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14. KonMari Deep Dive: Kitchen & Thanksgiving Special

KonMari Deep Dive: Kitchen

In-Depth Analysis with Alexandria

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Bringing Joy to Your Kitchen

Welcome to the first deep-dive episode. This is an opportunity to go all-in on a particular topic. I’ll highlight a specific aspect of the KonMari Method or something to do with style. And I’m open to suggestions. If there’s something you’d particularly like to learn more about, drop me a line.

Today, we’re focusing on the kitchen. With Thanksgiving just a couple days away and Christmas not so far behind, we are officially entering holiday season.

Benefits of a KonMari’d Kitchen

You know where everything is.
You make the most of the space you have.
Your surfaces are mostly clear.
You have food & ingredients you enjoy eating & cooking with.
You no longer waste food.
And yes… your kitchen brings you joy.

If you KonMari your kitchen before you have a solid sense of what brings you joy, you’re in for a rough ride. The beauty of proceeding category by category in the recommended order is that you gradually hone your sensitivity to joy.

Alexandria Lawrence

Common Kitchen Struggles

The spice drawer

Can you find the smoked paprika in less than 10 seconds? Sure, you might have a “spice drawer” but your spices are frankly out of control.

Food waste

You don’t mean to waste food but that’s what happens. Food gets lost. Sometimes you can’t find ingredients (or leftovers) until they’ve gone off and are inedible.

Unused gadgets

Do you have a surplus of kitchen tools you don’t want or need?

Don’t know what ingredients you already have

You buy an ingredient and then discover you have another pack of it stuffed at the back of some cupboard.

The junk drawer

You have a junk drawer full of all sorts of random stuff.

Cluttered surfaces

Your kitchen surfaces are rarely clear. There doesn’t seem to be enough storage space for all your kitchen items.

General chaos

You stuff things in drawers higgledy-piggledy because you don’t have proper homes for these items.

No place for backstock

If you decant flour and other things into containers, you struggle to know what to do with that leftover flour and those leftover other things that don’t fit in your containers.

KonMari Your Food

Keep your food subcategorised

Basics of food organisation

Store similar food items in the same area so you always know where to find them.

Temporary storage

Don't worry about "proper" storage solutions until the process is complete, until you have fully KonMari'd your kitchen. Small boxes or containers you find around the house make great temporary storage for food.

Permanent storage

Only when you’ve fully KonMari’d your kitchen are you ready for more permanent storage solutions. Consider something like clear containers. You can make fancy labels if you like.

See what you have in a glance

However you organise your kitchen cupboards, make sure you can see what you have in a glance.

Is your storage sustainable?

Whenever possible, consider your impact on the environment. Source sustainable storage containers. Are your containers made from recycled materials? Can your storage containers be recycled or repurposed when you are finished with them?

Keep backstock in a clearly designated area

What is backstock?

Backstock is any extras or multiples you have of a particular item (rice, pasta, flour, etc).

Have one place to store backstock

If you only have one place to store backstock, then you always know where to go when it comes time to refill containers or replenish your supply.

Just between us… how many times have you thought you didn’t have something only to find it lurking at the back of another cupboard?

It’s a team effort

You're on the same team

Make sure everyone living with you understands why your food is organised the way it is.

A space for everyone

Make sure everyone has space for the food items they need – any special dietary requirements? – and the food items they love.

A collaborative effort

Unless you live alone, it’s a collaborative effort to keep the joy levels high in your kitchen and in your home.

Thanksgiving is for Everyone

Thanksgiving is for you

That’s right… You don’t need to be American. Thanksgiving is a holiday for everyone. All you need to do is enjoy food and good company.

You don’t even need to have turkey…

Unless you’re very confident you won’t end up with a giant, dry, rather unappealing beast of a bird, I’d go so far as to say… please don’t have turkey.

There are no rules

Or maybe there’s just one rule: pumpkin pie is a must.

Pumpkin Pie

I can’t really imagine Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie. And the beauty of pumpkin pie is that you can do it last-minute… especially if you live outside of the United States. As it’s not an official holiday anywhere else (except for Canadian Thanksgiving in October), you’re likely to get all the ingredients you need if you decide to make a last-minute pumpkin pie. Check out my recipe below and, if you try it, let me know what you think!

Alexandria's Pumpkin Pie

ALSO in PINK
Pumpkin pie is one of those very special things. It never fails to bring on the holiday spirit and is so tasty it really should be made more than once a year. This is a recipe I've developed through trial and error over many Thanksgivings. It's suitable for anyone with wheat & lactose intolerances too. Enjoy!
5 from 2 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 2 hours
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Cooling Time 40 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 50 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 8 people
Calories 258 kcal

Equipment

  • 23 cm tart (or pie) tin

Ingredients
  

Pastry

  • 170 g flour white spelt (or white flour)
  • pinch of salt
  • 100 g cold butter
  • 2 tbsp fine sugar
  • 1 egg yolk

Filling

  • 2 cups pumpkin (or butternut squash) purée (2.5kg raw squash, if roasting)
  • 2 large eggs
  • ¾ cup honey
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • ½ tsp ground nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp ground cloves
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 250 ml milk - lactofree milk also works well here

Topping

  • whipping cream - lactofree cream works nicely too
  • dash of vanilla

Instructions
 

  • Prepare the squash/pumpkin. Slice butternut squash in half, lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and place (skin-side down) on baking trays. Preheat oven to 180°C.
  • Bake pumpkin/squash at 180°C for about 60 minutes (or until soft and you can easily stick a knife through it). Then Preheat oven to 190°C.
  • Meanwhile, make your pastry. Sift the flour into a mixing bowl, stir in the salt, then grate in the butter. Rub in using your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs, then stir through the sugar. Mix the egg yolk with 2 tbsp iced water, and sprinkle half over the mixture. Then stir together with a knife until it comes together in a paste – add a little more of the liquid if necessary.
  • Bring the mixture together with your fingertips, and then roll out on a floured surface to the thickness of a £1 coin. Use it to line a 23 cm tart tin. Cover with clingfilm and chill for 30 minutes.
  • Line the pastry case with greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans. Put in the oven for 15 minutes, then remove the paper and beans, and bake for another 5-10 minutes until the base is pale golden. Remove from the oven.
  • Turn the oven down to 180°C. Combine all filling ingredients and whizz! Just scoop out the pumpkin/squash flesh and it easily squidges into cup measures. Then pour the whizzed filling ingredients into your pastry case.
  • Bake for 70 minutes (or until the pie is fairly firm when you jiggle it)
  • Beat whipping cream into soft peaks with a dash of vanilla. Generously spoon onto your slice of pie. Yum!

Notes

Pumpkin pie isn't always made from pumpkins! I almost always use butternut squash. So, feel free to substitute whatever flavourful member of the squash/gourd family you can get locally.
You need approx. 1.5 butternut squashes for one pie (about 2.5kg)
Keyword lactofree, pumpkin pie, Thanksgiving, wheat-free
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About ALSO in PINK

Welcome to the ALSO in PINK podcast with host Alexandria Lawrence, a certified KonMari consultant, personal stylist and specialist in biophilic interior design.

ALSO in PINK offers candid conversations with industry leaders and influencers, clients and friends, about what it means to live well.

The podcast is currently paused... but we'll be back! In the meantime, you have nearly 50 episodes to enjoy. Happy listening...

Podcast Host

Alexandria sitting with Remi (the mini dachshund) on her living room plant throne. Alexandria is smiling, wearing brightly colour clothing and Remi is looking cute—he just can't help it.

Alexandria Lawrence is passionate about helping you dare to dream big and intentionally live your best life every day.

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