The basics.

Fact: cooking requires ingredients.  And when you don't have those ingredients lying around it can be hard to motivate yourself to make something from scratch.  But when you do have a set of basic ingredients on hand you can open up just about any cookbook to make yourself a delicious meal.

Here is my list of pantry necessities.

As a base for all baking, flour is a must have.  It's also important for making cream sauces, as well as a number of other applications (I keep both all-purpose and whole wheat flour in my cupboard).  The other important basics for baking are sugar (both white and brown), baking powder, and baking soda.  In addition to those you should keep anything that you find you use regularly...in my case that's ground flax, quick cooking oats, cornmeal, and panko.

I also like to have dry pasta, rice, quinoa, and couscous close at hand.

Tupperware organization optional, but pretty.

The fridge is a bit trickier, since the ingredients kept in here can go bad if not used in short order.  However, there are a number of things that you will find yourself using over and over again, so it's worth stocking up on them on a regular basis.  They are, in no particular order: milk, butter, eggs, dijon mustard, ketchup (which I use as a substitute for tomato paste in most recipes), cheese (hard cheeses keep well), pesto, and your favourite salad dressing.

Seasonings are probably the thing that I have the most of, and that is purely for the sake of variety.  You don't actually need that many for most recipes, and a few basics will get you pretty far.  First, I recommend having both olive and vegetable oils on hand.  Olive oil is great for making vinaigrettes and dressing pasta, but you don't actually want to cook with too much of it at a high heat at much of the flavour is lost.  Vegetable (or canola) oil is what I prefer to use for frying and sauteeing...it has a nice neutral flavour and can handle quite a bit of heat.  You should also have some vinegar (for those vinaigrettes and other sauces)...white wine vinegar will see you through most applications.

Finally: herbs and spices.  Obviously you should have salt and pepper...beyond that it is really a question of preference.  I like to have cumin, ground coriander, and curry powder; red pepper flakes, chili powder, and paprika; basil, oregano, rosemary, and thyme; as well as cinnamon and nutmeg (for dessert and assorted French recipes).

Spice racks are relatively inexpensive to buy, and the labels prevent you from adding chili powder when you should have used nutmeg.....

I also keep lemons in the fridge (for zest and juice), fresh garlic on the counter, and onions in a cool, dark, place.

Now, if that sounds like a long list of things to have in your kitchen that's because it is.  It can be intimidating to think of how many ingredients you need for cooking...but it's all a question of perspective.  Yes you would have to buy those things now...but if you do you also won't need to buy them in the future.  Then, instead of looking at a recipe and seeing a dozen things that you need to buy to cook it you can look at the recipe and only need to pick up an ingredient or two (most likely meat, produce, or dairy).

With that in mind, take a look back to one of the first recipes that I ever posted on this blog......roasted shrimp with broccoli.  If you have the spices and oils on hand you only need to buy two things...and if you're like me and keep shrimp in the freezer then there will only be one item on your shopping list.

Stock up....and get cooking!!