I’m totally stealing this from Shawn Lea at Everything and Nothing. When Lynne came for baking night before Christmas, she asked if I had any baking powder. Of course I did; was she crazy?
Um, the thing is, I never use baking powder, as she figured out when she rolled her eyes at the date on the bottom of mine, which was 1995-ish, if I remember correctly.
Apparently, I’m not alone… Check out this page from the McCormick Company’s web site.
Here’s what Shawn posted that sent me there:
Here’s a shot of my spice cabinet.
I’ve only got one Baltimore label (I clearly remember throwing the others away in 1997), but I have several rectangular cans. After thinking it over, I realize that most of my spices, other than the ten or so I use regularly, have been around for five to nine years. (This is partly due to the fact that I do buy fresh spices/herbs and I grow my own rosemary.)
After March 1, it’s purging time.
I should soon be hearing, from the dwelling behind me, a shout of victory from He Who Believes in Throwing Crap Away.
But…I just bought a tin of cinnamon. Seriously. Does that mean that the store is selling old spices?
All spice…hahaha sorry cracked myself up there for a sec.
I did buy OLD spices from the store! I can’t believe it. I am going to do nothing about it too. Just next time, I will be sure to buy in another container!
I, too, grow my own herbs, so that eliminates that issue. I also have pure vanilla extract from the Mennonites.
Maybe it’s just McCormick who doesn’t put their spices in the rectangular tins anymore. Are the spices you just bought another brand?
I just looked to be sure. It was actually pepper, and the cinnamon is in a shaker type container. I had it backwards. 😛
Hey, I was still some what asleep…I never knew that about spices. Now, I will have to go through my whole cabinet! 🙂
Damn you, Cochrane, for making me check the spice cabinet tonight! Oh…and I’m forwarding this to my mom. I haven’t crawled through her cupboards lately, but I distinctly remember a few square tins in there.
I’m glad I found something that’ll keep you out of the pool hall…
Hmmmm..no comment yet from TJL. LOL
I wish mom would let me throw out her OLD spices and herbs….some of them are VERY Old
Maybe you should print out some of that info from McCormick and let her take a gander at it?
Thanks for all of that. It all gives me a new reason to start growing the spices I use the most. It’s one of my big projects for this year.
At least, its worth a try.
I love being able to go outside and cut a sprig of fresh rosemary. Our heat is just so torturous that everything else ends up burning up. But it’s definitely worthwhile. Let me know how it goes for you!
don’t throw away tins! I might want them if they are old enough.
I have a lot of success with basil and oregano here. And you are correct. It is wonderful to go out and snip a bunch of fresh herbs for a dish. Or just to smell.
When Agador reads “don’t throw away tins! I might want them…” you can bet there’ll be some purging in your future.
Yeah, I was going to say that maybe they’re collectors items now, or in the future anyway. I’ll be going through the antique stores in town and see those containers there soon.
Agador doesn’t throw anything away, unless asked. However, Agador isn’t shy about saying things like, “What the hell is this? You should throw it away.”
“I should soon be hearing, from the dwelling behind me, a shout of victory from He Who Believes in Throwing Crap Away.”
Huzzah!
OMG I just cleaned out mine last year. I couldn’t believe how many out dated and just disgusting things were in that cabinet, pushed waaaay in the back.
And the very, very sad part is that I’ve moved houses in the last seven years. So that tells me that at some point I packed old outdated spices to move here. I was under a lot of pressure. Yeah, thats it, pressure. That’s why I didn’t look at the dates, that’s what I’m sticking with.
Did you pack your kitchen last? Because if you’re like me, you start a move being all organized and orderly, wrapping and boxing everything with care, and purging what you don’t need. Then by the time you’re at the last room, you’re throwing crap in boxes with no regard for whether it’s useful, fragile, or disposable.
One time, my mother turned her back on our movers. When we got to our new house several hundred miles away, they’d packed our kitchen garbage and driven it there.
Haha, I bet your mom was surprised when she opened those bags.
Yep, the kitchen was the last. By that time, I just wanted to be finished already.
I hate moving!!
spices
check central market!!! behind the coffee section, they’ve got spices by the pound… much cheaper than in the tin or jar and you only buy what you need for a short time… it’s amazing the price difference… i’m a retired chef, i don’t have any old spice…. ha ha ha…
Re: spices
That’s a good suggestion. Even though I love both stores, I only shop at Central Market and Whole Foods occasionally because of the cost, but small quantities of spices and herbs…that shouldn’t be too bad.
And now I’ve got the theme from the old Old Spice commercial running through my head…