Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Mostly Grey . . .'

  
We've been fortunate to have missed the snow and ice that much of the rest of the country is experiencing. It hasn't even been that cold -- only in the forties. But yesterday was dark and gloomy and looked just like this first picture till about four, at which time there was a bit of sunlight showing on the eastern mountains. A perfect day to tackle one of my least favorite jobs -- cleaning out the refrigerator. 

With Christmas coming up and all the big holiday meals, it seemed wise to clear out all the dibs and dabs -- the multiple jars of pickles, the remnants of preserves and jams, the olives with a fluffy white blanket of mold at the top of the jar.  .  . not to mention the several jars that seemed to contain laboratory experiments gone horribly wrong. Condiments out of control. . .

 
I'd already dealt with all the viable leftovers by making what turned out to be an excellent, soup with broth from the Thanksgiving turkey remnants, throwing in a bit of chili, a bit of spaghetti sauce, some gravy, garbanzo beans, rice, carrots, onions, garlic, a jar of tomatoes, and some leftover roasted green beans and peppers.  A lot of Moroccan seasoning  and it turned out a terrific soup -- never to be repeated, alas, since it's unlikely I'd have that precise combination of leftovers on hand..
 
Back to the refrigerator -- it took several hours, hauling out all those jars, pulling out and washing the shelves and drawers, and then trying to reposition them correctly. Our refrigerator is in the pantry, wedged in rather tightly, and it's complicated getting its various components in and out -- it required a lot of yelling and bad language on my part (no one was home but me and William (who's deaf) and the kittehs (who went upstairs to be away from the crazy woman.)

But at last it was done -- clean and more or less organized -- and I could enjoy a brief feeling of virtue.  I'm sure that there are those among you whose refrigerators are always clean and never over-crowded, who have  a system in place that prevents the kind of yuckiness I dealt with yesterday.  I don't think I could manage that -- it would require throwing away still edible food. I seem to prefer hoarding that food till it is no longer edible and then throwing it away.

The pantry shelves are next . . .  
 .
Posted by Picasa

12 comments:

Ms. A said...

I need to do what you just did and I DON'T WANT TO! I also need to do what you are fixing to do and I DON'T WANT TO DO THAT, EITHER! Both of those chores bite!

Still can't believe it's colder at my place, than yours.

Brian Miller said...

good on you...pretty cool to create those one of a time soups as well...makes it special...we had ice...and getting a little snow this morning....not enough to keep us home again though...

KarenB said...

Oh that made me smile! I'm having a feeling of virtue since mine got cleaned out before Thanksgiving. Although there are those stray Thanksgiving leftovers still lurking . . .

Lise said...

Your soup sounds wonderful! Isn't it funny how some of the best recipes are the result of an impromptu combination of leftovers:) As for cleaning out the fridge...ick!

Barbara Rogers said...

You win the badge of "goodly housewife" today. Enjoy it while you can...and slough off for a while and wear another badge...saying what?

Tammy said...

My refrigerator sounds like yours did! I tend to save every little bit of food and often forget it's there. Sometimes it's salvageable as dog food, almost always as chicken food and even if that is iffy, the Hill People (as my Mom calls the little creatures of the night) will make short work of it. The cleanest my 'frig ever got was after the Ice Storm in 2007 when after 13 days of no electricity everything had to be pitched. I bet you are admiring your handiwork today! It's always a great feeling when things ARE cleaned and organized and in their place. Just wish it stayed that way...

Bitter cold here with several bouts of snow, sounds like we are going to get up in the 30s though later in the week. Woo!

Tammy

Tammy said...

My refrigerator sounds like yours did! I tend to save every little bit of food and often forget it's there. Sometimes it's salvageable as dog food, almost always as chicken food and even if that is iffy, the Hill People (as my Mom calls the little creatures of the night) will make short work of it. The cleanest my 'frig ever got was after the Ice Storm in 2007 when after 13 days of no electricity everything had to be pitched. I bet you are admiring your handiwork today! It's always a great feeling when things ARE cleaned and organized and in their place. Just wish it stayed that way...

Bitter cold here with several bouts of snow, sounds like we are going to get up in the 30s though later in the week. Woo!

Tammy

Inger said...

Oh, Vicki, that's a big job. And you reminded me I still have to do the door of mine. I did all the rest and conveniently forgot about that messy part.

I love the babies, or are the tweens by now, below. So cute.

Vagabonde said...

That is a job that I don’t look forward to and need to do. Here in the South we need to keep everything refrigerated. I just looked at a box of Pioneer mix which I bought 4 months ago, and it was well closed – well there were many little bugs in it, so I need to keep the new box in the fridge – so many items which are used rarely fill this fridge. We used to have a second one, but it finally gave up. The weather in the photos of your hills looks like here – it has been raining off and on and it was also foggy – sun is coming back for the next 3 days.

L. D. said...

It is a very pretty gray. Great photos.

Vicki Lane said...

Ms. A's comment cracks me up -- because I kept putting it off FOR THE SAME REASON!

And Tammy,the chickens and the Hill People did very well off my cleaning and reorganizing. I did the pantry today and all those grains and dried beans that had buggy things have gone to them.

Like Vagabonde, I have learned to keep grits and cornmeal in the fridge...

Sam Hoffer / My Carolina Kitchen said...

Gosh, cleaning out the frig is one of my least favorite chores. My door is full of things that need to be tossed.

BTW, I'll take a gray day anytime over an ice storm or snow.
Sam