Taking my own Advice or One More Pantry and Kitchen Set-up List

The stash I brought plus purchased salt and pepper grinders.

 I've just moved.

And had to follow my own advice about starting a pantry from scratch.  My husband said, "Use the Dinner Place blog posts on pantry and kitchen set up and see if they work."  So I have.  We are day 4 in the new house and have no truck or shipment with kitchen necessities yet.  I have, of course, been to the store three times.

1. Once for the first night:  tp,  milk, bread, yogurt, granola, blueberries, eggs, and bacon.  A friend brought coffee, wine, cheese, crackers, fruit, plates, wine glasses, cups,  and cutting board-thanks!
2. Second time for a few essentials listed on the Setting up Your Kitchen List "First Trip to the Store."  I couldn't print the list out, but I copied it onto a legal pad and set out to follow it.  (See end list for what I actually bought.)  I might have gotten more, but the store was a zoo on Sunday afternoon.  I wanted out of there more than I wanted flour when I was sure I wasn't baking that day.  In fact, we went out to dinner.
3. Third time for things I refused to fight the crowd for on Sunday, which included flour, sugar, yeast, baking powder, baking soda, chicken, asparagus and birdseed.   Our yard is full of birdfeeders and they're all full of birds who assume they eat here, too.

The kitchen window feeders.

In other words, the first $100 trip to the store turned into three trips totaling nearly $300.  Live and learn.

 A move of a thousand miles just about requires leaving behind your pantry.  Now I've moved flour in cannisters and open boxes of crackers, but decided against it this time.  Even my spices are in Colorado, with the exception of

• rosemary
• thyme
• bay
• cinnamon
• curry
• crushed red pepper
• chili powder

I  bought salt and pepper in disposable grinders.  Just like in the pantry post.

 

My equipment.

As far as kitchen equipment, I brought in the car (or purchased on arrival) with me:

• one 10" skillet, one spatula and one wooden spoon
• a small Bodum coffeemaker
• a tea kettle, Starbucks instant coffee and green tea
• my knife block (A friend loaned a cutting board.)
• a cheese knife and wine opener
• a 9x12 Pyrex casserole dish for baking or microwaving
• 1 roll of paper towels and two purse-paks of kleenex
• 1 dishcloth, 1 dishtowel
• a small container of dish washing liquid

Unlike some moves, I packed nearly my entire kitchen and shipped it via Yellow Freight, separate from the moving van shipment that arrives much later.  Cost:  $600 shipping  for 600 pounds and over $100 in packing materials as you must bubble wrap and peanut well every shipped container, unlike the typical newspaper-packing in boxes for a regular truck move.  Alyce plans; God laughs.   This kitchen delivery was scheduled for last Friday, but still hasn't arrived.  Hence the one skillet meals.

And what I discovered is this:  you can do a lotta stuff with one skillet.  Or you can eat out.

Glad to get it.

Here's the grocery list I used over a three-day period:

Dry/Canned:  Sesame oil, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, Dijon mustard, mayo, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salsa, soy sauce, jam,  honey, maple syrup, salt and pepper, oatmeal, pancake mix, crackers, bread, tortillas, granola

 Produce: Onions, garlic, shallots, potatoes, salad greens, asparagus, zucchini, apples, pears, celery, carrots, lemons and limes.

Dairy:  Milk, Eggs, Cheese, Butter, Yogurt

Protein:  Chicken, cheese, peanut butter

Paper:  Paper towels, toilet paper, kleenex, napkins (I shipped cloth napkins; they didn't arrive yet.), foil, gallon bags, "disposable" food storage containers and garbage bags.

Cleaning: Dish soap, bleach spray, clothes washing detergent and dry sheets, Windex, bath soap, scrubbing sponges.  I forgot rubber gloves, which I need badly to clean old shelves and to fill birdfeeders.  I also had to buy a broom and dustpan.

What did I cook?
Out of all of that, so far, we ate eggs and bacon for breakfast once,  lots of yogurt, fruit and granola, coffee and tea , peanut butter toast, apples, wine and cheese with bread and so on. We ate a big helping of purchased sushi for lunch as the local grocery store boasts two highly-skilled Japanese chefs making it right before our eyes.

Last night I cooked the first "cooked" dinner.  I sauteed chicken (seasoned only with salt and pepper) in the skillet with butter and olive oil and then put it in the oven to finish cooking.  I made a sauce by cooking mushrooms and shallots (to which I added white wine) in the chicken drippings.  The asparagus went in the microwave for 2.5 minutes and was dressed with fresh lemon juice and freshly ground black pepper.  I'll admit we were thrilled to eat a home-cooked meal, however simple. 

A different approach:  When we moved as a family (this is our 23rd house) and I could get it accomplished, I bought a beef round roast and put it in the crock pot on arrival in the new house.  I sent someone to the store for hard rolls and salad greens and we had Italian Beef.  I've also done this for a lot of other people over the years. The smell of the beef cooking all day is so comforting in a new environment and also gives people hope there's light at the end of the moving tunnel.

I'm having fun cooking and taking care of myself,
Alyce