A Pantry Cure
The Pantry Cure!
As delivery season is right around corner, now is the best time to get your pantries prepped and ready for your Christmas 2020 hampers! Today’s mission: get rid of the grime, dust and clutter in your pantry, cupboards or whatever other shelf food storage you’ve got at home. To make it easy, we have a list of tricks and tips for you use.
1. To start, grab a trash bag for expired items, a box for items you want to donate, and a tray for any glassware or vases that desperately need a wash and polish. Make a space for items you want to keep!
2. Sometimes you need to make a bigger mess to get something clean. By that, I mean remove everything single thing off the shelves.
3. Check each items expiry date! Old Items? Toss it, or Donate it. Don’t use it? Donate it. Might be a nice addition to a winter stew? Keep it.
4. Give every item you want to keep or donate a healthy wipe down with 1:1 vinegar and warm water solution. This will remove any unwanted sticky residue.
5. Deep clean from the top down. Dust the ceilings, corners and of course the shelves too. Get a vacuum to take care of stubborn crumbs. Wipe down with 1:1 vinegar and warm water solution to melt away sticky spots and spills.
6. Finish it off with a rag dipped in a cocktail of warm water and a few drops of your favorite essential oil. Lemon or Tea Tree are perfect as they are anti-bacterial and also have a gorgeous aroma.
7. Next, set glassware and vases in warm soapy water, clean thoroughly and hand dry. A nifty polishing tip is to use a coffee filter to remove any water stains or fingerprints.
8. Finally, it’s time to organize! A golden rule to follow when organizing your shelves is to stick “like with like”. Keep similar foods together – this will help you save time searching or items when you’re rushing to get dinner on the table.
Remember that on most products the Best before date is really a fresh before date and not an expiration date.
The following is sourced from the Canadian Food Inspection Agent (CFIA) website:
"An expiration date is mandatory on certain food products, including formulated liquid diets, meal replacements, nutritional supplements and human milk supplements (infant formula). These food products should not be eaten if the expiration date has passed."