It’s on the bottom of our To-Do lists.

We all dread it.

But it’s just gotta be done.

I bet you’ve got so many things hiding in that pantry of yours that you don’t even realize you have.

Am I right?

Thought so.

So, I’ve been doing a lot of fun work lately with my good friend, Kirstin. I’m cooking and baking and organizing her kitchen each week and I absolutely LOVE it.  It’s amazing and I could do it everyday. Partially because she is just so amazing and partially because I love cooking and baking and organizing for people.

I’m actually working to get more Private Chef work here in Manhattan and it’s been going really well.

Big smile.

Helping people cook and bake and loving every minute of it?

It’s a dream of mine.

And I’m livin’ it.

So, get ready for some fabulous recipes and pictures because I’ve gotta whole lotta fun recipes coming your way very, very soon.

Now, moving onto your pantry.

Don’t be embarrassed, but is it a mess?

I thought so.

It seems as though there’s always something that you’ll find when cleaning your pantry that has been hanging around since last Valentine’s Day.  Cleaning your pantry isn’t something that you do everyday but I like to tell my clients to set a reminder on their calenders every month to take 10 minutes and organize.

Believe me, it’ll make everything so much easier and you won’t end up with a ton of junk and unorganized mish-mosh in a few months time.

So, get ready to show off that fabulous pantry and be proud of those clean shelves.

Step 1: Pantry Purge

Do yourself a favor and take a large garbage bag with you into your pantry.  Go through all products and discard those whose expiration dates have passed.  When it comes to dried herbs, spices and flours- toss them after 6 months.  See 2 bags of open oatmeal or sugar? Combine them into one glass container and label them.  Create a list of what you purged so that you can purchase these items new at the store.

Step 2: Clean it Up

Fill a large kitchen bowl with warm water, lemon juice and lavender essential oil.  Using a cloth, wipe down all the shelves and walls until clean.  Sweep the floor for any dust bunnies and wipe all food boxes and cans with a dry cloth.  See any food you won’t be eating but hasn’t yet expired? Donate it. Why not do something you feel good about right?

Step 3: Organize and Restock

• Use glass jars to store sugars, salts, flours and grains.
• Store everyday items stored at eye level.
• Rarely used items placed on the top.
• Periodic items on the floor or bottom shelf.
• Combine items by type so you always know what you have. For instance, group all flours together, all teas together and all jars of tomato sauce together.  Think of it as keeping them with their family of similar products.
• Use lined baskets to toss items like Ziploc bags and wax paper.

Then, it’s time to restock. Take your list of what you purged and needs to be replaced and head to the store to stock up.

So go ahead. Let this cold winter weather bring you indoors and clean up that pantry.

You know it needs it.