2018 Cleaning and Organizing Challenge Week 10 ~ Food

This week is going to be another big one. It's time to clean and organize the pantry and areas where you store your food. Clear off a large area so you can set things out, get a big bag for trash and another one for recycling, put on some music, get pumped up, and get to work. That's about the only way I can get motivated :)

When we built our house one of the things I was most excited about, and still am, was the pantry. I had never had one before and I just couldn't wait to finally have one, have it organized, and have cute storage.

I know that I shared a picture of my pantry a long time ago when I did my home tour, but I'm not sure if I ever really shared how I organized it. Glass storage, large Mason jars, and canisters are absolutely my favorite way to store my dry ingredients and bulk foods. Bins from Walmart keep all of my canned food together. I have one for soup and broth, one for beans, salsa, and pasta sauce, one for my fruit and vegetables, and one that holds my extra items like the extra jar of peanut butter, honey, vinegar, and syrup. Metal baskets from Target are where all of my other pantry items are stored. I have them organized in categories, bread, cookies, baking mixes, snacks, crackers, and oils, vinegars, and sauces. I also love the use of my large Lazy Susan from Bed Bath & Beyond, I store my syrup, peanut butter, sugar bowl, butter, toothpicks, the things that need to be easily accessible. The rest of my pantry is filled with my small appliances, large bowls, cake plates, crockpots, paper towels, and a couple large metal baskets with onions and potatoes in them.

Week 9 Challenge: Food

Whether you have a pantry, cupboards, or shelves it doesn't matter. Just start one shelf at a time. Take everything off of it, set it out, check the expiration dates, and throw away anything that needs it, and recycle the plastic and cardboard.

Here's the trash and recyclables I found in the pantry.

Wipe down the items, because dust accumulates on the tops, and if you have glass storage like I do, finger prints are all over them because they are handled so much. Wash and dry the shelves, and then return the food and try to sort it into categories the best you can. Move onto the next shelf, and repeat.

If your pantry is unorganized and needs some attention, now is the time to do it. Group like items together when you have them sitting out. Put all of your canned vegetables, beans, fruit, soup, broth, cake mixes, pasta, cereals, etc. together. Then when you put them back on the shelf, it will be way easier to see what you have and to be able to find that can of soup you know that's in there. You don't have to have baskets and other organizational items, just stack them together, and move on. Then if you decide you'd like to find bins or other items to help you get organized, start looking around. The dollar store in the spring has a really great selection of baskets in several different colors that work great. That's what I used in our last house. IKEA, Target, Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, Home Goods, and second hand stores are all great places to look for baskets too.

I absolutely love being a fun Auntie and when my kids come over and look in the pantry, I always have some sweet candy for them ;) One more reason glass storage is my favorite, they can see exactly what I have for them!

TIPS: A couple times a month try and challenge yourself to make meals using only the stuff inside you're pantry, fridge, and freezer. Sometimes the few days before payday can be stressful when you're running low on money and groceries, so I like to try and use up what I already have to help me save money, and use up the food that's been hanging around for awhile.

Another great tip to save money on food and be less wasteful is to create a menu. This has been one of the best things I have done for us. It saves the dreaded "what's for dinner tonight?" questions and most importantly, it saves us money. We eat out less, we end up having more company come over for dinner because I'm prepared, and we are able to take dinner to others who are in need. Win, win, win.

All I have to do is plan my meals for the week and create a menu by writing them down on a little menu board in my pantry. It's nothing fancy just a frame with scrapbook paper behind the glass, a few embellishments and that's it! To do this I check my pantry, fridge and freezer first to see what I already have and build from there. Next I create a shopping list for the things I need to make those meals, along with my regular shopping list. Then I go and get my groceries for that week. When I stick to what's on my list it also help me not spend excess on things that I "might need". I'm pretty good about sticking to the menu, and if for some reason something comes up, I just make that days dinner another night the following week.

*EXTRA CREDIT: Deep clean your fridge and freezer. You're going to want to start with an empty trash can and dishwasher. Starting with the fridge. Take everything out, food, shelves, bins, etc. Wash down all of the interior with vinegar water or mild all purpose cleaner and dry. Replace filters if needed. Wash the shelves, bins, drawers in the sink, dry, and put them back into the fridge. Go through the food and throw away anything that needs it, clean out containers and put them in the dishwasher. Return the food you're keeping back to the fridge. Do the same thing with the freezer and then run the dishwasher and take out the trash!

Pull out the refrigerator and carefully vacuum the backside and coils. Remove the faceplate/grate on the front at the bottom, wash it, and carefully clean behind that area too. The fridge in constantly running and the fan is always drawing in air witch causes a lot of dust and buildup to accumulate underneath and around it. Clean the floor and baseboards under and around it and push it back to where it belongs and clean the exterior

*If you have a deep freezer, deep clean that too. Clean it out, (I store all the food in ice chests and what will fit in my freezer inside the house) throw away any expired/unrecognizable food, defrost it, wash it out, and dry it, and clean the exterior. Pull it out and clean the area under and around it. Return the food when it gets cooled back down. Now's a great time to make a list and take note of your inventory and what you actually have in there. I can't be the only one who has forgotten about items, because they were buried, and continued to re buy them without knowing they were lost the freezer. Once we got rid of our deep freezer (chest style) and got and upright freezer, things stay way more organized and aren't as easily lost.

Thank you so much for stopping by, I hope you have a sweet and productive week!