WOW guys – you all really want some Barney Butter!!! Jennifer says she is working on getting it on the shelves Whole Foods and for all 400+ of you to put in a product request at your local store! Lucky for me Fresh Market, is going to carry it soon!!!! I am going to cut the contest around 9 pm tonight with a comment of my own on the post (so the after dinner crew can get to it!), and I hope to announce winners first thing in the AM.
NOTE: Please only comment once on the “leave a comment” contests just to keep the chances fair. I can tell if you’re cheating!
We’ve got a DREARY day here. Very very blah out there. I headed to the gym around 11 (I tried to use my “this will be a fun break from studying” mentality and it worked out well.) I did 30 minutes on the Stairs, 20 on the Squirrelliptical (see the FAQ #20 if you don’t know what that is) and ended with a round of weight lifting. I consider it a good gym day when I leave both sweaty and tired in the muscles and that’s how I left. Too bad I had to drive there because it’s mildly drizzling out there.
I arrived home around 12:30 to find my all-American husband home from Great Harvest – and the polls!
While I showered, he was nice enough to make us grilled cheeses (on freshly baked Great Harvest Honey Whole Wheat bread with a little shredded Mexican cheese in the middle) and leftover soup (pumpkin chili for me – gah I am so sick of it by now! and leftover Pacific Ginger Carrot for him).
I also had a few Kashi cheddar crackers (add about 5 to this that I ate while assembling lunch)
And a yummy bowl of TJ’s greek yogurt with some chopped pear, grapes and POM seeds –
Lunch left me wanting to chew so I made a cuppa tea
Kath’s Pantry
In celebration of the Thanksgiving Challenge, a had a request to see our pantry. I haven’t shown it before because it is extremely unorganized!!! As you all know I am a super neat and organized person but for some reason our pantry is not so. I should have used this photo as an opportunity to straighten it up, but I am hoping at the end of this challenge there will just be less to work with
We also have food in all different locations so here’s the quick recap:
Our official pantry is just inside the garage, which is a pro because we have tons of space and a con because it means we stock up on lots of stuff! Here you’ll find rarely-used snacks and sweets (like popcorn and vitamix) on the top shelf (and an extra jar of Smuckers Natural PB!); baking stuff, flours, sugars, and pasta noodles on the second down; all kinds of canned goods, grains + rice, on the third; crackers, cereal, oats, a giant bag of bread flour, a bunch of shelf-safe soy milk and equipment and paper products on the fourth and bottom.
Indoors we have what I call the “Grab and Go” area, which includes tons of bars (Kashi, Lara x 2 boxes, Z-bars, Honest Foods bars, some Luna bars) and stuff like trail mix and raisins and other lunch snacks. And lots of tea!
And lastly, we have what I call the “Carb Cabinet.” It’s next to the fridge/stove and is our most use snacks. In here you’ll find nut butters (sometimes up to 3-4 jars open!!), an oat canister, walnuts, Granola Planks, bread, macaroons, craisins and more. And the top shelf is cereal and crackers. This is the area of our pantry that I should NOT go near if I’ve had too much to drink!!
So there you have it. I’ll try to show another photo after the challenge, but I have a feeling we’re barely going to make a dent this month!
kate says
you don’t refridgerate your nut butters? aren’t you supposed to? or do you think that’s just an unnecessary precaution?
also, is that a picture of a super fit woman on the inside of your carb cabinet? that’s one way to do it! 🙂 thanks for sharing.
Marianne says
Very brave, showing off the pantry…I know my cupboards are a mess!
Woohoo on the pom seeds in the yogurt – always a good combo.
And for the above commenter , Kate – I don’t refridgerate my nut butters either. None of them are in huge jars so they aren’t going to go bad before I use them, plus they are way easier to spread at room temp!
Oh She Glows says
Kath you aren’t the only one who has been meaning to clean out the kitchen pantry! Unfortunately, it is always on the end of my to-do list!
hehe…I noticed the picture of the woman on the inside of the cabinet too…what is it from?
Aartee says
YUM! Grilled Cheese….my favorite lunch lately has been hummus, spinach, cucumber, and feta with hot sauce but I keep forgetting to take a picture to send it in!
HangryPants says
Om my goodness! People cheat in the post a comment contests!!!!
