Your BONUSES!

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Your Cheat Sheets!

Click on the image above to download your printable ‘cheat sheets’.

[best to ‘right click’ and ‘save link as’]
More detailed download instructions below

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Your *Surprise Bonus*

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FREE mini e-course

[tabs slidertype=”left tabs” auto=”no”] [tabcontainer] [tabtext] Starter [/tabtext][tabtext] Lesson 1. [/tabtext] [tabtext] Lesson 2. [/tabtext] [tabtext] Lesson 3. [/tabtext][tabtext] Lesson 4. [/tabtext][tabtext] Lesson 5. [/tabtext][/tabcontainer] [tabcontent] [tab] This ‘starter’ bonus is designed to help you get ready for the program by really embedding the benefits of being organized and giving you a clear picture of exactly how this program is going to help you. [/tab] [tab]

LESSON 1. 6 ‘Golden Rules’ of an Organized Kitchen

Years ago when I was a young food scientist working in the product development department of Kellogg the company introduced a ‘clean desk’ policy.

I hated it.

Before the new policy I was happy to be the most messy person in the department. And no one else seemed to mind. Life was good except I could never find what I was looking for.

But after the new policy my boss started to ‘remind’ me constantly to change my ways. It’s never a good idea to have your boss on your case, so I chose the lesser of two evils and started putting away my things at the end of every day.

You probably know where this is heading.

Yep. I ended up loving having a clean desk. It made coming to work much more pleasant. It helped me think clearer. And I could find things quickly when I needed them.

It took a while but over time this policy spread into other areas of my life. Including of course my kitchen!

So here they are…

6 ‘Golden Rules’ of an Organized Kitchen (or desk, or bedroom etc)

1. Simplify.

If I was only going to give you one rule this would be it. I can’t stress enough how having less equipment in your cupboards and less ingredients in your fridge and pantry makes is so much easier to feel organized.

So how do you simplify?

This is a huge topic on its own but the first place to start is just being mindful of what you bring into the kitchen.

Ask yourself ‘do I really need this or is there something I already have that will work?‘

The next step is to clear out and review what you have. Any out-of-date ingredients or equipment you haven’t used in months should go.

If you’re struggling with letting things go do what I do and create a ‘things to donate to charity box’. Keep this in your garage (or shed).

Having this step makes it easier to part because you can easily change your mind if you find you are actually missing that hot dog warmer or whatever.

2. Keep like things together.

Once you’ve reduced the amount of stuff in the kitchen things get easier!

I find the best way to feel organized is to keep similar items together. For example I have one cupboard for my plates, another for mugs, another for pots, another for cleaning supplies.. Etc.

3. Keep things where you use them most.

Easy access makes it more likely you’ll use your equipment. It also just makes being in the kitchen a smoother experience so you’ll want to be spending more time there!

For example, I keep salt and pepper on our dining table so they’re always there when we eat. And there’s an extra pepper grinder and salt mill on our kitchen bench for when we’re eating there (mostly breakfast and lunch). And I have salt in the pantry for seasoning when I’m cooking.

I also keep a bottle of my go-to salad dressing on the table so I just need to put the salad in a bowl to get a side salad ready in a hurry.

Other examples are keeping a jar with utensils for stirring etc next to the stove so they’re easy to grab when I’m cooking. And I have my knives on a rack on the wall in the middle of the kitchen so they’re within arms reach.

4. Clean as you go.

One of the worst feelings is walking into a dirty kitchen and having to spend precious time cleaning before you can even start cooking.

I’m afraid that apart from getting a cleaning robot, the only way to avoid this is to have a personal rule to clean on an ongoing basis.

If you find yourself with a minute to spare when you’re actually cooking, ask yourself ‘what can I clean now?’ It can take a while to build this habit but you’ll never regret it.

I’ve also recently adopted the policy of cleaning up after every meal.

It makes a huge difference because you avoid dirty dishes drying out with food stuck to them (soo much harder to clean later).

The other benefit is that keeping on top of the cleaning through out the day means you never get to the point where the mess is overwhelming.

It also just feels good. Like you’re being a proper grown up!

