apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

tea, most definitely

...oh and espresso cups even though I don't have an espresso machine. I just love them and have a cupboard full

Tea, all kinds of tea. I love all of them! Also, flours such as ww pastry, bread flour, all purpose, etc... I use them all fairly regularly, but the immense variety in my cupboards is a little out of control.

Crap. I collect all of those things...40 salts, 30 teas, 7 chocolates, 11 sets of espresso cups, 20 oils.... and a few more...
15 Mustards
20 vintage serving trays
6 sets of canisters
and endless jars of jams, jellies, pickles, and preserves.

I'm in therapy.

I collect tea, tea kettles, and wine bottles, which I need more room for.

*ahem* wine *ahem*

Olives. Stuffed with any number of wonderful things. Makes for interesting Martinis.

Green coffee beans, sitting quietly in little 1 and 2 lb bags in a neat little green coffee library in my cupboard, awaiting the day when they'll be roasted into fabulous coffee glory.

cheese! obviously it can't get too out of hand because cheese gets moldy. I just moved into a new place and in my fridge, I have just milk, some produce, peanut butter, and mustard, but already 5 kinds of cheese.

well... homemade Rhum flavored with different kind of organic dryed fruits: current, pear, papaya, banana, fig, mango, pineapple, apple, and more...

I'm a little embarrassed to admit this but I collect Tabasco sauce bottles. We go through a lot Tabasco in our house and I can't bring myself to throw the bottles away. I have over 40.

also, dinner plates and coffee cups.

Spices and spice blends. I have a drawer full that's sort of expanded into the cupboard above. My excuse is that I work next door to a Penzey's.

I think it's less about "collecting" and more about hoarding food. Take me to a farmer's market and I'll try to buy everything (especially if there's seasonal produce), even if it's more than I could realistically eat.

Cereal. I always have at least 5 different varieties hanging around. You never know when you're going to want Kashi Go Lean...or Fruity Pebbles.

Definitely tea, and also random blue bowls. Wine doesn't stick around in my kitchen long enough to be considered a collection :/

First- Trader Joe's Jasmine Green is amazing.

Second... I'm all about tea, too, but even more specific: Different kinds of Earl Grey .

Herbal Tea - the day I found out that celestial seasonings has a best before date stamped on the bottom was eye opening.

And I bet a lot of us have secret collections of condiment packets - soy sauce, ketchup, etc.

vinegar! all the usuals and many fruits.. 8 different balsamic... white wine, red wine, rice wine, apple cider, raspberry, pomegranate, orange, orange lemon, etc.

... somehow I have ended up with 30 different vinegars and don't get me started on my oil collection. I don't know how it happened.

Spices. I think it would be fun to alphabetize them, from Anise to... ummm... Turmeric? Which of course would just inspire me to go out and pick up some Wormwood, and hmmm, are there any spices that start with Z?

I have a bit of a cheese habit, too. And wine, though it rarely hangs around like enough to be a problem.

And let's not talk about the alcohol -- I have two kinds of vermouth, two kinds of bitters, port, goldschlager (?!)...

Well, these aren't hidden away, but rather on the walls: my aprons! Probably about 15 of them, mostly vintage. I loooove them.

I can't seem to go to the grocery store without buying a box of pasta, and although I am half italian, I can't eat a pound of pasta a day, so I have tons of pasta in my kitchen. it is all de cecco, but all different shapes.

add to my already large pasta collection the fact that every store near me stopped carrying my favorite shape (the baby shells) and so now I have to get them in bulk from amazon.

Tea, for sure. I seriously have got to have like 30 or more.

Spices.

Seaweed (yes, I know).

Wine.

Sweeteners (agave, 5 honeys, 4 sugars, splenda, xylitol).

Sauces, mostly asian.

Flours (rice, potato, coconut, baking, AP, whole wheat, soy, bread...).

Mugs.

for me? Antique barware although neither my husband nor I are much of a drinker. I just find them to be lovely.

I also collect fruit crate labels for decorating the kitchen. I love the punches of color

Foodwise, would have to be rice for me but it is not much of a collection. I guess I tend to have about 8-12 types at any given time.

i am a tea and cereal collector. i realized last night that we have about 7 different kinds of green tea. who knows how many kinds of black tea?! it's an illness, i know, but the stupid grocery store i go to has a whole wall of tea next to the checkout line. it is perilous.

Recently stocked up on dried mushrooms of all varieties. I can't wait till the weather turns gray and I can pull them out for stews , risotto, and pasta! Oh yeah, have different vinegars, spices galore, different flours when I'm on my no white flour kick, always have a dark chocolate bar FOR EATING, and have been better about not buying tea when I still have a cabinet full. My limit is the space I have for this stuff. Whole bean coffee in freezer that will last me a yr. because I’m trying out different kinds of Sumatra. The exception to the space rule is jars and jars of sour cherries and different kinds of jams. I think it's time to make some crepes and invite friends!

Tea (and I see you're a tealuxe fan! I worked there for a summer after high school). Also teapots and tea sets. If I ever throw a brunch for exclusively tea drinkers, I will be all set. Otherwise, it's a little bit of overkill.

I also collect vinegars, which I didn't quite realize until I opened my cupboard last week and it was packed with them: balsamic, sherry, zinfandel, raspberry, white wine, rice wine, cider, and so forth.

Finally, my freezer is packed with chicken bones, carcasses, and stock. Homemade stock is just so useful.

It's not really a food, but food related - I am absolutely addicted to William Sonoma's novelty cake pans. I love how they look, I love how they bake. Trains, cars, bugs, hearts, anything! Any time I see a new design, I can't resist getting it.

Really, who can resist having an octopus pan?