 Emptying a pantry is a humbling experience. First of all, does anyone really need to keep 6 different kinds of rice on hand? 🤣🍚Secondly, I thought was doing a fairly good job of keeping my pantry organized and getting rid of anything that was past its expiration date. 😬 Well, clearly I hadn't looked through my pudding stash or collection of dried figs a while. 😳 Apparently, dried fruit has an expiration date too. 🤷🏻♀️
Believe it or not - this is the "after" picture. This is what my dining room table looks like now that I've got everything reorganized and ready to to load into the new pantry. I realize that it looks like total chaos but I can assure you - it all makes sense to me. But for some reason, my family doesn't enjoy the find the peanut butter game at 6:00 am while trying to pack lunch.🤷🏻♀️🤣  It was certainly eye opening to see the contents of my pantry laid out in front of me. Taking inventory made me aware of how much stuff I really do store. I stock 8 different kinds of chocolate chips, 7 types of flour, 10 different kinds of dried fruits and enough coconut to make macaroons for a small village. With the exception of rice (lol) I don't feel like I stored anything in excess. I almost hate to admit it but I use all 8 types of chocolate chips on a fairly regular basis. 😳 #bakerlife 🍪 My pantry is well stocked partly because of the demands of my catering gig but if I'm being honest - I also love having so many snacks at my fingertips. 😅 I have just about every type of nut that you can imagine. Salted, unsalted, whole, chopped, sliced, and slivered. I have them all. The good thing is that when I want to make something with nuts - I've got almost every variety available in my pantry stash. The inspiration for this Chocolate Cherry Biscotti came from a Milk Street magazine. The original recipe actually called for these crunchy cookies to be dipped in dark chocolate. In my world - The less is more concept doesn't apply to chocolate but even a die hard chocolate lover like myself thought it might be overdoing to to dip these already rich and decadent cookies in more chocolate. But by all means - if you feel like this biscotti needs an extra boost of chocolate - go for it.  Chocolate Cherry Biscotti 3/4 cup whole almonds 1 3/4 cups flour 1 cup white sugar 1/3 cup cocoa powder 1 Tablespoon espresso powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped 3 eggs 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 1/2 teaspoon almond 1/2 cup pistachios 1/2 cup dried cherries
 Bake 45-50 minutes at 300. Let cool 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 275. Slices loaves into 1/2" slices. Arrange on baking sheets.  Bake 20 minutes at 275.   Thanks mom and dad for letting me take over your kitchen for a few days and for letting my put my biscotti in your flower basket to take pictures. 😉
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 This may be a chilly November morning, but I'm day dreaming about the most amazing island. 🏝No, not one with tropical beaches and tiki torches. The island I'm dreaming about has a cutting board drawer and a drawer with an outlet for my computer. This 2x6 foot island has a whopping 30 drawers! #organizersdream Oh, and I forgot to mention the best part - this incredible island has a retractable platform so I can stand at my counter like a normal sized adult. 🤣 We're 24 hours away from seeing my vision become a reality. Nearly a year ago, I sketched what I imagined to be the ultimate kitchen island on a tiny piece of paper and here it is - about to be installed. There were lots of nay sayers and cabinet makers who outright refused to even attempt to build this crazy cabinet. There were hundreds of reasons why my plan wasn't going to work. It wasn't structurally sound and some of the things I included in my plan, didn't even exist. What can I say? I'm a baker, not an architect.  Some people have a work desk - I have a work island. Along with the kitchen island, my stove will be reinstalled tomorrow as well. Something I've been without for a week and a half. You don't realize how much you depend on your stove until it's missing. And can anyone explain, why I started craving pasta the minute that they took away my ability to boil water? 🍝Thankfully I still have my wall oven so I've been using that this week. If you need a super tasty Fall comfort, sheet pan meal that you can make in your oven in less than an hour - you need to give this Roasted Chicken recipe a try. It's healthy, it's super flavorful, it's quick and easy to put together and ...it doesn't require a stovetop.  Roasted Chicken with Sweet Potatoes and Poblanos 4 sweet potatoes, peeled and halved and sliced into 1/2" slices 2 poblano peppers, halved, seeded and cut into 1/2"wide strips 3 Tablespoons oil 1 3/4 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons chili powder 2 teaspoons oregano 2 teaspoons cumin 1 teaspoon pepper 4 bone in chicken breasts 1 Tablespoon honey 1/2 cup cojita cheese, crumbled (optional) 2 Tablespoons pumpkin seeds Dressing 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped 2 Tablespoons oil 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 1/2 teaspoons lime zest 2 Tablespoons lime juice 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper
 Brush chicken with honey.  Sprinkle vegetables with cheese and pumpkin seeds.  To all of you who have been waiting to see pictures of the new kitchen - they're coming. Lots of changes coming this week - new lighting, pantry shelves and doors and of course, my piece de resistance - the island. I'm pretty sure you'll be sick and tired of seeing pictures of my kitchen by the time this is over. Thanks for sticking with me through this process. Much love. A
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