As I write this post, I’m sitting on a couch in an LA studio working on the biggest project of my career. It’s currently 10:30PM (12:30PM Chicago time) and I’ve been working for 18 hours straight.
Needless to say, I won’t be cooking — or blogging — for a while. But don’t worry, I’ll be back in a few weeks when I officially get my life back.
See you soon.
If you’ve been coming around here a while, you know that peanut butter is one of my favorite things. In fact, during my blog’s five-month lifespan, I’ve posted 10 peanut butter recipes. 10! I’m starting to think I should dedicate a separate section to it. Perhaps its own tab? Anyway…
All that being said, I’ve never posted a peanut butter cookie recipe. I know. How could I let this go unnoticed for so long? I guess I should thank my husband for making the recommendation because if he hadn’t, who knows how long my blog would have gone peanut butter cookie-less. Tragedy averted.
These cookies are melt-in-your-mouth good. Literally — they melt. And when topped with a sprinkling of sea salt AND Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups? OMG. Peanut butter heaven! Although I’ll warn you in advance — it’s impossible to stop at one.
Candied Peanut Butter Cookies (makes 12)
Adapted from Vanilla Sugar for Saveur
What you need:
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a beer snob. It’s my drink of choice — by husband’s, too — and we’re as passionate about it as some people are about wine. In fact, my husband has recently taken to collecting (and even trading) special edition craft beers. Believe it or not, there’s a larger market for this than you might think.
I tend to gravitate towards stouts, and occasionally I’ll get my hands on a bottle for experimental purposes (aka: baking). Since stouts pair perfectly with chocolate (take these brownies for example), they’re fun to play around with when creating dessert recipes. The slight bitterness and coffee flavor of the stout really enhances the depth of the chocolate. As if chocolate weren’t good enough on its own, right?
I’ve had this thick, luscious, deeply chocolatey hot fudge sauce recipe in my “must make” file for a while, and I knew that pairing it with some vanilla ice cream and smooth stout would be the perfect adults-only dessert.
Mmm…pure stouty goodness. Cheers.
Hot Fudge Sauce (makes about 2 1/2 cups)
From Smitten Kitchen
What you need:
Note: Store sauce in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat, microwave for 15 to 30 seconds.
My hubs and I eat a lot of energy bars. Between our busy work (and workout) schedules, we’re frequently reaching for something grab-and-go to give us the boost we need to get through the day (other than coffee, of course). My current favorite is the Chocolate Peppermint Stick Luna Bar, while he prefers the Chocolate Chip Clif Bar.
I’d love to be able to make my own energy bars from scratch, but I’d never be able to keep up with the demand — we eat way too many of them. However, when I saw these No-Bake Peanut Butter Energy Bites on The Cilantropist, I was instantly intrigued for a number of reasons:
1. I had all the ingredients in the house.
2. I didn’t have to bake them.
3. They contain peanut butter.
A no-brainer, right? I whipped up a batch the next day and instantly fell in love. They’re easy to make and even easier to eat — a perfect afternoon treat to get you over that 3:00 hump. I have a feeling these will become a staple in our active household…where we all could use a little extra energy.
No-Bake Peanut Butter Energy Bites (makes 12 – 15 bites)
From The Cliantropist
What you need:
*Feel free to substitute any dried fruit you like, totaling 1/2 cup.
How you do it:
Anytime I can put sour cream and cheese on something, I’m a happy girl. I guess that’s why I’m such a huge fan of Mexican food — what’s not to like? Unfortunately though, Mexican food also happens to be one of the worst diet offenders. So when that craving strikes (which it does frequently), I like to play around with different Mexican-inspired ingredients to see how I can satisfy that craving without throwing my entire concept of healthy eating right out the window.
This recipe — which contains healthy brown rice, black beans and sweet potatoes — gets a huge punch of flavor from canned chipotles in adobo. If you haven’t tried them before, you must — they’re an amazing way to add TONS of great smoky spice to a dish with hardly any effort. You won’t believe how good they taste when combined with the sweet potatoes.
The best part about this dish is that you can indulge in an entire bowl without feeling guilty. Each serving is packed with tons of protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals, so you don’t even have to feel bad about splurging with a little sour cream and cheese. I know I didn’t.
Smoky Chipotle Vegetarian Bowl (serves 4)
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How you do it:
Brunch. Something I never truly understood the awesomeness of until I moved to Chicago. We take our brunch pretty seriously here, which is a-OK with me as it’s the only meal where it’s acceptable to have something sweet, something savory, something caffeinated and something alcoholic all in the same meal. If you don’t like brunch, well…um…there’s something wrong with you.
