The Rule of Three

     What is the rule of three?  In home decor, the rule of three is used for accessorizing.  Grouping of three candles, three similar items, three pictures or photos are widely used.  Groups of three have a greater eye appeal than larger or smaller groupings.   A good essential oil blend has three notes:  high, mid, low.  However, the rule of three has a wide range of applications.  

In cooking, the rule of three can apply in a few ways:

1. pantry
   

• Where possible each food should be put up in at three possible ways.  For example, potatoes can be preserved by freezing, canning or dehydrating.  The reason for this is, it's acts as insurance.  If you have a longer power outage and lose the frozen potatoes, you still have the backup of canned and dried, possibly fresh.  Not all foods lend themselves well to preserving three ways, but for the most part using this method will safe guard your pantry supplies.
• Rotating your pantry stores is very important.  Gearing up for the growing season, our meals focus on something from freezer, something home canned and something dry with accenting with fresh.  During the growing season, the emphasis is on fresh in season produce, something from the freezer, and something dried or canned.

      2. cooking

• Layering of flavours can really take your cooking to the next level with very little effort.  For example, if making a tomato based sauce using fresh tomatoes the two accompanying elements should be canned (paste or sauce) and dried (tomato powder).  Each brings unique flavour notes that blend nicely.  Another good combination is fresh garlic, roasted garlic and garlic powder.