I think it’s a great idea to keep food in the garage. Much less mindless snacking I bet!
haya says
you’re a squirrel just like me!
in the event of an apocalypse, i will survive for a few extra months.
i’m “taking part” in the grocery challenge – i’ve set $100 for the whole month (since we don’t have thanksgiving in november here in canada) for 1.5 people (one person only here on weekends) and occassional entertaining. I have a feeling that I’ll be able to come in well under that. i planned to spend much less on groceries throughout the winter anyway though with extra freezing/canning/dehydrating of lots of summer produce and i get a lot of free produce from my boyfriend’s parents’ farm.
Ozlem says
Hey Kath,
I could not wait and went ahead and ordered me some Barney butter- still though i hope I win. By the way, can you describe how different that is from the TJ’s almond butter. I never tried WF almond butter although I heard that is also yummy. The others are just way too expensive. Although Barney butter with s+h came expensive too, oh well.
Thanks!
amanda says
I love pom with greek yogurt. Now I have a craving!
I love the carb cabinet. I think every household needs one 🙂
Krista says
Thanks for showing off your pantry! It always neat to see how others store their stuff! I enjoyed the “fridge” one you did a while back, too!
Moran says
Thanks for sharing your pantry!
VeggieGirl says
Great eats and pantry! 🙂
Santa Barbara Dreaming says
I loved seeing your pantry! Thanks for letting us all take a peak 🙂
I love the carb cabinet; that one’s my fave! haha! Can’t wait for the Barney Butter winner announcement
Maggie says
I don’t have a pantry! Just the shelves and cabinets in the kitchen. I can’t wait to move to a house when our lease is up… April, come sooner!
To nut butter commenters – I only refrigerate my nut butters after I open them… Maybe Kath’s nut butters aren’t opened yet.
Maggie says
Whoops I misread – hers are open 🙂 Depends on the butter I guess!
Biz says
Ha – looks like my pantry! Much to my daughters dismay, I don’t keep it neat and tidy like she does!
She routinely says “when I move out, my kitchen it going to be more organized!”
Kath, I’ve said that you remind me a lot of what my daughter is going to be like in 10 years, I am afraid to show her your pantry!
Jenny A. says
I had grilled cheese and chili for lunch, too. Although mine was the heels of the bread (last two pieces that everyone conveniently “forgot” to eat) with muenster, tomato and basil. Yummy. I hope everyone’s having a great election day!!
😉
Allison K says
Organization to me, is having the same types of food on the same shelf. You are ahead of me!
Alison says
I was going to comment on open nut butters being refrigerated too. In fact, after reading Dr. Weil’s “Eating Well for Optimal Health” I keep ALL nuts, both in butter form and whole, in the fridge now!
Beadie says
I think my readers would run for the hills if I posted pics of my pantry! We have two pantries and both are crazy messes! You are so brave to post yours!
Cat says
Who cares if the pantry shelves are super organized when they’re super loaded with fabulous, REAL food! 😀
Jennifer says
I HATE putting nut butters in the fridge. They get too hard. And the Barney Butter looks cool, but way too expensive. Ya’ll must have deeper pockets!
Rina says
Hey Kath,
Thanks for showing off your pantry! It’s surprising and kind of funny how..not SUPER neat it looks since you are a very neat person, but it is NO where near messy (atleast in my definition). I think some people would have a heart attack if they saw the pantry at my parent’s house. I once found some 10 year old fruit roll up box i once ate as a kid in there, not to mention, tons of other old, scary things.
I will be sure to request Barney butter at my local fresh market. Oh and I give you my word that I did NOT cheat and comment multiple times. lol.
-Rina
LittleEngine says
it looks like you still have a lot of fun stuff to work with during your challenge!
haha i’m the same way with the “carb cabinet” after a few drinks 🙂
Laura says
i LOVE that no pudge brownie stuff in your pantry. isn’t it weird how i can spot this from a mile away? love the blog! 🙂
rhodeygirl says
Shame on you! Get that pantry in order!
Kidding, really, but if it ever stresses you out, check out Katie’s other blog (hyperhomemaker.blogspot.com). She has tons of cool organizing and cleaning ideas, many of which you already use in fact.
My pantry cabinets are much smaller so maybe it is easier to manage. I wish there was a way to sell or give away a half opened box of anything so I could just get rid of all the extra stuff.
And I can’t BELIEVE people would cheat my commenting more than once. How rude! 🙂
KatieTX says
Wow that is some serious storage! I spent 50 dollars at the grocery today but I do not keep much because my only pantry is a single cabinet! Thanks for showing us your all your stuff!
