Ever wonder if your baking soda and baking powder is fresh? If you forgot to write the purchase date on the packaging before storing it in your cabinet, you might not ever know. This can cause you to purchase much more baking soda or baking powder than you really need.

Baking soda has an indefinite shelf life. Some manufacturers put a shelf life date on their product to promote more sales. They typically will recommend replacing it every three years.

Baking powder needs to be thrown away when it is no longer active. So how does one know if it is active or not? Begin by placing 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder in a bowl, add to it 1/4 cup of boiling hot water. The baking powder should bubble which shows that it is still active. No bubbles throw it out and buy new.