Inspired by Crystal of poco-cocoa, I’ve decided to attempt the Pantry Project. I’ve taken a written inventory of my pantry and freezer with the aim of using up the countless cans and bags and boxes and packages that take up space in its dark recesses. As Crystal points out, this may mean more (perhaps even daily) trips to the grocery store, so as not to replace the non-perishable goods you are using up. Pantry Project participants will need to make more frequent and more targeted trips to the store for fresh produce that is specifically intended for a particular pantry ingredient. Cystal offers a much more succinct and poetic explanation of the whole concept on her site.

Here’s a peek into my pantry:

The key question arises: How do you keep enough ingredients on-hand so that you can throw together a decent meal on a moment’s notice without stockpiling a dozen cans of black beans and diced tomatoes? I certainly don’t have the answer to this question, but maybe I’ll find out through this experiment.

So here’s the basic run-down of the ingredients I will be trying to use up a little bit at a time:

From the Pantry:

• Assorted rice, pasta, oatmeal, flour, grains, polenta, and dried lentils in three different colors
• Canned beans and veggies
• Half a dozen Instant Cup-O-Soups (the healthy, organic kind, mind you!)
• At least ten different flavors of tea

And in the freezer:

• Organic Brown Rice from Trader Joe’s - microwaves to perfection in 3 minutes!
• Corn & Spelt Pizza Crusts
• French-Style Green Beans
• Enough frozen fruit to supply a Jamba Juice for 3 weeks
• Miscellaneous forgotten stuff, such as turkey burgers and sweet potato fries

So, for the last two days, I’ve resisted the temptation to go to the grocery store even though the fridge is bare and the pantry/freezer choices are less than tantalizing. On Sunday night I made the strangest concoction of brown rice and canned green beans with soy sauce and nuts that somehow got a thumbs-up from my husband. All I can say is that he must have been really hungry!

But yesterday, I pulled together a rather acceptable meal that served double duty by filling our tummies and emptying our pantry at the same time. While we watched the poor Chargers lose on Monday Night Football I cooked up some Trader Joe’s Whole Wheat Penne Pasta with Classico brand Tomato & Basil Sauce and French-Style Green Beans with Meyer Lemon Olive Oil. I topped the pasta with a few pine nuts and freshly grated Parmiggiano Reggiano and it wasn’t half bad. The worst part of the night was watching the Chargers blow the game. Poor guys.

Anyway, hopefully you’ll feel inspired to use up the goods in your pantry a bit more frequently. The key is to resist immediate replenishment. Wouldn’t it feel good to store less food and have on hand only what you’ll need for the next week or so? Is this even possible? I don’t know. But thank you, Crystal, for inspiring me to try!