 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. 😉
Ciao!
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 If 2020 taught me anything - it would be how to be an online shopper. Out of necessity, I mastered the art of finding what I needed online, ordering it, paying for it and then waiting for it to show up at my door. #thankyouamazonprime 😂Online shopping is a beautiful thing and up until last week, I'd probably boasted that over the last year, I'd become a fairly proficient online shopper. And then this happened ...
I wanted to order a chocolate mold to make some tools for cupcake toppers. Clearly I missed the fine print on the item description though because the unusually small chocolate mold that arrived, made the tiniest tools that I've ever seen. 👀😅 I'm pretty sure that these miniature chocolate tools would disappear completely into a pillow of buttercream on top of a cupcake. 🛠 When I finished laughing about the absurdity of the size of these chocolate tools, I requested a refund from amazon and within minutes, I had my money refunded and they told me that there was no reason to return the product. #thankyouamazon That was the point when I decided that I had to at least try the mini mold. I can't help but wonder what in the world anyone would possibly do with a chocolate hammer that's the size of a penny but who can resist making tools? 🤷🏻♀️
Clearly I need a little more help in the online shopping department. 😅 I obviously got a little too excited when I saw the mold for tools and scanned through the details a little too quickly. 😂The same thing happened when I saw this recipe for S'more Cookies. You can't blame me really. I mean, who wouldn't get excited about S'more Cookies? 💁🏻♀️ When I got all caught up in the excitement of making these amazing treats, I neglected to read through the whole recipe until it was way too late. I had no idea how many steps were involved in the making of these cookies until the process was already underway. 😬 I don't want to discourage you from making these because they're delicious - I just want to give you all the facts so that you don't jump into the recipe with the same reckless enthusiasm that I did. 🤣 They're just as scrumptious and delicious as they sound but they do require an investment in time.  S'more Cookies Cookies 2 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup butter, room temperature 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla Ganache 4 oz. heavy whipping cream 2 tablespoons butter 3/4 cup dark chocolate morsels Chocolate Buttercream 2 cups confectioners’ sugar 1/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa 1/2 cup butter, room temperature 1/4 cup of prepared chocolate ganache 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs Meringue Frosting 3 egg whites 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 teaspoon vanilla
 Transfer mixture to a piping bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe meringue on top of each cookie.  Use a butane torch to toast the meringue on each cookie.  Decorate with a square of hershey's chocolate.  Much like my chocolate mold order, my cookie making process didn't go off without a hitch. The first time I made these cookies, I couldn't get the meringue to stand up on its own. I made it 4 different times and it just wouldn't stiffen up. 😢 I was super frustrated so I decided to give up on my meringue and turn it into buttercream instead and pipe that onto my cookies instead. The buttercream S'more cookies were great but I still had to make the recipe a second time so that I could do it the way that it was intended - with toasted marshmallow meringue. 😋 Second time was a charm - all I can say is the less humidity in the air - the better the chance that your meringue will firm up.
Ciao! 
As you can imagine, our recent college graduate is walking on cloud nine - me, not so much. I'm still coming to terms with the fact that I'm old enough to be the parent of 2 college graduates. 😬😅
Despite my roller coaster of emotions last weekend, we had a great time celebrating the accomplishments of our recent graduate. And since her love languages are time and food - we filled two whole days with great friends and family and LOTS and LOTS of amazing food. Pasta, doughnuts, chicken and waffles, macaroni and cheese, quesadillas, a taco bar with nachos and queso and of course, chocolate, all had to be included in the celebrations. #sheknowswhatshelikes 💁🏻♀️
In case you were thinking that I made all of those delicious foods - let me just stop you right there. I employed a LOT of help to pull off those epic feasts. And I use that term "employed" loosely. It's an unwritten rule that anyone who happens to be related to me (or marries someone related to me) will be asked to pitch in with food prep on party days. 👩🏻🍳 😉 I may not have made much of the party food for last weekend but I did manage to make a batch of her favorite chocolate chip biscotti as my contribute to the weekend. I even did it ahead of time and put it in the freezer for safe keeping. Yea me! BUT, I got wrapped up in the whirlwind of events over the weekend and I completely forgot to take it out of the freezer. 🤦🏻♀️ Oh well, looks like we'll be celebrating Father's Day with biscotti this year. (Someone please help me remember to get it out of my freezer.) 😅  Chocolate Chip Biscotti 6 tablespoons butter room temperature ⅔ cup of granulated sugar ¼ teaspoon salt 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder 3 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 large eggs room temperature 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup mini chocolate chips 2 tablespoons large crystal decorating sugar ½ cup melted dark chocolate
 Reduce heat to 325. Let biscotti cool 10 minutes. Cut into 1/2" slices. Arrange on baking sheets and bake 25-30 minutes longer.
 Dip one end in chocolate. Allow to cool.  I love biscotti and this chocolate dipped chocolate chip biscotti is amazing.
