Sure Sign of Spring

Sure Sign of Spring

I love spring. And like most other people, I love all the gentle signs of warmer days ahead. Little green leafy bits popping out. Perky spring flowers in bright sunny colors. Birds chirping madly at 6 a.m. Windows open just a crack at bedtime. Enough daylight at 7 p.m. so there is no need to turn the dining room light on for dinner.

One of my favorite spring rituals, though, is throwing out the blizzard food. To me, this is the ultimate sign of spring, when I can let down my guard and think, “Well, winter is over, isn’t it? Yay.”

I have to be reasonably confident that we won’t get another shut-the-city down, lose-power-for-five-days, up-to-your-knees snow storm again until next season. Only then will I root to the back of the fridge for the ham labeled Cook or Freeze by April 6 that I bought back in November.  Only then will I give the giant cans of Campbell’s chicken and dumpling soup to the Boy Scouts for their food bank drive. Then, and only then, will I toss out the petrified casseroles that I’ve packed in plastic containers and stuffed into the freezer way back in late fall, early winter. 

I never recognize what’s in these packages. I seldom think to actually label them when I put them in there.  Each one is a mystery, coated as they are by a hoary layer of freezer burn. Oh, they aren’t that mysterious really. I have a fairly standard repertoire of casserole dishes involving macaroni dishes and risottos. Soup made from the holiday turkey. I know generally what’s in there. Delicious when freshly made. But none of them looking too good anymore.

My husband thinks this is quirky. He refers to the freezer as the Yeast Museum because I have a tendency to toss the heels from loaves of bread in there that I save up (you never know when you might want to make croutons, or stuffing!) Anyway, his point is that we only live a mile from the nearest grocery store. We could walk to get supplies if we ran out of food.  

If I have to admit it, I know when I put these dishes in the freezer that they will never be consumed. After the first go-round some leftovers lose their appeal. They go into the freezer instead of being thrown out right then and there. I do this thinking, “This dish will be good for blizzard food!” But deep down, I know I am only delaying the demise of good food.

When I admitted to a dear friend that I do this, she said, “Oh, thanks for saying it! I thought I was the only one who did that!”

So, its sunny today and the daffs are blooming. It’s probably safe to throw out the casseroles tomorrow.  Or next week.  Or make museum labels for them.