15 november

it was 70 degrees here today.  in november.  it's almost hard for me to enjoy a 70 degree day in november - worrying, as i do, about what it means about our planet and its climate.  almost hard, but thankfully not impossible.  what a glorious gift, this warm sunny day after days of cold rain.  a gift.

yesterday (when it was still rainy and cold) i cleaned out the baking cabinet.  i even broke out the vacuum to suck up all the crumbs and flour and other bits that accumulate in the corners there over time.  and now i'm thinking about storage in that cabinet.  i do a lot of baking, and i go through a lot of the basic ingredients (flour, sugar, brown sugar).  right now, those staples are stored in a hodge-podge of containers and bags and the like, but there must be a better way.  the fact that we (mostly) don't use plastic in our kitchen makes things slightly more complicated.  i'm thinking about these.  or these.  does anybody have a creative solution for storing baking staples and supplies?  i'd love to know.

that's all for tonight, friends.  laundry is washing, dishes are drying, and tomorrow i'm making this.  

Comments

[Sarah Jackson]

A friend of mine has these:

http://www.worldmarket.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3597517#back

I'm planning to get them too. They're squared sides, so they fit nicely together. The larger size is big enough for flours, etc. I have big canisters on my counter for the AP flour and sugar, so these will hold the non-standard flours, etc. Hope that helps!

[Jenny]

I keep flour and sugars in big glass jars like the ones you linked to, and I keep them right on the counter, so I can just scoop out what I need. I have a wall cabinet from Ikea hanging in the kitchen that houses every other baking bit in the house; baking chips, cocoa, spices, extracts, cups and liners, even candles.

[chez danisse]

I have a hodge-podge too and I have thought of making it all a bit more neat. How about large Mason jars? Vintage or new could be nice.

[suse]

I have a large collection of glass clip top jars (I don't know what you call them) that I've collected from thrift shops over the years. Flours in the biggest ones, then pulses and sugars, and nuts and seeds and dried fruits in the middle sized ones. I love that I can see what's in them and I get enormous pleasure from lining up all the lentil jars and all the seed jars in the right order.

Oops did I just say that out loud?

ps. meanwhile here in the south of Australia we are having a heatwave which is most unlike November. Scary.

[amisha]

we store a lot of basics in metal containers like the ones you linked to... we love them. easy, keeps things neat and fresh, looks good. that said, the pantry is still chaotic in both FL and NY... this is some good clearing out inspiration :) xo

[Ali]

My baking stuff lives in the hideous corner cupboard of doom. One of those you can never reach the back of. So I put all the flours and all the sugars (still in their original bags) in two giant containers. That way, it's easy to pull a big box and find what I want on the countertop. Instead of with my head in the cupboard and backside poking out from beneath the worktop.

[Karen at sew and sow life]

the glass jars you show actually make a bit of a vacuum when you put the lids on tight. you can even hear the air swooshing out. i love them. we have a few filled with staples, tucked under the cupboards, on the counter at our place in VT. looks very welcoming and cozy. and don't forget to store whole grain flours in the fridge/freezer. :-)

[Katie @ cakes, tea and dreams]

It is the time for soup, isn't it? I don't have a creative baking storage solution - but the ones above seem pretty clever.

[RW]

I use glass jars - I got them from my local DQ - they used to keep the fruit toppings in the jars - strawberry and pineapple ... I have had them for years. I have no idea if they are still available but worth checking out.

[erin]

i use one similar to the ones sarah linked to. i've had mine since before fatty and i got married - one for flour, one for sugar, one for brown sugar, one for whole wheat flour, one for powdered sugar and one for popcorn.

[MrsCatbird]

I have the huge 2.5 gal Montana storage jars from Target for flour and sugar, since I go through a lot and they'll fit a big bag. They're a bit unwieldy, but I do keep them in my pantry and haul them out when needed. Everything else is in an assortment of glass containers from Ikea and thrift stores.

[AJ]

When you find the perfect solution let me know. I'm in the process of organizing the kitchen and it isn't a bit easy.

[Courtney]

I use and like Le Parfait jars- randomly found some on overstock.com just now when I was looking for a link for you-- http://tinyurl.com/yz7gr6y