Laura says
Is that a picture of a fit model on your cabinet door? what a great idea!!!!!!
Sarit says
Hi Kath…
This is my first time leaving a comment on your blog. I absoultley love it and read it daily.
My question is about peanut butter (the hot topic of today it seems…) I recently bought a different brand of natural PB that says it the “no stir” kind, which I prefer… the ingredient list says it has “organic palm kernel oil”. I know the other ones just say peanuts and salt. is this one still a healthy alternative?
I like this one better b/c it I dont have to refrigirate it, but I feel thats because it has the palm oil in it… i
GB says
Ha! Is that Kelly Ripa from Shape on your cabinet?! I love her!
Megan says
I love the pantry pictures! I sure would love if my Whole Foods would carry the Barney Butter!
coco says
hahaha……now I can see why you went for the challenge, you have so much food in your pantry!!!!!
Kath says
Re. Nut butters,
We refrigerate the ones that are just nuts, but these both have palm oil in them so they don’t need to be.
I think Barney Butter’s site has a good explanation of palm oil:
http://www.barneybutter.com/nutrition.html
Basically I reason that I eat nut butters, although frequently, in such small portions (it’s not like I eat a cup’s worth) that there’s nothing wrong with a little natural palm oil and cane sugar. I like both plain nut butter and the blended kinds and like to switch it up between them. But even if yours has palm KERNEL oil, I’m guessing if you eat like me that you don’t eat much saturated fat and don’t have high blood pressure or heart disease, so a little won’t hurt.
Re. Fit Woman,
GB got it right!! Actually, I JUST put that up today! Kelly Ripa was in Shape (I believe?) this month and I read the issue at the gym this morning and thought she looked so strong and fit in the magazine that I put her up for inspiration of how I want to look at her age. The clipping under her that you can’t see are two Teddy Grahams peeking from a tree. I put them in to surprise the husband one week and they haven’t come down 🙂
Ozlem ,
I don’t think I’ve had either TJ”s or WF almond butters. No WF around here 🙁 And I think I only had TJ’s peanut butter and didn’t really like it.
Kath
zestycook says
I love the pantry reveal Kath. Good job… Mine is a mess as well… its all good.
zesty
halie says
Great example of a healthful pantry! Those pomegranate seeds look brilliant!
Cassidy says
You sure have a stock of food! I dont have a pantry just cabinets. All my unopen stock of food is under my bed! (good thing my dog is clueless about it)
ModelBehavior says
You know what helps me not spend much at the grocery store? Sharing a teeny tiny kitchen with 3 people, seriously! I have 2 shelves in a cabinet and 2 shelves in the fridge, and that is for myself AND Bret! Since I only shop once a week we have to crap 7 full days worth of food in that tiny space, and we both take lunches to work/class every day. This means we only buy what we need. We spend $25 apiece on grocery’s each week, and that is including EVERYTHING we need since our shelves are totally empty by Sunday! I must say I don’t think the $126 challenge would be all that difficult for me as we often splurge even on a modest $200 per month! It may help that I live in Nebraska though, I think things are cheaper here!
Good luck with the challenge, I look forward to seeing what you come up with!
ModelBehavior says
thats “cram 7 days worth of food” not “crap 7 days worth of food”…
that was a very unfortunate typo 😀
bee says
^^i think that is my favorite typo i’ve ever read.
SmA033 says
i thought you should know kath, that i FINALLY opened up my jar of EarthFare peanut butter after having it sit in my pantry for a month!! (i guess it’s after reading all the comments about nut butters)
it’s sooooo creamy & natural tasting. I was raised on Jif brands of peanut butter & now idk how i ever ate them b/c they’re so SWEET compared to other more natural brands.
p.s. do you refridgerate your Earthfare PB?? it doesn’t say on the jar, but i was just wondering
Andrea says
haha love the carb cabinet! i have a carb drawer 😉
neimanmarxist steph says
thanks for answering my HFCS question! i feel enlightened!
jess says
Excellent pantry!! It makes you seem so much more human that Something is disorganized 😉
If anyone is up to the thanksgiving day challenge it looks like it’s you. Can’t wait to be able to compare the before and after pics!