The only downfall of living in a brunch-crazed city is the crowds. More often than not you have to wait for a table, which is absolutely the case at M.Henry, one of my favorite brunch spots. This cozy restaurant on Chicago’s northside serves up some amazing items, including one of my all-time favorites — Mango Blisscakes. Only available on Sunday’s, the Mango Blisscakes are just what they sound like — a stack of the fluffiest buttermilk pancakes you’ve ever tried, topped with fresh mango, creamy vanilla mascarpone cream and a brown sugar oat crust. Pure heaven.
I love them so much that I was inspired to recreate them myself so I could share the love with you. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
Now, let’s raise a mimosa to brunch, shall we? The best meal of the week.
Mango Blisscakes (makes about 10 pancakes; serves 5)
What you need:
I always receive a few grumbles of disapproval when I tell people this, but I’m not the biggest fan of fruity desserts. When it comes down to it, I guess I’m just a chocolate lover at heart. I blame my mother.
However, there are exceptions to every rule, and this cake is one of them.
Oh, this cake. So ridiculously simple but amazingly good — the strawberries themselves a sign that sunshine and warmer temperatures are upon us. A dessert that, dare I say it, puts chocolate to shame. Yes. To shame.
Don’t believe me? Try it for yourself. I double dog dare you.
Be sure to save me a piece.
Strawberry Buttermilk Pudding Cake with Mascarpone
Adapted from Sassy Radish
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How you do it:
Warning: what you’re about to see might frighten you, but I encourage you to continue reading. Because, despite what common sense might be telling you, these are good. Really good.
Growing up, whenever we’d have BLTs for dinner, I used to have a piece of toast slathered with peanut butter and topped with bacon (granted, it was always turkey bacon in my mom’s house). I know it sounds a little weird, but it’s the ultimate if you’re a fan of sweet and salty like I am. It dawned on me that this would be equally good — if not better — on a burger. So, that’s what I did. And it did not disappoint.
Sweet and Savory Peanut Butter Bacon Burgers (serves 4)
What you need:
(for the burgers)
(for serving)
How you do it:
As a food blogger, I spend a lot of time in my kitchen. It’s kind of like my office away from the office, and I’m sure you can guess which one I’d rather be working in.
My kitchen is equipped with everything you’d expect — side-by-side refrigerator, microwave, gas stove, dishwasher (thank God) — but it’s small. Counter and cabinet space is limited, and I basically ran out of storage space the day I moved in. Let’s just say that the ice cream maker I’ve had my eye on might have to take up residence in my bedroom closet (which isn’t big either). But all in all, my little kitchen does the job.
As a food blog reader, I’ve often wondered what other people’s kitchens look like — imagining the spaces in which their lovely masterpieces were created. So, to satisfy the Peeping Tom-like qualities in all of us, I created a Flickr group called “A Food Blogger’s Kitchen.” Here we can share a glimpse of our culinary offices with one another, and get a feel for what a blogger’s kitchen really looks like.
I hope you’ll share a photo of your kitchen (as well as a link to your blog) within this group. Feel free to tell your food blogger friends, too — the more, the merrier. Let’s see the kitchen behind the cook (or baker!).
I used to think that all bread and butter pickles were neon green and overly sweet, which is why — for a significant portion of my life — I didn’t like them. That all changed a few years ago during a trip to The Girl + The Fig, a fantastic little restaurant in Sonoma, California. I ordered the top sirloin burger with brie (one of the best I’ve ever had), which was served with a pile of matchstick frites and their homemade bread and butter pickles. I remember how fresh and crunchy they were, with just a hint of sweetness. I wish I could get my hands on their recipe, but in the meantime, I’ve created my own.
Pickling is actually very easy — vinegar, sugar and a selection of spices is pretty much all you need. I adapted part of my pickling method (the salt and ice) from Smitten Kitchen, but the rest is pretty standard. The traditional spices include mustard seed, coriander seed, and tumeric, but I like to use the pickling spice from Penzey’s which contains yellow and brown mustard seeds, dill seed, cloves and crushed red pepper (among other things).
Come summer, when the farmer’s markets are in full swing, I tend to always have a batch of these on hand. They’re so good with burgers and all that other delicious cook-out food, plus they’re so much better when you make them yourself.
Bread and Butter Pickles
Method adapted from Smitten Kitchen
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How you do it:
