How often do you throw away those herbs, spices and flavorings because they are outdated?

While going through my kitchen cabinets looking for spices to use to make some banana bread, I realized they were either outdated or close to being outdated. It got me to thinking about all the money I had thrown away over the years replacing flavorings that I seldom used. 

Sometimes we buy an herb, spice or flavoring and we only use it one time before it becomes outdated. The next time we go to use it we either use the outdated product or we throw it away and go buy another one. This is very costly and even more so if you are buying organic herbs and spices. 

Did you know that even though Young Living does not have their products certified organic that they do not use herbicides and pesticide sprays on their fields? They use what is left over from the plants they distill to fertilize the crops, and essential oils to spray the crops. Pesticides and herbicides are dangerous to the environment and they are also hazardous to a person's health.

If you are using old herbs, spices and flavorings keep in mind that they actually started losing their flavor long before you realize it. Storage recommendations from several flavoring manufacturers say that extracts tend to have a shelf life of 6 months to 1 year. As a general rule, whole spices will stay fresh for about 4 years, ground spices for about 2 to 3 years and dried herbs for 1 to 3 years. We all know we have kept our herbs and spices longer than that because we find them outdated. The Young Living Vitality Essential Oils are for seasoning your food and they do not expire. Yes you heard me right they do not expire. These precious oils are good forever, holding their potency and it takes way less of them in your recipes because they are potent. So again you are saving money.  

Another thing to think about is that we never seem to have enough room in our cabinets to keep things, so we have to dig and shuffle things around all the time to find what we want. I have found that these 5 ml bottles of Young Living Vitality Oils are perfect for setting all around the front edge of my Lazy Susan. Then I can place my larger items behind making things easier to see and find. They also take up less space so I have more room in my cabinets. 

You may ask why does Young Living have a Vitality line of oils. So, in 2014 the FDA approached Young Living and said that we couldn't have all of our oils labeled for aromatic, topical, and dietary use. ... Therefore, in 2016, in an effort to remain FDA compliant, Young Living launched its Vitality line.

You might wonder just how much Vitality Essential Oil you would use in a recipe. Here is just a suggestion on how to substitute Young Living Vitality Essential Oils for an extract, herb or spice. Stick a toothpick through the oil dropper to absorb the oil, then swirl the toothpick through wet ingredients. Give it a taste and gradually add more flavor to your liking, by using a clean toothpick each time. You can always add more to your liking. It is better to start out less and add more if you want a stronger flavor. Stick a toothpick through the oil dropper to absorb the oil, then swirl the toothpick through wet ingredients. Give it a taste and gradually add more flavor to your liking.

I will end this blog with a delicious recipe for Energy Balls