What is your opinion on doing cardio before weight-lifting? I always assumed that it really didn’t matter; however, recently I became a certified nutrition and wellness consultant and, through the course, we learned that it’s a bit more effective to do cardio After so that you can put the best effort into building muscle…
Personally I think that if you’re doing both at all it’s commendable and the difference it makes is probably pretty negligible; but, if the focus is primarily on creating/maintaining muscle it’s probably worth it to switch up a routine every once in a while.
Well, shpeel done… sorry I’m a bit chatty- too excited because I just got back from Voting!!!
Chelsea says
I was wondering when the pom seeds were going to come out. I got some in my veggie/fruit delivery last week but I can’t eat them 🙁
I actually cleaned out my entire pantry area yesterday and it’s all nice and organized.
I have to say that by seeing your pantry I can see how you can only spend $126 on groceries for the month-that is one WELL stocked pantry!!!
I’m a total food hoarder but it only manifests itself at work where I have an ENTIRE bookshelf of non-perishables!!! I think I could feed the whole office.
sallyme says
Decided to remove this because it was quite insulting.
Chelsea says
Oh and on the picture of Kelly Ripa. (I’ve got a lot to say today 🙂 ) I think she’s WAY too skinny. I’d be surprised if she weighs more than 100 pounds. I think you should strive to look like YOU when you’re her age just with a few more fine lines 🙂
Jesse says
Oh man, I’ve kind of totally become a KERF addict. Which has been a great thing!
I’m currently living in Japan (so I don’t know if that boots me out of the contest) but I like looking at your blog at the foods I want to devour when I get back home/not devour and be healthy.
And because of your blog, I’ve only recently started eating oatmeal, also because of your blog. It’s been good, but sometimes difficult because I’m trying to train myself to like it. I know its definitely changed my energy level in the mornings. The bananas are a great touch, as is adding crunchy salty things like almonds. Do you know of any good savory style oatmeal breakfasts?
Anyway, keep up the good work!
Kath says
Chels,
Good point!! I guess my motivation should be that I want to maintain myself exactly how I am 🙂 She is very petite, but I was mostly drooling over her bicep, which was HUGE!
K
Kath says
SmA033,
We do not refrigerate our EF PB. Glad you like it!
jess ,
I personally like to do cardio first so I’m nice and warmed up for lifting. I’m not an exercise physiologist so I don’t know the science or research.
Jesse ,
Check the Tribute To Oatmeal to the right and I have two: an egg one and a prosciutto one.
Kath
M says
Ugh, I certainly hope you didn’t write that sally. How embarrassing.
M says
No one would blame you if you did edit it out, Kath — it’s not just ignorant, it’s offensive. The stink? Did you really just say that?
claire says
So, when we lived in Kyrgyzstan, we used that More with Less Cookbook. It’s pretty good.
Chelsea says
Moderate away!!!!GRRRRRRRR
BethT says
Interesting, because I’m gagging from the stink of that sh*tty writing.
brandi says
Oops! Sorry about posting more than once on the Barney Butter! I kept thinking of different ways that I like to use them, so I kept posting!
Thanks for sharing your pantry – I can’t wait until I have one! Our house is pretty small, so we don’t have a pantry at all yet; just a few cabinets. That DOES help in keeping the spending down, though, as I can only fit so much in our little kitchen 🙂
I need a WF or TJs! We don’t have any of those here in Blacksburg.
RhodeyGirl says
wow. sick.
Emily W. says
i really love the suggested “foodie” reads and would love if you kept them coming!!
Mariposa says
sheesh, some people are just so ignorant, imagine the voter fraud going on.. nevermind the people who are grossly mis-informed out there!
they need to educate themselves!
anyway enough politics, im more concerned about getting that almond butter.. !!!!
allison says
favorite way to eat nut butter?? on a spoon of course!! straight from the jar… yum!
faith says
having used every last penny i have to finally make it to chapel hill my pantry is now bare 🙁 feel free to shed whatever leftovers you have this way if you feel overburdened :p
Laura E says
i love some nut butter on the tip of my finger
Blair says
Your pantry seems pretty organized to me! I love your blog… especially all the great oatmeal ideas, and would love to win some Barney Butter!
thepinkpeppercorn says
You’re brave to post your pantry!
Laura E says
i’m clearly a first time poster because i entered the contest under the wrong section! But, I do like nut butters straight from the jar
bobbi says
love the pics kath, I love organizing out pantry…like you I am an organized freak…lol..but you are brave!