Saturday, May 5, 2012

Operation Clean Out the Freezer - Day #7

Rather than emptying the freezer, today I decided to FILL the refrigerator.  Grocery shopping day!


Lots and lots of produce to help with Operation Clean Out the Freezer!  We hit the farmers' market, Sam's, and Kroger.   It's been at least six weeks since our refrigerator has seen this much fresh produce and I've seriously been missing it.  All of this sitting on the counter inspired me to Clean Out the Fridge. :p  Rearranged all the condiments and bits, washed down the shelves, and moved the shelves so the summer drink pitchers can sit on the top shelf.  Then I washed and chopped and stored.

And now it looks like this:
(I really should have taken a before photo for comparison. It was a disorganized mess, enough to send Julia Child to Papa John's!)

Grapes, apples, pineapple, celery, lemons & limes, cauliflower, broccoli, blueberries, peppers (orange, yellow, poblano, and jalapeño) are in the fridge.  Tomatoes (!), cabbage, zucchini, cucumbers, spinach, green onions, potatoes, and butternut squash on the counter.  This makes me so happy!  And so ready to cook!

For dinner tonight I raided the outside freezer.  Sirloin Strip steaks on the grill, garlic spinach, and broccoli salad (a mix in a bag bought today at Sam's for $2.58 - great deal!)  Still cleaning out A freezer, just not THE freezer. ;)

On the menu for tomorrow - Bethany's Italian Sausage with Bowties.  Can't wait!



4 comments:

BETHANY said...

Oh. my. stinkin'. word.

I have organization envy. Majorly.

Our new house has a side by side and I despise it, but seeing yours has given me some inspiration for how to make it work.

One question, though. Where do you put leftovers?

Elizabeth said...

Leftovers go in the same Rubbermaid containers on the top shelf. It's harder in the summer because we have tea and lemonade pitchers that take up A LOT of space. In the winter I keep things like peppers on the counter, too.

Our extra milk, orange joice, yogurt, eggs... stuff like that... is in the outside fridge.

BETHANY said...

An extra fridge would make a difference. :)

I think I'm going to get some containers like yours that are long and narrow. I'm thankful our house came with a fridge and that it was in good shape, but I'm not a fan of the side by side style. It's just harder to work with, at least for us.

Your picture inspired me, though!

Elizabeth said...

I hate that I've switched back to plastic. But Rubbermaid says they aren't using BPA anymore and they fit in my fridge. The glass round containers were a pain to keep organized.

I actually bought the white Rubbermaid baskets on the bottom for FRUIT. :p Turned out they were too narrow for apples, pears, and nectarines (my son likes them cold) but they work GREAT for insulin and condiments. One has fruit cups and insulin boxes, one has mustard's and relishes, and one has jam and pickles.