How I Organize My Fridge (And What’s Inside) 👩‍🍳

Hi friends!

Thank you to everyone who tuned into my first live video earlier this week 🫣! If you don’t have the Substack App, you can download it to watch future live videos, read emails and notes.

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I made this video on a whim because after returning from our spring break trip and re-stocking the kitchen, I was feeling very excited (and maybe a little smug) about my fridge organization.

But really, the way I organize my fridge creates a lot more efficiency and a lot less food waste in our kitchen.

In this short video I take you through each section of my (massive, American) fridge, and inevitably, show you what’s inside it right now—which changes seasonally.

Since I mention that my butter section often contains a “special” butter, I wanted to share one of my all-time favorite recipes for WILDFLOWER BUTTER from my second cookbook, Seasonal Family Almanac: Recipes, Rituals, and Crafts for Celebrating the Magic of the Year. It’s SO easy.

Wild Violet, Dandelion, and Crab Apple Blossom Butter

In case you haven’t dipped into my second book yet, it is a resource that I—and everyone I know who has it—use every month of the year. Here’s why…

It’s organized by season (which differs depending on where you live), allowing you to dip into the relevant chapter and find a treasure trove of easy, accessible recipes for food, care, and crafts. Each recipe is designed to celebrate what’s happening in the world outside your door. It’s a way for caregivers, parents, and children to deepen our connections with ourselves, each other and nature.

(Psssst: 50%-off on Amazon right now for $17.52!)

In the Finger Lakes region where we live, we are entering Late Spring, when edible wildflowers are in abundance. Think: Violets, Dandelions, Apple and Cherry Blossoms, Lungwort, and Lilacs.

Note: If you live in an area where harvesting edible wildflowers isn’t safe, or you are not familiar with any at this point in time, you can typically find edible flowers in the produce section of your grocery store. In my last post on Lawn Salads, I talk about how to get started with wild foraging and identifying edible plants.

My favorite way to preserve this kaleidoscope of color and flavor is in butter. It’s unbelievably easy to do, and results in a bread accompaniment that feels decadent and indeed special.

I use butter to preserve a range of other spring edibles like ramps and nettles, and I always make extra to store in the freezer and use throughout the cold seasons. In addition to being spread on bread, savory butters with flavor power (like ramps, nettles, and Italian herbs) are also great for adding to soup, searing meat, or topping on salmon.

With spring upon us and fresh veggies beginning to reappear, I hope this email offers insight for your own kitchen flow and a new recipe to revel in Spring flowers.

Buon appetito!

💖 Emma

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Wildflower Butter

Developing recipes requires an immense amount of time and resources, and many of the recipes I offer are also from my cookbooks. With this in mind, only paid subscribers can access my recipes. However, I want to make them accessible to as many people as I can, and have lowered my monthly subscription fees. (If you are already a paid subscriber, you will receive an email about this.) Please consider supporting this newsletter and gaining access to all new recipes, as well as my Recipe Archive and Monthly Meal Plan Index.