5. Do it now.

This is essentially another way to think of the ‘clean as you go’ principle. It’s a trick I picked up from Gretchen Reuben on her brilliant book ‘The Happiness Project’.

Whenever you see something that could be put away or cleaned, say to yourself ‘do it now’ and follow through. This really worked for me so much that I now just automatically pick things up and put them away.

6. Build habits.

I’ve saved this for last because after golden rule no. 1, simplify, habits are the next biggest game changer.

By building habits you can essentially put being organized in the kitchen on autopilot. So it becomes automatic – something you don’t have to think about.

This is huge because you get the benefits of feeling in control and ‘on top of it’ without having to think or try too hard.

Some of the habits that make my life so much easier (and more organized) includes shopping on a regular basis, keeping a running shopping list on my phone, doing things ‘now’ as I mentioned above, putting my groceries away as soon as I get home, really looking in the fridge every day so I know what needs eating up, and doing some ingredient prep on the weekend or whenever I can (usually when I’m already going to be in the kitchen).

There you have it!

My 6 golden rules which really help me be organized in the kitchen (and other areas of life).

Stay tuned for our next lesson where we’ll go deeper into the Art of Ingredient Prep – one of my key personal habits!

Big love,
Jules x [/tab] [tab]

LESSON 2. The Art of Ingredient Prep

Have you ever dreamed of being able to walk into the kitchen, look in the fridge and go ‘I’ve got this and this and this. I’m going to put these things together and make something that tastes good’?

Well you’re in the right place!

When I was first learning to cook I followed recipes religiously because I didn’t have the confidence to cook on my own. But I remember wishing I could just ‘throw something together’.

These days that’s pretty much how I cook most days. I see what I have and take it from there.

So how did I make the leap?

It was a few things. Practice and being willing to give it a try certainly helped.

But one of the biggest game changers was developing the habit of prepping my ingredients.

Why ingredient prep?

The simple answer is because there’s nothing like opening the fridge and seeing loads of possibilities. Being able to grab out a tub of this and a jar of that and know you’re going to be eating something truly tasty and healthy soon!

There’s something about having the broccoli already chopped and roasted or the lentils already cooked and seasoned that makes it easier to imagine what you can make.

It really gives confidence that you can throw a meal together. Not to mention making you feel on top of things as you look into your beautifully organized fridge.

But apart from the creative, inspirational side of things, there are plenty of practical concrete reasons…

Saves time – prepping ingredients in advance makes it so much quicker to get weeknight (and other) meals on the table.

Plus cooking in bulk generally doesn’t take much more time. For example making a big pot of quinoa and freezing the extras means you’ll have quinoa ready to go without spending much more time than packing it up. And there’s no extra cleanup either!

Keeps thing flexible – unlike making a whole meal in advance, prepping ingredients doesn’t ‘lock you in’. For example some roast sweet potato could become a warming soup for a cold rainy day. BUT if the weather is unseasonably warm it can just as easily turn into a sweet potato salad.

Reduce waste – for many ingredient, especially fruit and veg, prepping and partially cooking makes them keep for longer. This is because cooking destroys enzymes and reduces the presence of spoilage microbes.

For example, where that bunch of organic kale may start to go yellow and sad looking after a week in the fridge, if you cook it down it will easily keep for two weeks or more.

Not only is wasting less fresh produce good for your conscience and your wallet. It’s much better for the planet too!
How to master the art of ingredient prep.

1. start small & plan for success.

So you’re probably all excited to get going but the worst thing you can do is buy a fridge full of fresh produce, get overwhelmed and forget about them.

The real power of the art of ingredient prep is turning it into a habit so it becomes practically effortless.

So focus on taking baby steps and focus on really building the habit first. You can always upscale your ingredient prep efforts later, once you have the habit embedded.

2. Choose 1-2 ingredients to prep.

I’ve included a ‘cheat sheet’ to download and keep. Use it to get ideas. If you’re not very confident in the kitchen it’s a good idea to decide how you’re going to use them. And make sure you get any other ingredients you need.

