Reorganizing the Herbs and Spices

This is a project I have wanted to get around to for quite some time.  That is what is great about the winter, even though we long for sunny warm days in the garden, in the winter we have time to tackle some of the larger indoor projects.  This project seemed large to me, I had quite a mess as you can see in the photo below and that photo was taken after I had removed probably 1/3 to 1/2 of the spices from that middle shelf.  I had pint and half-pint jars, some filled with herbs from our summer garden or chili peppers, there were jars of all sizes from various companies, bags of taco seasoning and cinnamon, it was a mess.

It was a very full shelf, in fact you can see how the shelf is bowing under the weight of all the spices.  For nearly 12 years, or since I moved into this house, I have had the spices on this shelf.  I organized them in alphabetical order (forgive me, I'm a librarian it's a habit) so that I could locate the very spice I need when I need it.  Well, that worked most of the time, but when you are busy cooking in a very small kitchen with very little counter-top space you need to put things back in the cupboard when you are done with them and often that meant I just shoved it in the front. So re-alphabetizing became a chore, as did locating the spice I needed since that little jar of sage always seemed to be hidden on the top rack behind the paprika and peppercorns, and why is this bag of cinnamon here, I just wanted to make some popcorn (deep breath).

I wanted to have my spice jars in a drawer, but I found this didn't work because I had spice jars of all different sizes and most were too tall for our drawers.  Then I came across a glass jar that would fit perfectly and I could get 35 jars in one drawer.  I promptly ordered the required amount and, well, you can imagine my excitement when this hefty box came (simple things excite me).

Elroy was pretty excited himself, he thinks he is hiding, but he often misjudges his size.

Once the cupboard was emptied and jars cleaned I set to work labeling and filling my new jars.

Now almost all the spices are in this drawer, there were a handful that did not fit in, they were ones I rarely use, like poppy seeds, poultry seasoning, and cardamom so they will be stored elsewhere with the overflow amounts of parsley, cinnamon, and taco seasoning.  Oh, to have two drawers of herbs and spices, or one of those fancy pull-out spice cabinets, ah well, I'd need a bigger kitchen then and this works just fine.  I use the above spoon to scoop out some seasoning, it works good for sprinkling because of the fluted edge.

When I am creating a recipe or adjusting another to suit us I like to be able to see all my spices and herbs at a glance so I can come up with the flavor I'm searching for, being sure not to forget about tarragon, even though I haven't used it lately.  I'm a happy cook; now if I can just keep these jars in order...


Sense of Home / Homemade Living / Kitchen and Pantry


This post is linked to:
Simple Lives Thursday
Real Food Deals
Fresh Clean and Pure Friday