Everytime I watch Barefoot Contessa I drool.
I am not drooling over the food, although my dh always comments how she invites all her friends over, but never has once invited us.
I am not drooling over her kitchen...I don't have room for a professional range and I certainly don't need a range and a cook top together.
I am not drooling over all her gadgets...I'm running out of room for the stuff I already have.
Which brings me to the reason I drool...her walk in pantry. I'd love a large pantry where I could store food stuffs in an organized manner and have dishes sitting in convenient spots. I'm short, and believe me, getting things from the top shelf of the cabinets can be dangerous!
When we first married and bought our first house, the kitchen was very small. Not tiny, but small. I asked the previous owner where she kept her canned goods and she said in the garage. We bought a cheap kitchen cabinet to put in the kitchen and that's where I kept canned goods. There were some cabinets and since I didn't have a lot of dishes or pots and pans, it was adequate.
Eight years later we bought a different house. The kitchen was larger and it has a pantry. Not a walk-in, but a real pantry. And with all truths, you grow into the space you have. And goodness, my kitchen stuff has grown.
Yesterday I organized the pantry. I could probably do this 4 times a year. I straightened it up and am happy to report that I didn't throw much away. I did put items in different things, but I'm happy to report I'm getting better at keeping on top of expiration dates.
I had organized the area of my spices earlier this week. I did throw out a few things because they were old. I am frustrated with the spice companies, though. So many of them sell larger bottles of things that I don't use that much of and I think it is wasteful. One of the stores I frequent is handling an off brand and the bottles are about 1/4 the size or regular spice bottles. I feel better about buying this instead of wasting so much. There are certain spices I use a lot of, but others...
I figure organizing my pantry and spices saves me money because I'm not buying things I already have, and hopefully not wasting what I do have. I need to be satisfied with what I have which is a serviceable pantry...far better than what I had at the other house. And, although a walk-in pantry is want, it isn't a need. So, we aren't spending the money.
DH says I'm not getting a walk-in pantry...We aren't building on the house and I can't see taking a bathroom or closet to get it. So, I guess I'll just have to drool over Ina's. At least it means that is one less "room" I have to clean!
Why I'm Not Getting a Walk-in Pantry
August 8th, 2011 at 01:55 pm
August 8th, 2011 at 02:39 pm 1312814350
August 8th, 2011 at 03:12 pm 1312816320
Looking back, I think we stored WAY too much food in the big pantry. I'm 30 pounds lighter now, and one reason is that there isn't so much #&$%*#^$ food around!
August 8th, 2011 at 07:56 pm 1312833369
August 9th, 2011 at 04:55 am 1312865741