Spring Cleaning
When you think of spring cleaning what comes to mind? Organizing your closet, donating things you no longer use, deep cleaning the carpets? Completing these tasks gives you a sense of achievement. It's like a fresh clean slate and makes you feel like you can tackle any challenges that come your way! Growing up my parents always made us clean the house before leaving for a vacation and I didn't understand it. We were about to be gone for a week - why did we need to straighten up? Once I moved into my own space I totally understood it, there's nothing like coming home to a clean house.
Since moving into my own place for the first time I've moved many times since. I bounced around to a few different places in college and eventually made a big move across the country. Each time I would clean out trash bags full of clothes, books, etc. to donate or throw out. It's literally like lifting a weight off your shoulders when you get rid of so much stuff.
Now imagine if you felt that way when you walked into your kitchen. Imagine if you felt the same sense of relief and excitement! A lot of times the pressure around what to eat stems from us feeling like we don't have the time to prepare a healthy meal, but that's simply not true! If you've followed me for a while you know I try to prepare simple meals with minimal ingredients that take hardly anytime at all to make. Keeping your kitchen clean and organized allows you to feel in charge when you go to prep your food. When you open your spice cabinet you don't want to have to dig around for 10 minutes looking for the ingredient you need. When you open your refrigerator you don't want to pull out vegetables only to find they've gotten mushy and brown. I'm going to share some of my top tips for keeping your kitchen clean and organized, which will allow you to feel empowered when you step foot into this space. Giving you more time to focus on preparing nourishing meals and not worry about anything else.
1. Clean out your spice cabinet & canned/dried goods. I recently cleaned out my cabinets in my kitchen and it was LIBERATING. Let me start by saying this, I do not like to let food go to waste, but there comes a point where if you haven't used something in a while you probably aren't going to use it. If it's already been opened it's probably time to toss it anyways, and if it hasn't been opened and also isn't expired consider donating it to your local food bank. After getting rid of the things you aren't using, don't just shove everything back in the cabinets. Place everything in a certain spot where you can actually see the labels so when you need it you can easily find it. On top of that I also used different shelves for different categories such as baking, spices, canned foods, and adaptogens. Before when my cabinets were a mess I was starting each day in a frenzy trying to dig around for my collagen, nondairy creamer, adaptogens, and spices to add to my morning drinks - not the best way to start the morning! Now everything has a place and it's much more easy to find.
2. Wash and chop veggies when you first get them. When we get home from the market with our groceries it's so easy to throw them in the refrigerator and forget about them. Then when we go to use them they have gone bad and turned to mush. To avoid letting this happen go ahead and wash them/chop them as soon as you get home, and then store them in clear containers so you can see them. When you go to make a meal or have a snack this makes them much more readily available, and you are more likely to reach for that fresh food than something that's packaged and processed.
3. Clean your dishes as soon as you use them. How many of you come home after a long day of work to make a meal only to find dishes in the sink from the day before? Rather than cleaning those dishes, making a new meal, and then cleaning dishes again - you think it would just be easier to order some takeout! I get it, no one wants to clean after working hard all day long, but if you just do the dishes to begin with it makes life so much easier. Sometimes you can even squeeze in getting most of them done while some of the food is still cooking, or do them while your food is cooling off so that way after you eat you can just relax. I know it's easier said than done, but I promise once you get in the habit you will feel so much better!
I hope you find these tips helpful when it comes to spring cleaning your kitchen! I truly feel that each of these practices have helped me on my own wellness journey, and they allow me to feel at ease and more creative when I am in my kitchen space. If you have any questions about organizing or decluttering your kitchen don't hesitate to reach out!