3. Buy your ingredient and prep them.

See the ‘cheat sheet’ for instructions. Download link below.

4. Use your ingredients one night this week!

And congratulate yourself for taking the first step to becoming more organized in the kitchen!

Your ingredient prep ‘cheat sheet’

Click HERE to download your cheat sheet.
You may need to ‘right click’ and ‘save link as’..

In the next lesson we’re going to be doing one of my favourite things! We’re going to be ‘debunking’ some of the biggest myths of being an organized cook!

Can’t wait!

Big love,
Jules x [/tab] [tab] Over the last few months, I’ve spent a lot of time talking to my students from the Stonesoup Virtual Cookery School.

I always enjoy chatting on the phone or Skype with my students from all over the world. It’s fun but more importantly it gives me valuable insights into what people need help with.

One theme that kept coming up was getting to the end of the day and having that feeling of panic or dread…

‘Oh no! I’ve got to pull a meal together. What will I do?’

One of the best antidotes to this ‘affliction’ is to be a bit more organized. But I know there are some myths that hold people back from getting on top of it.

So let’s get into some myth busting!

LESSON 3. The 3 Biggest Myths about being an Organized Cook

Myth 1. If you’re organized there’s less flexibility and freedom.

This ties in with the misconception that being organized means you have to pre-cook loads of complete meals.

But there is another way!

If you focus on prepping ingredients instead there can be loads of room for flexibility and creativity. I find it actually sparks ideas.

And even better, cooking this way means you can ‘pull together’ healthy meals really quickly which means you’re much more likely to eat at home.

As André said:

“Since completing The Organized Cook I am eating more at home because now I need less time to cook.”

Myth 2. You have to spend hours in the kitchen sacrificing your precious weekend time.

People often tell me that a lack of time is their biggest obstacle on the path to organization.

But here’s the thing, you don’t need to dedicate huge chunks of time to make a difference.

The key is to develop a strategy to help you be more efficient with the time you’re already spending.

For example, I often pop on some veg to roast (1 hour but 2 minutes active time) or cook up a pot of quinoa or rice for Fergal (15 minutes) while I’m cooking for today.

If you’d like to explore more strategies for being efficient in the kitchen I’m going to be going much deeper in my new online program, The Organized Cook, which I hope you’ll join me for.

Myth 3. Pre-prepared food is not as healthy as fresh

Just because fresh food is healthy, doesn’t necessarily mean that food cooked in advance is not.

Whenever we cut or cook food we’re exposing it to oxidation and light or heat. So any light, oxygen or heat sensitive nutrients will be lost during food prep.

Whether we eat the food straight away or store it and eat in a few days time doesn’t make a significant difference. Most of the sensitive nutrients will have already been lost either way.

The way I look at it, if prepping ahead means I’m going to eat more veggies, this totally outweighs any slight loss in nutrition from prepping and storing.

Big love
Jules xx [/tab] [tab] When I was backpacking around the world in my 20s there were 2 things that I really missed…

My own bed.

And my own fridge.

I guess I also did miss having a proper kitchen. But every time I tried to squeeze my fresh ingredients into a smelly, chaotic youth hostel shared fridge, that was the part I really struggled with. 

Ever since then I’ve always been so thankful for having my own cold storage space. And while it isn’t clean and tidy 100% of the time, I do take a certain pride in keeping it organized.

So today I’m going to share the 5 key principles I follow.

How I Organize My Fridge

1. Keep most in need of using items visible.

It’s so easy to forget what you have. So my first rule is to place anything that needs ‘eating up’ where you can’t miss seeing it each time you open the fridge.

It’s a small thing but makes a HUGE difference to how much food I waste.

2. Keep like things together.

This is just how my brain works. I have separate places for my cheese, my raw meats, fresh veg, prepped ingredients, my fermented veg and of course my champagne!

3. Have a regular place for different ingredients.

This just makes it easier to find what you’re looking for. So I know that half used jar of curry paste will be in he fridge door instead of having to rummage around to find it.

4. Really look once a day.

I don’t know about you, but my memory isn’t the greatest these days. So I try and have a good look in all parts of the fridge at least once a day.

