My Pantry Necessities

You don't have to be a gourmet cook to throw together a fancy meal. All it takes is a little bit of knowledge, the right ingredients and some alcohol to drink while you're cooking away. I'm going to list ingredients that I almost ALWAYS have on hand in my pantry, fridge and freezer. I can't function in my kitchen without many of these ingredients. Please keep in mind that you can substitute. When I'm out of something, I'm a google freak. How else would I have known that you can use white wine instead of vermouth or vice versa.

I also love to have FRESH ingredients on hand. Which means FRESH herbs! and an actual lemon gives you so much more bang for your buck than juice in that little fake plastic lemon. Garlic. Ahhhh, love fresh garlic. I think you get the picture.....Of course, I live in Ohio. I grow fresh herbs outside all spring and summer, but without a greenhouse it's kind of hard to come by fresh herbs in the colder months. So, if I run out, I will use dried herbs if I have to. I hate to, but I will.


These items that I always have on hand (aside from your normal pantry spices and staples)are ingredients that can be used to make many "gourmet" recipes..so, here goes:

Pantry:

olive oil (extra virgin)
garlic bulbs (minced in a jar is ok too)
cracked black pepper
kosher salt
white wine
red wine
whiskey
balsamic vinegar
white vinegar or cider vinegar
basil
parsley
thyme
rosemary
red onion
beef broth
chicken broth
tomato paste
tomato sauce
crushed tomatos
diced tomatos
dried pasta
seasoned salt
worchestire sauce
teriyaki sauce
soy sauce

Fridge:

lemons
cream cheese
heavy cream (whipping cream)
mushrooms
leaf lettuce

Freezer:

walnuts or almonds
brick of parmesan or romano cheese
shrimp (uncooked)
frozen ravioli or tortellini







Popular posts from this blog

THE best ever salmon glaze/sauce

Image
So, when we were in Alaska, we went to the Liarsville Salmon Bake in Ketchikan. I have to say that it was probably one of the best meals I have had anywhere, anytime. The salmon, was heaven, since obviously it was local, but the sauce was soooo good. The cook told me the recipe, but by the time I got home I had forgotten it. I searched the web and finally found it.  I'm soooo happy I found it. I will find somewhere on here to post it..... It has come to my attention that I NEVER posted the recipe!   OMG.  DUH.  So here it is:  In a double boiler melt:  1/2 LB of butter 2-3 Cups of brown sugar 1/4 cup of lemon juice 1/4 cup of pineapple juice Add the juices after the butter and brown sugar has combined.   Simmer on low heat, stirring frequently.   I like to marinate the salmon with some of the sauce and then when I'm cooking the salmon, baste with the sauce and you should still have enough to serve on the s...
Read more

Chicken Alfredo that would send Paula Deen into a diabetic coma. (Can I airmail chicken alfredo?)

So, tonight my son came up to me and asked me if I'd make some Chicken Alfredo. I almost told him to go fuck himself because I'm a bit on the pissy side today, but I thought, "What the hell."  Since my husband has been on this new "I can't eat anything but Alpo and Oranges diet", my kitchen has been boring as fuck. Seriously. My butter hasn't seen the light of day. I haven't bought heavy cream in 3 months. My parmesan cheese has been frozen in the freezer and my olive oil asked me for a divorce. Bit of a funk, eh? So, I ran to the store, fast. The way a pedophile runs to the nearest playground and I went NUTS buying GOOD shit! $7 parmesan! Heavy Cream! Cream cheese! 7 cheese shredded blend mix! WINE! Chicken bouillion and EGG freaking noodles. I had a culinary orgasm. Right in aisle 7. The biggest thing I had to debate was how many bottles of wine I needed to buy. I mean, I knew afterall, that I needed some wine in the sauce, I just couldn...
Read more