Ice Queen

I usually clean out my garage freezer before summer produce starts coming in but this year, summer got away from me. Anyway, I ended up cleaning it out this weekend. I've found that if I don't clean out and organize the freezer at least once a year, I end up having to toss food because it was entombed beneath a huge pile of who knows what. If you stay on top of the freezer clutter, in the end you'll have a tidy freezer and you'll actually know what's inside. It'll do wonders for your soul!
*For the record, I will confess that I found a poor dejected freezer-burnt turkey bosom from May of 2008 in my weekend expedition! May it rest in peace.

Before: oh the carnage!

After: sweet relief!

Tips for cleaning out the ol' freezer:

• Label things such as sauces or broth since they're hard to I.D. once frozen
• Use plastic milk crates to store large amounts of one thing (mine are full of cherries and pheasant)
• Group the food according to type. For example: breads, convenience foods, desserts, fruit, veggies, meat, ice packs, etc.
• Invest in hanging freezer baskets
• If you're feeling really crazy, draw a "map" of the contents and tape it to the door. (I did not do this, but I'm sure that someone out there really will. Good for you if you do!)