A Peek Inside My Pantry

I don't have a recipe to post tonight because I didn't make dinner. I went out with some friends. However, I thought I would write a quick post about some of the staple items I always have in my pantry. With these items and a quick stop at the market, I can prepare a quick weeknight meal.

• Pasta - a variety of shapes and sizes: orzo, spaghetti, penne, ditalini
• Rice - brown, white, wild, and arborio for risotto
• Couscous
• Barley and lentils (Don't have these two now, but I plan to start cooking with them more.
• Breadcrumbs - Panko (japanese-style) and Italian seasoned
• Flour - all-purpose and whole wheat
• Vinegars - red wine, balsamic, white wine; I even have a white balsamic that is delicious
• Oils - extra-virgin olive, vegetable
• Nonstick cooking spray (a regular one and one with flour for baking)
• Beans - a variety of your favorites: I usually have garbanzo, white, kidney and/or black
• Kalamata olives
• Diced tomatoes - no salt added
• Tomato paste, sauce, crushed tomatoes
• Tahini pasta - an essential ingredient for making hummus
• Sundried tomatoes - love these!
• Capers
• Peppers - roasted red and banana
• Dried fruit - apricots, raisins, craisins
• Nuts - walnuts, cashews, almonds (You can make great trail mixes with nuts and dried fruits. Throw some sunflower seeds in there, too. Trail mix makes for a great snack.)
• Whole wheat crackers
• Tuna, clams (These last forever and when used with fresh ingredients like lemon juice and parsley, they really freshen up.)

I know this sounds like a lot, but accumulate the items over time, plus a lot of these you probably already have. Remember they last forever, so it's not like they'll go bad.