these might be just the ticket for you! i haven't made them yet but i'd trust sol and there's nothing here not to like! Angel Hair Flans Source: adapted from Sol 1 cup heavy cream 3 large eggs dash of dried thyme dash of nutmeg 3/4 tsp salt 3 shakes pepper 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 3 ounces of angel hair pasta, freshly cooked Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray six 1/2 cup soufflé dishes or ramekins with cooking spray. Whisk first 4 ingredients in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese. Divide cooked pasta among prepared ramekins. Pour egg mixture over angel hair pasta. Sprinkle flans with remaining Parmesan. Bake until flans are set and golden brown, about 25-30 minutes. Run small knife around sides of ramekins to loosen. Unmold and serve.

My proposed layout is very similar to the first plan here, except the sink is on the exterior wall instead of the peninsula. I won't have a butler's pantry - or any other kind of pantry, alas. In a small kitchen such as mine, I see very little reason to have a prep sink even without the Stages sink. The vast majority of our prep will still happen at the sink - and between the sink and range. I really want the expanse of peninsula counter to be freed up for seating, the illusion of space and an uninterrupted surface for putting out food and drinks and whatever else. Meanwhile, other posters seem to be noting that the Stages doesn't work as well on a cabinet run with uppers and is best for islands and open peninsulas and such. So, for Mrspete, that part seems to work well, while it has me all but ruling out a Stages. Many folks have also cautioned against the sink and range being on opposite sides of the aisle - for safety reasons as well as the convenience of the counter between the sink and range as an important prep and staging zone. When the issue of a range on a window has come up, people have commented consistently that grease and grime does not seem to be attracted to the window and it's at least as easy to clean as tile. My aunt has a backsplash window behind her range - and zero complaints. She loves it - and has now implemented it again in her newest house. However, that being said, I like the range on the bottom of the U just fine - and it avoids the problems with the range and sink being on opposite sides of the aisle. I'm going that route - and I am leaning towards not using uppers on that small wall. My big anxiety there is how to center the range on the wall - or give the illusion of it being centered, given I have a bump out to deal with on the right side. I do like the proposed turning of the fridge with the larger pantry behind it, though. Assuming the plan can be tweaked like that, it seems like there's a lot of value in doing it.

Thanks everyone for the comments!! Lots of ideas. The bookshelves I would like to keep there. I was planning on painting them later on maybe, once I get the accent colors in the room decided. Also will be replacing the blue runner with another color runner or nothing on the top or two lamps on the top (maybe the Pierone exhibit teal lamp). Yes, we will need seating, we will be hosting dinners (usually with kids) and also have friends/family visiting often. The orange sofa would have to stay facing the TV, since my husband loves to sit there. The white chaise I liked a lot. Have rearranged the furniture again and attached a few pics. These are with the chaise on the opp side near the window, but this look made it look like an office reception area: I then changed the chairs at an angle, made it look a little different: I then moved both chairs to the smaller area and yes this will function as a small play area and a place to read books. I liked this look a lot. My toddler loves these chairs, she can easily climb on them and we can both fit on one chair and read a book. For the main seating I moved the sofas back away from the wall and in the center a little. My husband likes to rest his feet, so if I buy an ottoman or two, it would stay in that empty space. I think the addition of a rug and two small side tables will bring it together. Yes, the sofas are new and still deciding which look to keep. We may return a few pieces if we dont like the look in a week or so. thanks, Cooks.

There are several things that must be considered. I like to use the concept of MOST amount of flooring that follows the general rule. If you have a single room (lets say 10' x 10' = 100sf) and then the REST of the space is much, much larger (say 600sf), you would want to try to keep the MAJORITY of the flooring (600sf) sticking to the rule of "longest length = long run of the room". The other question with hardwood becomes wooden subfloors. Sigh. Wooden subfloors over joists change the equation. Hardwood floors must be run perpendicular to the joists - no matter how big/small the rooms are. So...without knowing your set-up, without knowing your subfloor, without knowing the direction of sunlight, without knowing very much of anything about your situation...the majority of the home should follow the rule of thumb. Unless other factors contribute to changing this. Which I can't tell because there isn't enough information. And just for fun...diagonal is always an option = 15% waste and a more expensive labour bill.