Spring Clean Your Kitchen:
Spring Cleaning Tips for Your Kitchen
Author: be well™ with Big Y® Registered Dietitian Team
With the bloom of flowers comes a new beginning. Spruce up your home in preparation for the warm season ahead.
When stocking your kitchen for warmer months, include a different variety of foods than you would normally keep on hand during the winter. And remember, nothing works better as a road block than lingering ingredients and habits. For example, if you want to reduce your intake of added sugars, the emergency stash of gummy candies in your cabinet is more of a hinderance than a help.
Go through your kitchen cabinets and see where you can trade up to more nutritious options:
- Usually cook with white rice or white pasta? Finish what you have on hand then trade up to brown rice and whole wheat or whole grain pasta.
- Don’t eat your produce fast enough before it turns? Get your daily vegetables with canned and frozen options free of added salt and sauces like no salt added canned diced tomatoes and frozen broccoli. Load your kitchen with dried and unsweetened frozen fruits such as dried cranberries and frozen mango.
- Want to experiment with new seasonings? It’s time to toss out very old standbys that have gathered dust and purchase anew so you can truly enjoy their full flavors.
When doing your spring cleaning, be sensible. There is no reason to throw away the entire contents of your cupboards. Not only will this cause sticker shock at the store; it is unnecessary and could shock your palate.
And let your cleaning help others. If you have an unopened product you know you won’t use and it’s still within the Use By date window, donate it to your local food bank.
The most lasting impact any spring cleaning has is when it feels less like work and more like a new start. Avoid having an “all or nothing” mentality while making trade ups to more nourishing items here and there.
Published 3/3/2021