Cleaning up the kitchen

Tiny corners filled with food.

 This time of year marks the season where I spend more time in the kitchen, and inevitably, create a bigger mess there.  Here in lies one of my major faults...organization.  Sadly, organization used to be one of my major strengths.  But, with 3 kids and a husband who didn't get the organization gene, life has taken a messy turn.  It still drives me mad that my house is full of clutter, but I just don't know where to begin.  The amount of stuff we have makes me long for the days when it was just me and the dog in a 3 room apartment.  The stuff I had in "storage" fit in one tiny porch closet.  Now, we could open our own thrift store in our attic.  Ugh.



A one day harvest in 2011!


The room that is the hardest to keep organized is the kitchen.  I keep the kitchen clean, but the clutter on the counters fills the room.  The floor during this harvest season is usually dusted with a thin (or not so thin) layer of debris from the garden as I trudge back and forth between dirty plot and shiny stove.  There are constant splatters of sauce, vinegars, and trails of flour and fresh spices to be wiped up.  However much I love to cook, I can't stand to clean.  The biggest problem, though, is not the ability to clean up a mess, it's the lack of space to store things.  If you've ever tried to "live off the land" as much as possible, you know that you have to start socking things away for the winter...way before winter comes.  As the growing and harvesting season progresses, more and more space is needed for squash, onions, garlic, heaping hobs of tomatoes waiting to be turned into sauce. 

I have a small kitchen.  It fits well in my small house, but it's not a cook's kitchen.  My house was built in 1925, but my kitchen was recently "modernized" by a previous owner.  That previous owner must not have used the kitchen the same way I do.  There are very few cabinets, even less counter space, and one small sink.  My refrigerator, from the days when it was only my husband and I, doesn't hold kitchen staples and the weekly CSA gathering without being overstuffed and difficult to manage.  To say it plainly:

The kitchen table is always full of utensils or harvest.

I. Need. More. Storage.

I've tried various bins.  I took over the laundry room closet and turned it into a pantry.  I tried hiding cooking pots and utensils around the house, but nothing works.  I use all my cooking utensils so frequently that they stay there on the counter waiting for the next day.  I just can't bring myself to put food items in my damp basement.  And I definately won't stop growing and cooking food the way I do.  So, what's a girl to do?  I need a solution to this fast growing problem. 

Luckily, for this year, our harvest season is nearly complete.  Last night's temperature was only 38 degrees, and frost will soon bring down the tender plants.  I'll be bringing in kale, salad greens, carrots, and a few other cool weather veggies for a few more weeks, but the high volume of chopping, blanching, and storing is almost done.  Soon, I'll be praying for fresh veggies to crowd my counters and feed my family.  Before then, I hope I've found a good bargain on some cabinets to fill the one blank wall in my house!