Food Storage On Monday? Storing Baking Goods

I skipped Food Storage Friday due to the holiday, but since this is probably the last few days of the good baking sales you'll see at the stores until next Fall, I wanted to share some tips and how to on storing some things.

Flour continues to go up when it comes to the regular prices. Just last year, I was paying $13.49 for a 50 pound bag of bread flour at Costco; nowadays it's cracked the $15 mark. Sure, it's just $2 - but add that up across your grocery cart board, and you can be paying $20 or more extra for the same amount of food compared to last year!

It's not that difficult to store flour for many months at a time, and no - you don't have to purchase it in 50 pound bags! This is the time of year that you can easily find 5 lb bags of flour for around $1.00 or less. Unless you do a ton of baking, this is actually the best size to purchase for most of us since it keeps the contents of it fresh. When purchasing your bags of flour, check to make sure there are no obvious holes or small rips in the packaging.

When you get home, place each package into a large Ziploc bag - the gallon size should work just fine. You'll want to place each package in the freezer at least overnight, if not for several days. This kills any sort of bug that might be lurking in the flour. (I know, I know, you don't want to think about it - but there can be something in there. It's better to kill it off, than end up with your cupboards full of bugs - trust me, I know how disgusting the end result can be if it happens!!) You can stack several bags on a sturdy pantry shelf this way, as long as you aren't worried about mice chewing through the bags.

I've talked about food safe storage buckets and snagging them from your local bakery, but they may not have any in. You can also use those ice cream buckets that you'll find marketed as party pails. If you don't normally buy them, you can always ask on Freecycle or Craigslist. Just be sure to scrub them down very well, and that they are completely dry. Air dry them for a day or two with a teaspoon of baking soda so your flour doesn't end up smelling like strawberries. ;) One bag should fit into each bucket - if you open the bag though, you can fit more flour in - but I don't suggest doing it unless you are going to start using the flour within a month or so. (due to plastic possibly leaching into the flour) If you do decide to open the bag, a single bay leaf placed on top can help ward off any insects that might attempt to get in the bucket.

Another safe storage idea to keep your flour safe, and critters out is those large popcorn tins that everyone seems to have around this time of year. Again, if you don't use them, you can always ask!

You can do the same thing to store sugar. Brown sugar doesn't get hard as quickly as white sugar as you might know, but you need to make sure it's stored in an airtight container. However, as long as you protect your sugar, even if it gets a little harder, it's still good for ages. If you are purchasing it in 4-5 lb bags like the flour, you can store it much the same way, with the same containers. Because I don't use a lot of sugar at once, I store my week's supply in canning jars with about an inch of extra space open (I have four at a time, ready to switch in and out) and I use repurposed lids instead of canning lids. Whenever my sugar starts to get a little hard, I can just shake it back and forth - and no more hard sugar!

Chocolate chips and baking bars can be frozen to use later on, but be aware they will change to having white on the outside. It's not a huge deal if you are baking though.

Vegetable oil really only lasts about 12 months unopened, so stay away from buying too much if you don't use it a lot. Be sure to keep it stored in a cool, dry place. You can store it in your fridge (along with olive oil!), just allow it to come to room temperature before using it.