Challenge: Food Storage

[crl]

Awesome! Don't you love it when you open those cabinets now?

Catherine

[LMPC]

Alright, got the fridge door shelves all clean and organized....threw out jelly with an exp date of 2/09...yuck! Also threw out lots of containers of leftovers that were well past their date....I'm notorious for not eating leftovers! The shelves look so nice! The rest of the fridge will get done tomorrow....

I'm loving this challenge!!!

[crl]

Alright, got the fridge door shelves all clean and organized....threw out jelly with an exp date of 2/09...yuck! Also threw out lots of containers of leftovers that were well past their date....I'm notorious for not eating leftovers! The shelves look so nice! The rest of the fridge will get done tomorrow....

I'm loving this challenge!!!

Hooray!

Catherine

[kijip]

The fridge sounds awesome! By labels - do you label where milk goes, etc?

Yup, I will take some pics and post here. Great for T and to keep tabs on perishables in the fridge so we can use them...before they perish

[gobadgers]

I cleaned out the pantry and it feels great! It didn't take long at all, but I finally know what's in there and can see it all again! I already had plenty of wire shelves in there, I just wasn't making good use of them.

I did find a few expired cans, but not too bad because we just moved in a year ago. However there were four half-gone packages of pasta

My MIL was here just a couple weeks ago, now I wish I'd done this before she came. I ALMOST wish she could come back to see how organized I can be

It'll never be Better Homes and Gardens worthy, but here's a picture. That's our microwave on the middle shelf (it's a small kitchen).

[KrisM]

I cleaned out the pantry and it feels great! It didn't take long at all, but I finally know what's in there and can see it all again! I already had plenty of wire shelves in there, I just wasn't making good use of them.

I did find a few expired cans, but not too bad because we just moved in a year ago. However there were four half-gone packages of pasta

My MIL was here just a couple weeks ago, now I wish I'd done this before she came. I ALMOST wish she could come back to see how organized I can be

It'll never be Better Homes and Gardens worthy, but here's a picture. That's our microwave on the middle shelf (it's a small kitchen).

Great job!

Question - where do you have other things? Our pantry is about that size and our kitchen isn't tiny, but average sized, I think. My pantry has 3 shelves with food, 1 with plastic storage, and one with bigger appliances (mixer, breadmaker). I'd love to add another 1-2 shelves of food, but am not sure where I'd put the rest!

[gobadgers]

Great job!

Question - where do you have other things? Our pantry is about that size and our kitchen isn't tiny, but average sized, I think. My pantry has 3 shelves with food, 1 with plastic storage, and one with bigger appliances (mixer, breadmaker). I'd love to add another 1-2 shelves of food, but am not sure where I'd put the rest!

Thanks!

My kitchen has a passable amount of cabinet space, but very limited counter space; thus the microwave in the pantry. It was in there when we moved in and we laughed pretty hard, but couldn't find a better place for it so it stayed.

I keep nearly all my serving dishes and nicer glasses in a buffet/hutch-type thing in the dining room so that clears out some space. It's right off the kitchen so it's not too much of a pain to get things out.

I have a wire shelf just below the microwave that holds all the ziplocs, saran wrap, aluminum foil and wax paper. I didn't think it would work at first, but I've gotten used to reaching in there to get them out, and they don't actually have a footprint, which is nice.

We have a small peninsula that has awkward storage underneath - those pass-thru cabinets that can be opened from either side. Most of the big stuff is down there - slow cooker, blender, pans, breadmaker, glasslocks, etc...

[gobadgers]

I don't know what to do with my kitchen linens. Does anyone have a system that really works well? I have one drawer for towels and washcloths, and we use the same placemats on the table day in and day out. I have some other placemats, runners, tablecloths, but they are still in deep storage because I can't figure out where to put them.

I had one cabinet for them at our old house. It should have been plenty of space but they inevitably got messed up as soon as I had to pull out something from the bottom. So, I want to get them back out but I'm worried that whatever I do with them, they'll end up a big wrinkled heap anyway. Any suggestions - what works?

TIA!

[KrisM]

I don't know what to do with my kitchen linens. Does anyone have a system that really works well? I have one drawer for towels and washcloths, and we use the same placemats on the table day in and day out. I have some other placemats, runners, tablecloths, but they are still in deep storage because I can't figure out where to put them.

I had one cabinet for them at our old house. It should have been plenty of space but they inevitably got messed up as soon as I had to pull out something from the bottom. So, I want to get them back out but I'm worried that whatever I do with them, they'll end up a big wrinkled heap anyway. Any suggestions - what works?

TIA!

Do you have room in a coat closet to hang them? Use pant hangers for the placemats and fold the tablecloth over a regular hanger.

[niccig]

I cleaned out my shelf of oils/vinegars/frequently used spices and put in 2 turntables that were in the other thread. I have a shallow cabinet, so I could only use a 9" turntable. I have one for oils and another for vinegars. I lost some space and had to put the big container of white vinegar in another cabinet. I wish I had room on the turntables for the different salt/peppers, but they're fine stacked beside. Despite losing a little room, it is much easier to see what I have.

I emptied out the chest freezer and found
4 half chicken breasts dated 03/2009 - can I still cook these if I do it in a sauce to make up for slight freezer burn?

6 packs of plums frozen in syrup in 2008. I didn't like how the syrup made them all soft, so I never cooked with them. I defrosted and tossed these.

Enough frozen apricots from July 2009 to make 2 batches of apricot jam. My mother said they should be fine to use for jam. DS's school has a big market fundraiser and everyone makes things, they mentioned jam, so I'll make 2 batches, keep one, give the other to the school. I need to buy more jam jars and pectin, but I'll try to do this in the next week or two, when it's cooler.

1 bowl of frozen snow - the stuff you buy in a tube at the toy store.

2 ham bones to use in soup - still OK? I think one is from Easter 2009

I've got all the frozen stuff in the inside freezer that is now stuffed to the gills. Once I get rid of the apricots and the ham bones, I might not need the chest freezer to be on. I used to shop more in bulk for meat/fish, but not lately. I'll have to see if it's worth keeping it or not.

Just waiting for the ice to melt off the freezer, it's currently turned off so I can de-ice it. I've been meaning to do this for the last year at least, and it really didn't take much time to do. Maybe 30 mins to take everything out and into the kitchen freezer, and wash the baskets. One basket is still frozen solid to the side It might take another 10-20 mins to wipe it out once the ice has melted.