.

[poi_pai]

The way I see it, I took things too seriously as a kid, and I'm making up for it now. Heck, I'm happy enough knowing my Goddaughter can wear either red OR blue to school without a fear of getting shot.

[tcabeen]

I think this is a totally fair argument. But then ... weighed against all the chemicals that go into food that's allowed to be sold off grocery store shelves, and over fast food counters, etc etc etc ... I still wonder if even a little trash-bag insecticide is such a big deal. I'd be a little timid about eating it, probably. I'm just saying I don't think my own trepidation would be enough to counter the baked cinnamonny goodness swirling through my nose.

[wordgirrl]

so, so true. mmm, cinnamon.

[monkeeeee001]

I had heard, a while ago, that many restaurants and bakeries are required to pour bleach on the food that they throw away. I am pretty sure that this information is absolute bologna, but I just wanted to make sure. Is this the case anywhere? Particularly concerning Minneapolis, MN and surrounding areas...

[soulscour7]

A garbage bag producing company would have to label their bags if they contained pesticides. Since your hands would come in contact with their product during normal use the likelihood of the inclusion of insecticide is unlikely and illogical. When was the last time you saw a fly avoid garbage in trash bags? Have you seen garbage bags packaged with this warning: 'Caution: Harmful if swallowed or absorbed through skin. Avoid breathing spray mist. Avoid contact with skin or clothing. Wash thoroughly with soap and water after handling. Provide adequate ventilation of area being treated. Do not apply to humans, pets, or plants, or contaminate feed, foodstuffs, dishes, or utensils. Cover and avoid spraying fish aquariums. Cover or remove exposed food, dishes, utensils, and food handling equipment. Keep out of reach of children.' That was taken from the warning label for Raid ant spray. The dough is fine.

[guitarman63mm]

Thank you. This nonsense of it being poisoned is totally unwarranted. Great 'ible, I've not seen someone trying it with dough before. Usually they just eat the pizza and ditch.

[wenpherd]

is that...... safe to eat

[kirnex]

I would personally never dumpster-dive--especially for food, although I'm completely favorable toward curb-perusing for items to refurbish. Dumpsters, however, are NOT regularly cleaned, sit out in heat and are not designed to inhibit bacteria, etc. Thus, the chances of encountering various types of dangerous molds, bacterias, even viruses is pretty high. Just an additional thought: our local city's health department lists restaurant and food-specialty stores' health inspection info online. If I WERE so inclined to dumpster dive for food, I would probably want to go see how that establishment rates in their inspections. There's a place down the street that happens to be owned by someone in my small neighborhood. The place SEEMS, on the outside, to be really quite a nice place. The owner lives in an upscale home, keeps everything nice, and is always offering to host various events for the neighborhood at his restaurant. Out of curiosity one day, I checked out his restaurant online and found out in terms of health inspections, the place is a gutter-cesspool. He's failed numerous inspections for CRITICAL errors. I'm just saying: that's the kind of place you'd want to avoid. But it SEEMS nice: it's an "upscale" restaurant. If you were inclined to forage for food in dumpsters, you'd choose this place to do it! I've got to say: since then, I check every restaurant I consider eating at online before I go. Finding out your fave place has failed inspection for the last several years for problems like keeping food way past its expiration, improper food storage, etc. is a real bummer, but getting food poisoning is a lot worse!

[poi_pai]

I agree whole heartedly, there is absolutly nothing wrong with dumpster diving. Common sense is the best ticket in most of the situations one will run into. Instead of knocking it, be thankful there is a choice for most of us. We CHOOSE to look for things / food in these places. I gotta say I remember a time not too long ago that it wasn't a choice. I'll tell you what though, it's a valuable skill to have. It's not like there's a step that says "Grab a handful of raw dough, put in mouth, chew, swallow, repeat as needed". I bet I have something much scarier in my fridge at this moment than an oven fresh piece of bread with unorthdox origin. *checks fridge* Yep, much scarier. Duck Confit.

[daemonkrog]

I just think its funny when people get all squeamish about dumpster diving, especially when someone's found decent food. There's just some rules of thumb when diving for food, keep to things that are sealed. These bread-things I'll admit though are one of the best exceptions I've ever seen. To those saying "Eww gross" Think about it, they were cooked at 375 degrees. Your hands are dirtier than they are.. go wash up! ^_

[puffyfluff]

Wow. The Instructables team eats garbage. That's... disturbing.

_{But I still want to work there...}

[Lithium Rain]

*sigh* I wish I could work at squid labs...it sounds like so much fun. What positions are open? :D </wishful thinking>

[puffyfluff]

I have to agree.

[Woodenbikes]

Yippee! We have a saying at our house... Mmmm, it's dumpster-licious!
There is something very satisfying about meeting your needs from other people's would-be landfilled items. Dumpster Dipping
Another mantra is: "The dumpster will provide."

[cantthinkof bettername]

And is it safer if you cook out the bad stuff?

[cantthinkof bettername]

But it is safe to eat food that is still in a package. Right?

[explosivemaker]

dumpster diving is great for getting stuff to re-use.....but not for food.....

[molee]

be nice or leave!! i think it's users choice whether or not they want to eat from a dumpster, and they will continue to do so no matter what someone else may say.

[cas6767]

Eating out of a dumpster is a bad idea. I've worked for several different food service locations and most of them spray the inside of the dumpster with an enzyme called Consume to break down the bacterial growth and eliminate odors. It's highly toxic and not something you would want to be exposed to let alone eat. I had to wear a mask to spray it in there. I'm sure you're not going to die immediately or start puking up blood or anything but who knows what the long term effects would be. I would suggest switching from animal skills to people skills and use said people skills to arrange some sort of negotiation with the bakery owner.

[nikolai]

Thanks for this and your evocatively funny captions. I live near an industrial bakery so I'm tempted to try this.

[hc92]

Surely you must realise that you can only get a tapeworm from eating improperly cooked meat, as something must first eat the tapeworm egg, have that egg hatch, the larva burrow its way through the muscle, form a cyst, and then for whatever ate the tapeworm egg to be eaten, before you can get a tapeworm.

[Cat on my Lap]

I concur with antirem. Those post argue that this is a "disgusting" and "unsafe" practice have little evidence to support these assertions. The only extremely harmful pathogen that would likely be seen in this dough (from eggs) would be Salmonella--a bacteria causing a one to two week long (without treatment) illness with mild diarrhea.

To address pesticides and insecticides; most people consume incredible amounts of these in your daily foodstuffs, perhaps in addition to artificial hormones and bio-engineered repellents. These are typically harmful to your natural flora and fauna within and upon your own body: at any given point, your body is host to ten times the number of bacteria as your own cells. These bacteria have a mutualistic relationship with humans; meaning, each party is benefited through the interaction. In addition to providing you with vitamins and helping in the uptake of other nutrients, they compete with pathogens, providing passive immunity.

[sarcasm] Controversially enough, [/sarcasm] Eschericha coli make up a large portion of these helpful buddies. They are only pathogenic when it is selected for, or a plasmid survives to the gut and is then taken up--rarely. And unless you're eating dirt or poo for breakfast, I find it hard to imagine you'll have to grapple with a tapeworm anytime soon.

[Cat on my Lap]

Most bakeries toss this stuff out nightly. Even the next morning (at optimal growth temperatures)--assuming 5pm close, and 6am dumpster diving--2^{11~2048. Not a terribly impressive number when dealing with microbes. I would be slight wary of anything beyond two days old; mammals and maggots likely have onset, and certain fungi would be able to take hold of the sugars.}