My Rouxbe Kitchen Re-Set

This is an old blog post from when I first began my healing journey and had turned to Rouxbe culinary school to level up my chops in the kitchen and eat a more plant-forward diet. Although my diet- and the diet I now recommend to clients- has changed a lot since then, the skills I learned in the kitchen remain just as valuable. And one of them was to “reset” the the pantry and kitchen, something I do periodically still and advise you to do as well, to set the stage for a healthy diet.

Here’s my original post…

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My latest cooking project involved “resetting” the kitchen. This was my first big assignment for the Rouxbe plant-based cooking school I'm enrolled in. It took a while to complete—literally, a couple of weeks, though maybe I’m too much of a perfectionist. But my renewed kitchen has set the stage for healthier and easier plant-based cooking.

Basically, I had to clean out the pantry and refrigerator, toss out all old or processed foods, and replace them with plant-based staples in the most organized fashion possible.

The cleanout wasn’t too difficult a task, actually. For one, I don’t buy much processed food. But also, I recently noticed a couple pantry moths in my kitchen, which is the last thing you want to see, especially in a small apartment!

So I cleaned out everything. Threw out all old flours and grains and pastas. Wiped down the shelves. I’m happy to say now that I have no moths! So I looked at the kitchen reset as an opportunity to move beyond that cleanup.

I purchased some mason jars and other food storage containers for dry goods. Then I hit Whole Foods, particularly the bulk foods area, and bought lots of dry beans and grains that I’d never tried before, along with other staples like nuts, seeds, coconut oil, and whole wheat pastas.

It might sound crazy: why am I buying three types of lentils with no recipe in mind?? The idea is that if you have a well-stocked pantry, you’ll be prepared to cook more recipes with less work. And, you’ll be more likely to stay home and cook rather than order Chinese take-out. (Trust me- it works!)

Resetting the fridge was a little more challenging, mainly because it involved more cleaning, both the shelves as well as old Tupperware containers that were hiding in the back of the fridge and housing leftovers gone bad. I also purchased a few new containers that keep fruits and veggies fresh and help make my small fridge appear more organized.

The final touch was labeling everything. This took some work, mainly to find cute kitchen labels! I ended up having to order them from Amazon, but it was worth the wait. Now all my foods, dry and perishable, are organized and labeled. I’m ready to cook!

And cook, I did. After the kitchen reset, I received yet another butternut squash in my Veggie Box.

By February and March, I’m a getting a little tired of winter squash, to be honest. Roasted root vegetables are great at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and even in January. But by February I’m getting ready for a reprieve.

So I did a quick search online for new ideas and came upon a recipe for an Indian-inspired soup that incorporates butternut squash, onion, and red lentils (adapted from this NYT Cooking recipe). I had never before cooked red lentils, but when I had stocked up on pantry staples at Whole Foods, a woman was filling up a big bag of them from the bulk bins. I admit I was attracted by their vibrant salmon color, and she told me they could be good in soups. So I decided to buy some, and only a week later I had an opportunity to test them out! Here is the final product: