In My Gluten Free Kitchen, Not for Long

This post originally ran on a blog that is no longer live, Celiacs in the House.  I wanted to share my kitchen with you and some news.  I will always be gluten free but this won’t always be my kitchen.  Next month I’m moving to Santa Monica, California.  It’s been a dream for 40 years to live in California and I’m very excited it’s finally happening.

My new kitchen will be a lot smaller than this one and with no pantry.   I will have to figure out what comes with me and what gets left out.  Once I get settled I’ll share how I downsized and still keep cooking our favorite meals.  I have to bring my Keep Calm dish for sure!

If you have any space saving tips I’d love for you to share them.  As you’ll see below I do have a fetish for kitchen appliances and tools.

For now I present, my gluten free kitchen.

My kitchen is truly the heart of my home.  I spend more time in that room than any other with exception of my bedroom.   I usually cook three meals a day starting with breakfast.  On the weekends I often will prepare for a busy week by making many meals and getting others prepped  to cook so during that week it’s a short time to getting meals on the table.

My kitchen is my refuge.   It’s the room where I have complete control over what is in there, where it’s placed and how it’s used.  I go there to relax from a busy day and to escape into the world of food.  I love to create recipes for my family, friends, clients, website and for companies that like to pay me for using their whole food ingredient.  My goal is to keep easy healthy gluten free living not just what I teach clients, but how I live my life everyday.

I have a lot of strong thoughts about where things go in my kitchen according to how I cook.  There are things that can be stored and then there are the things I want at my fingertips so I can grab them as I cook.  I’m one of those cooks who often likes to open the refrigerator, see what I have on hand and create a meal.  This means everything is a grab and go as I cook.

Starting in May we have been doing renovations in the house including a new granite countertop installed with a nice deep double sink.  I love that sink.  It’s really deep and it’s a double.

But before we dig into the kitchen I want to share my funky table where we eat our meals.  We had it made for us from Sticks Furniture.  There are pictures on this table that mean something to each of us.  Around the outer edge are sayings we choose:  Seize the day, Do you best, Smile, Follow you heart, Happiness depends upon ourselves, Rest, Choose wisely and many more.  These tables are a lot of fun to have made and a great snapshot of our family.

As you can tell I’m a quirky artist type so of course I had to have a glass ball curtain.  These are really cool and have sayings on the metals like Follow Your Bliss, Dream Big- Live Large and Live, Love, Laugh A Lot and Wish I May  – Wish I Might.    You can also see that the bottom of the table is also painted.

In the eating area I also have my cookbooks in a bookcase and on the shelf.  I have to keep giving some away as I get new ones all the time.  My husband keeps his wine stash here too.  Maybe someday we’ll have a real wine cellar or storage.

Each week I create a menu and write it on these cool Wallies peel and stick chalkboard squares.

Wallies Peel and Stick Chalkboard Decal, Squares

I don’t have room for a big board and I didn’t want something that would damage my walls.  These are also great for kids rooms to leave them messages or for them to keep track of school work or give them a helper list.  Love these.  Also my little step stool.  Great for a short gal like me.

As you will see throughout my kitchen I have a thing for aprons.  I have a huge collection and many are in drawers.  They hang on doors and are right out in view so you think I would wear them more often and protect my clothes.

I’m very lucky to have double ovens.  I hope wherever I live I always have double ovens.  They come in handy.  I keep a lot of extra pans in one so I have to pull them out when I’m using both.  It’s great when having company over so I can cook for a big party.  I hope you can see the sign over the ovens but just in case it says This is a drama free zone.  Every house needs one of these.

My pantry has always bothered me.  There seems to be more room in the walls than they actually used and could have had a double door and more room.  But I make good use of the space to the ceiling and the door.  I think it has more equipment than food in it.  I keep cans of beans around but we really don’t eat them anymore.  I guess I keep them in case we had nothing else to eat.  I have lots of nuts and seeds in jars.  I usually choose glass over plastic.    I also have an assortment of honey that I like to use as my sweetener, peppers  and mustards and different oils and vinegars.  It’s how I can change up the same ingredients into a different meal on a whim.

I do have a microwave which knowing about the studies that shown any food defrosted or heated in their can change the contents to carcinogens, I regretfully still use it.  I keep saying I’m going to stop but then forget and use it.  I think I need to put a sticker on the front that reminds me so I can at least make other plans.  I’ve heard people use theirs for storage to keep from using it.  I think I might try that but I’m sure my family will start throwing things at me.

My frig is so not exciting.  It’s usually so stuffed with vegetables that you can’t see anything else.  I keep my probiotics in there too along with some peppers, hot sauces, mayonnaise and a variety of mustards.  I keep a couple dozen of farm fresh eggs.  If you are lucky enough to live where you can get these or have your own chickens you will never go back.  The taste is so amazing that there is just no comparison. Whatever room is left we squeeze in any leftovers from meals in there.

I have more cold storage in the garage so I can keep my gluten free flours in there and stock up on organic meats from the farm as well as homemade bone stocks and seasonal finds I like to freeze for use later.

On my countertop I have an assortment of appliances that I use a lot.  The rest were in the pantry.  My Hurom Slow Juicer and Vitamix plus the electric kettle get the most use every day.  I currently have two different sizes of food processors and would love to have the Cuisinart that has multiple sizes in one appliance but just can’t justify buying something new.   I also have my KitchenAid mixer and my Breville Toaster/Convection Oven.  This oven is very handy when you don’t want to fire up the full sized oven or believe it or not, both are already in full use.

The closer you get to my stove the more you see in way of things I want to grab while cooking.  My collection of salts and peppers, many different oils and measuring cups that I hate to use all gather around this little crate.

As you can see I have 7 crocks full of utensils and gadgets.  There are lots of different spatulas both flat and those for scraping, wooden spoons, peelers, paring knives, scissors, and assortments of whips or whisks, my rolling pin and an assortment of knives.  I used to have a knife block but it seemed I always tried to put the knives away in the wrong slot.  I got really tired of that so I took one of my baskets and filled it with bamboo skewers.  Now I can put any knife any where in there and it fits.

In the bottom corner turn style I keep all of my spices.  That entire cabinet is filled with spices, arrowroot, Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar, vanillas and chocolate but mostly spices and herbs.   It looks like a Penzey’s or Spice House store display but I love having options.  I can change the same basic ingredients into so many different meals just by changing out the spice profile.

 

I added drawers and shelves that roll out and it makes a big difference.  In the heavy duty rack I have my assortment of Le Crueset pots and I keep measuring cups and strainers in there.

 

Under the stove top I have my assortment of cutting boards, some for fruit and vegetables, red for meat only and some for carving large pieces of roasted meats.    I use the doors too to keep the wraps and bags I use.

In this cabinet I have all of my frying pans from small to very large and a large pot that wouldn’t fit in the other cabinet.

I like the vertical cabinet to keep all my jellyroll pans and cooling racks.

 

In the other corner turn style cabinet I have my mixing bowls, baking dishes and glass leftover containers.  I tossed all the lids into the bread drawer since we don’t use it.

I hope you liked the tour of my kitchen.  Now you know why many of my friends think I’m too attached to my kitchen.  No matter the size or equipment you have or don’t have, get into your kitchen.  This is key!  Decide what you want at your fingertips and easy healthy gluten free living will the way you describe your life too.  Cooking food for you and your loved ones is the best thing a person can do.

8 Responses to In My Gluten Free Kitchen, Not for Long

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