Ciao!  For those of you following along on my kitchen remodel roller coaster - I'm here to update you. 🎢For those of you who stop by the blog just to get new recipes and could care less about my kitchen drama - skip down to the recipe. #itwonthurtmyfeelings 😅 This week we got our first look at our new kitchen design. We're working with an amazing designer who was able to take all of my crazy ideas and put them together into a workable and realistic plan. She worked her magic and sketched my dream kitchen that included everything I ever wanted in a kitchen and some things I never even knew were possible. 😂 I was flying high until I saw the price tag that was attached to my kitchen. 😢 Turns out - my dream kitchen comes with a really big price tag . 💵 wha waaaaaaaaah
After I got over the sticker shock, (and picked myself up off of the floor) I revisited my kitchen plan and made some adjustments to the original design. We also had a meeting with both our designer and our contractor that lasted nearly 3 hours and in the end, I think that we came up with a plan that's more within our budget and still significantly improves our current space. I may not have gotten EVERYTHING that I wanted in the new kitchen but I'm happy with the compromises that had to be made. My head was absolutely spinning by the end of our marathon kitchen planning session. 😶So many decisions to be made in such a short amount of time. (No one ever said designing a kitchen would be easy.) 😅 Chocolate is a non-negotioable on kitchen planning days. 🍫Turns out - a chocolate chip muffin takes the sting out of having to give up cabinet space to fit in duct work. 💁🏻♀️  Chocolate Chip Muffins 3 cups flour 3 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/3 cup butter, melted and slightly cooled 1/3 cup canola oil 1 cup sugar 2 large eggs, at room temperature 1/3 cup sour cream 1 cup milk, at room temperature 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 and 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips coarse sugar for sprinkling
 Bake 5 minutes at 425. Reduce heat to 350 and bake another 25 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Make your muffins jumbo...
or make them mini.
Chocolate chip muffins should be a staple on every weekend breakfast menu. Bacon, eggs, pancakes, waffles - chocolate chip muffins. 🍽 Sweet vanilla muffins studded with dark chocolate chips and sprinkled with sanding sugar is just about the most perfect way to start (or end) my day.
Ciao!  Who said redesigning my kitchen would be all fun and games? 😂We've only just begun the process and --- trust me, it's been a wild ride. Remember 2 days ago when I professed my love for a certain slab of granite that I was just SURE was destined to become countertops in my new kitchen? 24 hours after finalizing our decision - my countertop dreams were shattered. 😭 Why did I have to fall in love with the most expensive piece of granite in the entire warehouse!?! We were willing to stretch the budget a little for the right granite but this particular slab was not just a little but waaaaaay out of our budget. 💸 So, the great granite search continues. As of today, I've visited no less than 9 stone warehouses and I've seen hundreds of potential countertop slabs. I still think that there's a specific gene that one uses to look at a rock and visualize it as a surface in their home. A gene that I'm convinced, I don't have. 🤷🏻♀️Ironically, I can look at a potato and see ALL kinds of delicious possibilities. 🥔 I can look at a piece of fabric and see a dress. 👗I look at a rock and I see a rock. 😅 Apparently, that lacking gene is specific to rocks. 💁🏻♀️  It's a good thing that there are granite experts, who possess the gene, who can help me in my search for granite countertops. People who can point out the fine details in each stone. Things like marbling, veining and luster. When viewed through the eyes of an expert, it's easier to see the unique qualities of each stone. It's hard to deny the presence of God when you really stop to look at the undeniable beauty of these rocks that are being excavated from within our planet. 🌎 I think I've been granite shopping too long because I'm starting to see granite qualities in my baking now. 😅 The contrasting light and dark colors, the uniqueness of each piece and the beautiful design on top. Too much? 😂😂 Clearly, I need to take a step back from the great granite search for a little while. Maybe I'll just take a break and focus my attention on baking - something that doesn't involve making monumental decisions. 💁🏻♀️  Black and White Biscotti 12 tablespoons butter room temperature 1 ⅓ cups of granulated sugar ½ teaspoon salt 3 teaspoons baking powder 2 tablespoons vanilla extract 4 large eggs room temperature 4 cups all-purpose flour ¼ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder 1 teaspoon espresso powder 1 cup mini chocolate chips Topping: ½ cup melted dark chocolate 2 Tablespoons melted white chocolate
 Line up biscotti on baking sheet and bake 30-40 minutes.
 Pipe a line of dark chocolate down the center of each biscotti. Use a small knife to spread to the edges. Pipe 5 white dots down the center of each chocolate covered biscotti. Draw a toothpick through the dots to create a heart pattern.
This biscotti was amazing. If you're looking for a perfect recipe that appeals to both chocolate AND vanilla biscotti lovers, this is IT! If only choosing countertop granite was as easy as choosing a biscotti recipe. 😂 (I can't help it. 😅)
Ciao. |