This way I remember what I have and get heaps more ideas for what to cook. Plus I can move things that really need eating to a more visible position so I’m less likely to waste food. Win win!

5. Keep things covered.

The air in the fridge is really dry. So the number 1. cause of food spoilage is dehydration, especially for fresh produce. So I keep all my fruit and veg in plastic bags either in the crisper or on the bottom shelf. It doesn’t look so pretty but really makes a difference to how long things last.

For leftovers and my prepped ingredients I use glass containers with plastic lids.

A Video Tour of My Fridge

Watch the video on YouTube.

Big love,
Jules x
[/tab] [tab] Have you ever wondered how restaurants are able to deliver so many different dishes to your table in a small amount of time?

Well today I’m going to share their ‘secret’.

Basically apart from having lots of staff, restaurants do most of their prep ahead of time. So when the ‘heat is on’ during service they only need to put the finishing touches on each dish.

The technical term is ‘mise en place’.

What is ‘mise en place?’

Ever eaten at a restaurant with an exposed kitchen so you could watch the chefs at work? And ever noticed all the little containers and bottles of sauces they have at their work stations?

Well you’ve seen ‘mise en place‘ in action.

Mise en place is a French term that roughly translates as ‘put in place’. It’s used to describe the practice of chefs preparing food up to a point where it is ready to be used in a dish during food service.

It may be as simple as washing and picking herbs into individual leaves or chopping vegetables. Or more complicated like caramelizing onions, cooking dried beans or slow cooking meats.

The main benefit in a restaurant is that it makes it much quicker and easier to get food on the table after the customer has ordered.

The secondary benefit is that the preparation can help to extend the shelf life of fresh produce.

How can this ‘secret’ help you?

1. Save you time.

By taking the time when you can to do a little ‘mise en place’ preparation, we can make it much quicker and easier to get dinner on the table when we come home from work late and everyone is hungry.

2. Reduce waste

Happily, a little bit of preparation can actually extend the shelf life of fresh produce. Which means you have more time to use your precious veg before they go bad.

3. Makes it easy to just ‘throw something tasty together’.

I’ve found that prepping ahead and pretending I’m a chef* with my ‘mise’ has an unexpected benefit… It makes it much easier to look in the fridge and actually get inspiration for what to make for dinner.

There’s something about having at least some of the work done that makes the decision process much easier.

Could you benefit from our little ‘secret’?

Then I invite you to join me for The Organized Cook online program.

It’s a simple system to get ‘on top of’ cooking at home, eating more vegetables and pulling meals together quickly without the ‘last minute’ stress.

(*for the record I’m not a chef. Just a self-taught cook with a degree in Food Science.)

Big love,
Jules x [/tab][/tabcontent] [/tabs]

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Bonus Podcast
THEME: The Shopping Habit

[audioplayer file=”https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/soupstonespodcasts/SoupstonesPodcastAug15.mp3″]

Click the play arrow above to listen online
OR
To download the MP3 file to listen on your mobile device CLICK HERE
[best to ‘right click’ and ‘save link as’]

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[tabs slidertype=”left tabs” auto=”no”] [tabcontainer] [tabtext] Bonus! [/tabtext] [tabtext] Cleanup [/tabtext] [/tabcontainer] [tabcontent] [tab]

Bonus Written Lesson!

THE ART OF CLEANING UP

[/tab] [tab] A few weeks ago we had some a playgroup family over for a play date and lunch.

After we finished our soup, my friend got up and started clearing the plates and wiping down the table. And the floor where here 9 month old had made quite a mess.

As I sat there trying to encourage her to ‘just leave it Ellen’, I was reminded of my mum.

Growing up my mum cleaned up after every single meal. I think she’d even wipe the benches down after our after school snack.

Unfortunately I missed out on my mums cleaning gene. Jumping up from a leisurely lunch to clean doesn’t happen in my world.

But over the years I’ve developed some habits and tricks to avoid living in squalor!

