As I move through my journey to have my “mostly from scratch” kitchen, I have noticed my pantry is changing. There are now less processed and convenience items, and they are being replaced with more whole foods and healthier options. Do I still find Drumstick ice cream cones in the freezer that my husband has purchased? Yes. Do I still eat them? Yes. But, for the most part my pantry, freezer and fridge are definitely changing. I’ve put together a list of basic pantry essentials that I have on hand now. You can find the printable version right here.
Things that you will now find in my pantry:
Grains – I keep oats, rice, quinoa and barley on hand. I use organic oats for my morning oatmeal, and I’m trying my hand at making oat milk. It hasn’t turned out the way I want it yet, but I’m working on it. The rice can be used as a side dish, but it can also be ground up to make rice flour. Quinoa and barley round out the grains and I use them in my buddha bowls.
Nuts – I usually have on hand almonds, peanuts and walnuts. I use these to snack on, but also in my banana nut bread, and the peanuts I use to make my own peanut butter. It’s so easy! I am also working on making almond milk and almond milk creamer…..it’s a work in progress.
Pasta – There are many good brands on the market, but I really like Jovial’s penne. It’s gluten free and and has a great flavor. I still have a few boxes of popular supermarket brands, but I will not be purchasing these again and will stick with the Jovial brand.
Flours – I love to bake so I have quite a few different types of flour. Organic all-purpose, dark rye, Kamut, Einkorn, chickpea, almond, coconut. I love to experiment with blending different flours in my baking.
Vinegars and Oils – I use avocado oil or coconut oil for cooking and use olive oil for salad dressings. I also keep on hand, apple cider vinegar, balsamic, white vinegar and red wine vinegar as well.
Salts, spices and herbs – The salts that I usually reach for are Himalayan pink sea salt, kosher salt and a finishing salt such as fleur de sel. I also keep a supply of Redman’s real salt that I use in my canning and ferments, as well as pickling salt.
Sweeteners – I use maple syrup quite a lot to sweeten my dishes. I also keep some honey on hand as well as dates and molasses. I make my own brown sugar, using organic cane sugar and molasses. It tastes so much better than the store-bought version and has no preservatives.
Fresh Storage – I keep yellow onions, red onions and shallots as well as potatoes and sweet potatoes on hand. I usually have a butternut squash or acorn squash in my pantry as well. I love to make butternut squash soup and I like to stuff the acorn squash with a roasted vegetable and rice stuffing.
Anyway, these are just a few ideas of items you can keep in your pantry to help create delicious, nutrient dense meals. I’m also working on canning some of the summer bounty this year. I’ve canned strawberry jam, and tomato-herb jam. I am also going to try canning some salsa verde. I will let you know how it turns out.
