The Pantry

I'm going to let you into a little secret...

Yes, this is the sad truth.  Little Miss tries-to-keep-everything-clean-and-organised has a dirty little secret, and it goes by the name of Pantry (I almost typed panty then, now that would have been a secret, and not very little!).  I really do try to keep this cupboard organised, but it has too much stuff in it.  From the wine and   dog food at the bottom, the kitchen bin (so the dog can't get to it to trawl through for goodies), the first aid box and shoe polish, veg, pastas, rices, dried fruit, baking, snacks, condiments, toilet rolls, oils, dried fruits, flours and sugars, tins and packets and cereals.  I could start my own supermarket in here!

So for the next few weeks, when I'm planning my menu for the week I'm going to pull 10 random things out of the cupboard and the challenge is to incorporate them into the meals I'm going to cook.  Which means that those tins of sardines might get a look in...  That tin of pate from the Christmas hamper... Some japanese food to make use of the Mirin... some salads for the hazelnut oil...  a ginger cake to make use of that black treacle... It's time to start using some of this stuff up.

Then of course its soon time to make the Christmas cake and pudding, and this time I know that I definitely don't need to buy yet another packet of dates or figs!