You know that feeling?
The one where you know you are kind of… sort of… off track?
You can feel it.
It’s real and it’s… well… frustrating.
You try and work out how and why you got off track.
But you can’t quite put your finger on it.
There’s been all day futsal championships…
All day soccer championships.
Weekend sports.
And, oh, don’t forget the mid week training sessions for the weekend sports.
And speaking of weekends, there’s birthday parties to attend…
Concerts to get ready for…
And the endless driving!
Now don’t get me wrong… I’m not complaining.
I actually enjoy the chaos.
But I think I’ve forgotten what gets me through the chaos.
Through the swimming lessons, band, homework and the never ending housework!
Cooking.
Baking.
This is what I enjoy. What makes me happy.
But I guess when there’s so much of everything else to do, cooking, baking and blogging just feels like more work.
And here’s where I went off track!
I stopped doing the things that feed my soul! (Dramatic, I know! Sorry! Occupational hazard!)
I realised this while I was blanching and peeling the hazelnuts for this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie recipe!
The nuts were doing my head in.
I mean, come on! I don’t have better things to do than stand here rubbing the skin off hazelnuts?!?!
And can’t you just buy these little suckers skinless???
Then it hit me and I started to laugh.
The reason I called my blog Kitchen Therapy was because my own therapist pointed out to me that cooking is my form of mindfulness training.
My way to be fully engaged and in the present moment.
Sort of like my meditation.
(And we all now know how good meditation is for you!)
So I stopped thinking about how much I’d like to cook something and I just started doing it.
It felt good!
The hazelnut biscotti smelled amazing and I felt happy!
It was that simple!!!
It’s almost midnight and I’m snacking on these as I type.
My husband is next to me watching the latest season of Dexter complaining about not being able to stop eating them cos they taste sooo good!
I will definitely make these again, my daughter requested a choc-chip filling next time!
I can’t wait to see what the rest of the Tuesdays with Dorie group thought.
If you would like to check out the recipe, head over to this week’s hosts who have the full recipe on their websites.
Jodi of Homemade and Wholesome and Katrina of Baking and Boys.
Kitchen Therapy 
July 3, 2012 at 12:28 am
Great post! I really enjoyed reading it =)
July 3, 2012 at 1:17 am
I am so with you on cooking being a form of mindfulness, I love the feeling of being totally absorbed in the mixing and measuring, all the worries of the day totally forgotten for those few minutes. And the biscotti look divine!
July 3, 2012 at 11:47 am
Sanya – this is just way too funny. I just wrote my TWD post around the chaos concept – I guess I am not the only one off track these days 🙂 My mojo is still in hiding.
Your biscotti look beautiful.
July 3, 2012 at 1:46 pm
I loved these too – and I so agree that baking is mindfulness training for those who love it, like us.
July 3, 2012 at 2:02 pm
Baking is an absolute mind cleaner. I adhere to the choco chip version!
July 3, 2012 at 2:29 pm
Maybe it’s the time of year. I felt like I was loosing it the past couple of weeks. I absolutely hate when I feel stressed and pressured while cooking/baking. And, it’s usually not because of cooking/baking. It’s just like you mentioned, you start thinking of everything else that needs to get done. I took almost a good week off from blogging and cooking. Tried to sneak in a bit of time to look at new recipes. I felt refreshed when I went into the kitchen to make the biscotti. So much more enjoyable.
July 3, 2012 at 3:32 pm
Your biscotti look beautiful!
July 3, 2012 at 5:41 pm
Julia’s biscotti is amazingly delicious and your looks really beautiful.
I’ve tripled the dough at the very beginning to make 3 version and loved them all (too much)!
PS: how could your husband understand what they were saying on tv with all that “crunch crunch crunch” going on? 🙂
July 3, 2012 at 10:39 pm
glad you found your way back to what makes you happy.:)
the biscotti look lovely!
July 4, 2012 at 12:10 am
Glad you were able to slow down and enjoy!! Chocolate is a great addition.
July 4, 2012 at 1:53 am
I was just remarking to my husband last week that I seem to have lost my ‘mojo’ in the kitchen. For me, I think its about having 3 small children who want to eat pasta EVERY night. Or eat out, or eat anything that I haven’t cooked. It does something to your self esteem. I know we’ll get it back! have fun baking and eating those biscotti!
July 4, 2012 at 3:05 am
Baking is my sanity–great post. Yes, I think these should be bumped up even more with more chocolate than just a drizzle. 😉
July 4, 2012 at 4:38 am
I’m glad you’re back, it’s good to never forget what makes you happy!!!
July 4, 2012 at 10:30 am
Yeah, those hazelnuts about did me in, too 🙂 But well worth it in the end…perfect therapy for the craziness of life!
July 4, 2012 at 10:44 am
ah yes, ‘the power of NOW…that’s why baking is so good for the soul…
~Carmen
July 4, 2012 at 11:40 am
Hi Sanya, Nice to see you back in action. I so agree that the meditation of cooking and baking is soothing to the soul. Feeding those you love, including yourself, should never be a chore. Your biscotti look delicious. Nice work!
July 4, 2012 at 1:23 pm
I’m working on getting my knitting mojo back, but if the sun actually comes out this week like it’s supposed to, I think I’d rather just keep my baking mojo instead…
July 4, 2012 at 1:26 pm
I agree that cooking and baking are very meditative (at least until something goes awry!). I’m glad these cookies were such a hit for you – we enjoyed our versions, too.
July 5, 2012 at 4:34 am
Glad you were able to make these. I’m cookie’d out a bit, so I took a pass. Great photos!
July 5, 2012 at 11:24 am
Loved your post today. I did not realize it before, but I think baking is my mindfulness training too. I am glad I have a word for it now. Thanks so much!
July 5, 2012 at 1:39 pm
Loved reading your post – glad you got your mojo back!