1. A place for everything, including clutter.

No matter how big my kitchen, I find that if I don’t have a place to keep everything, it’s practically impossible to keep a clean kitchen. So if you’re struggling it might be time to have a kitchen ‘spring clean’. If the thought of parting with your excess items is too much, a box in the garage or shed helps.

I also find having a designated place to keep your ‘ clutter’ makes a big difference. In our house we have a shelf in the entrance way where I can put anything my Irishman leaves lying around the kitchen. And Fergals room has plenty of space for his stuff.

2. Reduce, reuse, recycle

It’s good for the environment and for minimising kitchen cleanup! Basically the key idea here is to simplify where possible. If you need a spoon to stir look for one that’s already in use before reaching for a clean one from the drawer.

It’s also why I always prep more food than I need for that meal. If I already have the food processor out and I make more grated cauliflower than I need for my curry tonight, I’ll have plenty for my breakkie or lunch tomorrow without any extra mess!

3. Do it now.

The longer you leaves a messy kitchen, the harder it is to clean. Dried up food is tougher to deal with. So whenever I’m tempted to put off I tell myself ‘do it now’ and channel my inner Ellen.

4. Time yourself

It’s funny how much bigger and more time consuming tasks can be before you start them. Especially the less ‘fun’ things like unstacking the dishwasher.

I often think ‘I don’t have time to do that now’.

So recently I timed how long it actually took to unpack my dish. It was 3:36. Less than 4 minutes! So now I tell myself, surely I can fit in 4 minutes to do it now.

5. Use the power of Rules / Habits.

You know I’m a huge fan of habits for automating life and making it easy to do hard things. They can help with cleaning up too!

Rather than having to decide every day when I unpack the dishwasher, I have a rule or ‘habit’ of doing it in the morning while I’m boiling the kettle to make tea. I’ve also instigated a ‘rule’ that I clean up after every meal which makes me feel more like my mum (in a good way). And as an added bonus I don’t get to the end of the day and have a mountain of dishes to clean up.

6. Share the load.

Another rule we have in our house is that everyone has to help clear the table after each meal. And Fergal has recently taken on responsibility for unpacking the clean cutlery every day, well most days. And my Irishman wipes down the benches after dinner. It all helps. [/tab] [/tabcontent] [/tabs]

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Bonus Video!
THEME: How I Organize My Pantry

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Bonus Video!
THEME: How I Organize My Kitchen

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Bonus Podcast
THEME: How I Organize My Recipes

[audioplayer file=”https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/soupstonespodcasts/Soupstones+Podcast+JULY16.mp3″]

Click the play arrow above to listen online
OR
To download the MP3 file to listen on your mobile device CLICK HERE
[best to ‘right click’ and ‘save link as’]

Resources Mentioned:
My ‘Recipes’ Evernote Notebook
Kitchen by Mike by Mike McEnearney

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The Tired & Hungry Cook’s Companion eCookbook

Click on the cover above to download your complimentary VIDEO eCookbook
Note: You may need to ‘Right Click’ and ‘Save Link As’ to download.

**Super Important!**
Make sure you use Adobe Reader to open your bonus pdfs – its FREE!
For your computer: www.get.adobe.com/reader/
For your mobile device: www.adobe.com/au/products/reader-mobile.html

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The Class eBook

Click on the cover above to download your eCookbook
Note: You may need to ‘Right Click’ and ‘Save Link As’ to download.

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[DETAILED DOWNLOAD INSTRUCTIONS]

On your computer:
1. I recommend using the free program Adobe Reader. Download the computer version here:
www.get.adobe.com/reader/
2. ‘Right click’ on the cover above and ‘save link as’.
3. Open the saved file using Adobe Reader.

On your mobile device:
1. Get the free Adobe Reader App for iphone / iPad or android in the App Store. Or over here
www.adobe.com/au/products/reader-mobile.html
2. Open this web page on your iPad / iPhone / Android device.
3. Click on the cover to open the ebook PDF.
4. Click on the ‘open in…’ option that appears on the top left hand corner of your screen (you might need to tap in the top left corner to get this option to appear). Choose ‘Open in Adobe Reader’.
5. The PDF will automatically be saved in your Adobe Reader App.

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