 Getting Organized for Holiday Baking Kitchen Layout--ideas that help year-round Your everyday dishes (plates, bowls, drinking glasses and silverware) should be stored as close to the dishwasher as possible. Fewer steps to unload and put away dishes saves time and energy. Special dishes, or even just extra place settings, can be stored in a china cabinet, hutch or the back of a corner cabinet when not in use. For example, if there are only two of you, store a portion (1/3 to 1/2) of your everyday dishes away like you do with Christmas sets, Halloween centerpieces, and crystal wine glasses. Since you cook at the stove, store all your spices, seasonings, oils and vinegars in a cabinet to the right or left of the stove. (It's nice to use a cabinet where the door opens away from you as you stand at the stove so you're not constantly dodging the door or having to step around it to reach what you need.) Use a lazy susan (inexpensively purchased at your nearest discount store) and lower the cabinet shelf to adjust for lots of extra inches as well as tall bottles of oil and vinegar. To clear the counter, find a magnetic sorter box to attach to the side of the fridge for coupons, takeout menus, a notepad (for your grocery list) and a pen. As you run out of things, make a note right then and there on the notepad so you can maintain supplies as you dive into the holiday baking season. The Yummy Part! The best work space for holiday baking is the longest, uninterrupted countertop. Try to store all baking items (tools, bowls, tins, sheets, and staple ingredients) in one cabinet along that stretch of work space. As part of your kitchen-wide organization, use clear containers like shoeboxes or recycled, cleaned-out peanut butter or mayonnaise jars to store food coloring bottles, various-colored sprinkles bottles, and packets of mixes. Finally, who doesn't want a cup of hot coffee to go with taste-testing the cupcakes, cookies, and pies? Dedicate a cabinet to all the related coffee-making accoutrements--a shelf or two for coffees, filters and teas, and another shelf for favorite mugs (travel mugs can go here, too). Use a cabinet near the sink so it's easy to fill the coffeepot--which you'll want to locate directly under that cabinet. A happy baker makes delicious cupcakes! |
