The Naked Cupboard

Today I have to fill my naked cupboards, freezer and fridge. There is a sale! Finally I can get some good stuff without having to run off to Sweden. In case you are wondering, Sweden has been attracting Norwegians for years with their cheaper foods and wines. Food in Norway is expensive and people will travel for hours in search of a good deal! Coupons do not exist in my world, oh how I miss those good old days of clipping and saving little pieces of paper that could be turned into cash at the checkout counter. Wine cannot be bought at the local market, or beer at the gas station around the corner. On Sundays nothing at all can be bought unless you count the overly priced limited selection of emergency food at the “what used to be called” service stations. Excuse me, my mind is wondering and I am getting off track. Back on topic again, service stations and liquor restrictions better left for another day.

So, one of my many fascinating and challenging jobs is making sure the fridge and cupboards stay stocked with all the "so called" necessary, "can't live without" items. These items do change from time to time. For instance; before we had children and I was pregnant I had to have peanut butter, pickles, vanilla ice cream and mackerel in tomato sauce. The pickles and peanut butter went so well together, just like the vanilla ice cream and mackerel in tomato sauce. Sounds yummy, right? Then when we were a family of 4(mom, dad, 2 kids) we always needed to have a supply of spaghetti, pizza and nut spread. Now it is just the three of us. My husband, who insists he cannot live without his instant oatmeal, raisins and chocolate milk powder. Then there is my mother. She would absolutely die without hot dogs, instant mashed potatoes, and a good dosage of cookies, liquorish drops and pastries. As for me, I am happy as long as we have Diet Pepsi, coffee and tea. Guess I am more of a liquid junkie.

Don't get me wrong, I love to cook and my cupboards would be bare without the following: Soy sauce, sweet chili sauce, worchester sauce, onions, garlic, horse radish, chili, real butter, chicken stock, eggs, cheese and cream. So what do you need to keep your cupboards from feeling bare? What can't you live without?