Pantry Essentials and Garden Wrap Recipe

Last year, everything in our kitchen started falling apart: the counters were bowing, the faucet burst off the sink, I had to bang the burners on the stove with the heel of my hand to get them to light, and the refrigerator was showing its age. Andrew and I decided it was time to have our old kitchen remodeled this summer. Before construction began when we were packing up all the food from the pantry and cabinets, I was amazed by how many condiments, oils, cans, and packages we had accrued over the 16 years we've been in this house. I pride myself on using up ingredients before buying new ones and trying to use what we have on hand first, but clearly, things had gotten out of control.

Did I really need 3 different types of soy sauce and 12 different varieties of oil? Now that the kitchen is almost finished and we are organizing our new and improved kitchen and unloading the boxes, I'm giving some thought to what ingredients we really need to have to fill our limited space. Which ones do we use all the time, and which are just taking up room? I wondered what I would buy if I were starting from scratch. Below is my list of the pantry staples we really need to put together the most family-friendly meals and snacks. Your list probably looks a little different than mine, so I'd love you to leave a comment below telling me what items you must have in your pantry to feel capable of putting together your meals. (For this list, I have stuck to the non-refrigerated and frozen items to keep it from looking overwhelming. If you want me to, I'll tackle that list in an upcoming week.) 

Pantry Staples for Family Dinners:  olive oil, vegetable or canola oil, nonstick cooking spray, red wine vinegar, rice vinegar, balsamic vinegar     Dijon and yellow mustard, ketchup and barbeque sauce, reduced-fat mayonnaise, reduced-sodium soy sauce; wines: rice wine, white cooking wine, red cooking wine, dry sherry, Worcestershire sauce, pitted black and green olives, capers, bread crumbs, panko, cornmeal, flour white and brown sugar, honey, pure maple syrup or agave nectar, peanut butter or other nut butter, white or brown rice, quinoa, couscous or your favorite grains, pasta (regular or whole grain), variety of shapes, whole wheat tortillas, whole grain bread, reduced-sodium chicken or vegetable broth, red pasta sauce, canned tomatoes, canned beans such as black, kidney, cannellini, pinto beans and/or chickpeas, salsa, tuna; nuts: pine nuts, slivered almonds, walnuts, pecans (keep in freezer), onions, potatoes and garlic DARK CHOCOLATE! (Can't live without it) 

Spices: salt, black pepper, basil, chili powder, cinnamon, cumin, curry powder, dry mustard powder, garlic powder, oregano, rosemary, thyme.

Once you're all stocked up, you can easily add some fresh ingredients to make a colorful and healthy meal like this one for your family.