Spring clean your kitchen cupboards for a healthier diet

The other day I hauled out all of the boxes in my cereal and cracker cabinet, searching for the big container of plain oatmeal so I could make oatmeal muffins. By the time I reached way into the back corners of the cupboard, I found a whole bunch of foods I didn't realize were there.

A sunny spring day is a great opportunity to tackle your kitchen cupboards. Clean out just one cupboard each day and it won't seem overwhelming. You can conquer a cupboard while the water boils and pasta cooks for dinner; or clean out another cupboard while a family member takes over dishwashing duties for an evening. Be creative!

Use these tips to clean out the cupboards and make your diet ready for Spring:

• Toss anything that's expired. Read the dates on boxes and cans; if it's out of date - even if it's not been opened - toss it in the garbage.
• Get rid of any cracker or cereal that doesn't have the word "whole" in the first ingredient. Whole grains are packed with nutrients and fiber and are much healthier than processed grains.
• Look at your soup collection with an eye toward sodium content. Just about every major soup brand makes a lower sodium version. Too much sodium can raise blood pressure levels, so give your heart a fighting chance by choosing only lower sodium soups.
• Are chips, cookies, and snack foods taking over your cupboards - and your waistline? Toss the big boxes and opt for the 100-calories, snack-size packages now available. A cheaper alternative is to make your own snack bags. Divide up the contents of a big box into portion-size plastic baggies and store them all in a box. Reach in and grab one bag for a quick, portion-controlled snack.
• Spices don't last forever, and often our cooking tastes change with time so we no longer rely on the same old spices. Did you know that McCormick spices in rectangular tins are at least 15 years old (except for black pepper; that's still packaged in the tins)? Freshness dates are on the bottom or sides of the containers. In general, ground spices last 2-3 years, whole spices 3-4 years, and seasoning blends 1-2 years.
• We all have at least cupboard filled with odds and ends: a jar of dry wasabi powder to use when making sushi, small bits of various shapes of pasta noodles, different types of flours for specialty baking, or unidentifed grains in unlabeled containers. If you don't know what it is, toss it. If you can't remember the last time you used it, toss it. Combine dry pasta into one box, and make a fun mac and cheese dinner one night. Be inspired by the ingredients you discover in the depths of the cupboards to resurrect a favorite recipe that needs that specific item.
• When¬†you find boxes or cans of unopened foods that you no longer use, and they're not past their use-by date, donate them to your local food shelf. They'll go to much better use on someone's dinner table this month, rather than relegated to the back of your cupboard for another year.