it was a lovely sunny weekend in london but i spent most of it inside – i had an essay deadline that i needed to meet. so, what better reason than that to go through my kitchen cupboards, cleaning them, throwing away out of date things and spotting others which i really should use.

these are the top 5 things to get into my cooking over the coming month:

goji berries – these were massively hyped as a super-berry at the end of last year so i picked up a packet to include in my blogging by mail parcel, plus an extra one for myself. having opened them to take the photo, and therefore only just having tried them, unless david is a fan of the flavour, or i can find a way to disguise it, i think these super-berries might end up in the bin! they have an odd taste, almost like that of green tea. accompanied by seeds that get stick in your teeth. i’m really not keen.

white urid dal – these are the only lentils in my cupboard that i’ve not tried and i really must – i think they’ve been there for several months now. apparently they are particularly good in creamy soups and dumplings.

valsamica - aged balsamic vinegar, port and vanilla extract, i’ve not tried this yet and really should!

spaghettata indivolata – i bought this in italy last year and it’s a mix of dried herbs, chilli capers and garlic slices which you cook in oil and toss with spaghetti. it smells potent!

napa valley belgian chocolate sauce with cabernet sauvignon – this was a gift from my friend kirsty and really shouldn’t be too difficult to use up! i’m thinking strawberries and vanilla ice-cream

i also thought it might be quite interesting to list what i have in my cupboards – I find this sort of thing fascinating and remember reading a similar post by sam from becks & posh. and if you have any thoughts on ways i can make use of any of the things on the list, especially those top 5, let me know!