When you are busy baking this holiday, please evaluate the items in the cabinet to determine if they are still in good condition.

For holiday bakers, who average once a year, the baking season has arrived, which means that many of us are likely to be rummaging through the crowded, cluttered cupboards for that jar of old nutmeg or cinnamon sticks.

However, if you have purchased that pot of spices for a year or more, your special Christmas cookies may not be particularly good.

Some of the most commonly used items in baking, such as salt, sugar, extracts and honey, have an almost unlimited shelf life. But spices and flour will deteriorate or lose their effectiveness.

The shelf life is not very helpful in determining whether the old five-spice powder or canned baking soda is still good. Generally speaking, these dates are nothing more than manufacturer recommendations, especially for dry goods.

In fact, many spices can be stored for several years, but over time, the taste will fade. Leavening agents such as yeast and baking powder will begin to lose their effectiveness, causing the sweets to become thin and moldy. If you have any questions about what needs to be replaced and when, this handy guide will provide some clear information.

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If sealed in an airtight container, the ground and whole five-spice powder can be stored for up to four years. To test if it is still delicious, rub a pinch of spices between your fingers and smell it. If the aroma and taste are not obvious, then it is time to replace allspice.

Baking powder is a mixture of alkaline and acidic chemicals and starch to prevent the active ingredients from reacting with each other. These chemicals do lose their effectiveness over time, usually within 6 to 12 months.

To test your baking soda, put 1/2 teaspoon in a bowl, then pour 1/4 cup boiling water. If the powder foams quickly, it's okay. Slow or non-foaming powder has lost its fermenting ability and should be discarded.

Baking soda is composed entirely of sodium bicarbonate, which reacts with acidic ingredients such as lemon juice, vinegar, or buttermilk to ferment baked goods. The shelf life of baking soda is much longer than that of baking powder, but it will expire after about 18 months.

To test it, put a small spoonful of baking soda in a bowl and add a little vinegar. If it foams, it can still be used.

If stored in an airtight container, cinnamon powder or whole cinnamon sticks will never deteriorate, but they will start to lose their potency after three or four years. To test cinnamon, rub a pinch of spice between your fingers to make it slightly warmer. Cinnamon should have a strong aroma and flavor.

This potent spice has an impressive shelf life. The fragrance of the entire clove can be maintained for up to five years, while the potency of the clove powder can be maintained for two to three years. To test it, rub a little spice between your fingers. It should have a strong aroma. If not, it's time to replace it.

The shelf life of this baked staple food is two years or more, and it will not deteriorate if stored in a container with a tight lid. If cocoa is exposed to air and humidity or stored for too long, it will give off an unpleasant aroma or lose some of its potency. Trust your nose. If you smell something and feel uncomfortable, then change your cocoa powder.

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White all-purpose flour, if stored in an airtight container, can be stored at room temperature for up to one year, and if refrigerated, it can be stored for two years. Whole wheat flour, because it contains bran and germ of wheat grains, is more prone to spoilage.

If your whole wheat flour has been stored at room temperature for more than three months or in the refrigerator for more than a year, smell it well. Any rancid smell indicates that it is time to replace the flour.

No matter how old it is, nutmeg stored in an airtight container is still safe to eat, although its taste will disappear over time. Ground nutmeg can retain its flavor for two to three years, while whole nutmeg seeds can be stored for up to five years.

Heat and moisture are the enemies here, so if you are going to grind the whole nutmeg seed, grind it in a bowl and then add the spices from there, rather than grind it directly into any hot dishes.

If stored in an airtight container in a dark cabinet, vanilla beans can be stored for up to three years. They should not be refrigerated or frozen, as this will cause the beans to dry out too quickly. Don't worry if there are frosty white spots on the surface of the beans like mold. It's just the flavor compound vanillin that crystallizes on the surface.

Properly stored vanilla beans should maintain a certain degree of softness and elasticity, but vanilla beans that have become dry and brittle can be hydrated by soaking them in warm liquids such as milk or water.

The sealed yeast bag will remain active for up to two years at room temperature. If you buy yeast in a larger bulk jar, you should always refrigerate it after opening and use it within four to six months.

Whether it is a sealed package or a jar, you can easily test the activity of yeast. Simply stir 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast, one teaspoon of sugar, and half a cup of warm water into a measuring cup. If your yeast is still good, it will foam and foam after 10 minutes until it reaches the 1 cup mark.

pstephen@express-news.net | Twitter: @pjbites | Instagram: @pjstephen

Paul Stephen moved from North Carolina to San Antonio in 2017 and joined the Express-News Taste team. During that time, he cooked about 1,000 recipes, ate at more than 200 restaurants, and seriously considered tattooing a map of a city grocery store on his arm for easy reference. He cannot be trusted in your recipe collection.