Peeeeaaaahhhh Buuuuuhhhhhh! (mouth full of peanut butter)

I've been craving peanut butter a lot lately. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, bumbs on a log minus the bumps (eww raisens), peanut butter and crackers, peanut butter straight from the jar (shhh don't tell.) So when I had the urge to make cookies the other day peanut butter cookies were a no brainer. And I found this recipe that includes oatmeal so that means it's healthy! Right?

Here's what you'll need: peanut butter (duh), butter, flour, oats, white and brown sugar, baking soda, salt, honey, an egg, and vanilla extract.

Mix together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl beat together peanut butter, butter, sugars, honey, egg and vanilla until well blended and nice and creamy. Stir in the dry ingredients in 2 batches. Refrigerate the dough for about 30 minutes until it is firm.

Form the dough into 1 1/2 inch balls and roll in sugar. Place them on a large baking sheet and smush down a little bit. Yes smush is a technical term. You can do the traditional criss cross with a fork, or you can roll like me and top with some extra peanuts. I happened to have honey roasted in my pantry.

Bake at 350 for 12 minutes or until puffed and beginning to brown. Cool on cookie sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. If you can wait that long that is. (I couldn't.)

Mmmmmm, stacks of cookies.


Peanut Butter Cookies
adapted from epicurious.com

1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1/3 cup old-fashioned oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup old-fashioned chunky peanut butter (about 9 ounces)
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup honey
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
The epicurious recipe also included 5 ounces semisweet chocolate coarsely chopped or chips, which I would have added if I had it on hand. But I didn't :(

I think I'm gonna stop rewriting the directions for recipes down here because I think I cover them pretty well with the photos and I'm lazy. If the directions are complex I might do them, but otherwise let me know if you need more step by step instructions. Peace!

The Search For The Perfect ... Brownie

There are lots of different ways to make lots of different foods, so I thought I'd take it upon myself to try different variations of some of my favorite foods to try to find the PERFECT one. And what better place to start than with brownies?

Looking in my pantry today, my sweet tooth started itching and unfortunately there was nothing in there to scratch it. A box of unsweetened chocolate caught my eye and I immediately thought, oooooo brownies! So I turned to my trusty computer to find a recipe and was dismayed when 100 different variations popped up, all with different ingredients. Unsweetened chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, or cocoa powder? White or brown sugar? Walnuts or pecans? Mocha? Mint? Cheesecake? Ahhhhhhhhhh! So I thought I'd start with the most basic of basic recipes, the one on the back of my Baker's chocolate box. Here's what it said:

For the ingredients: Unsweetened chocolate, butter, sugar, eggs, flour and vanilla.

In a microwave safe dish heat the butter and chocolate on high for 2 minutes, or until the chocolate is melted. Remove from the microwave and stir until chocolate is melted. Let it cool a little bit. Yes, those are photos of a bowl of chocolate and butter. What else do you need in life?

Mix the sugar in with the chocolate, then add the eggs and vanilla. Be careful not to scramble the eggs if your chocolate is still warm. Add in the flour and stir. (I also added a pinch of salt because I used unsalted butter.) Pour the batter into a 9x13 inch pan lined with foil and sprayed with oil. An easy way to line your pan is to fit the foil on the bottom of the pan first before setting it in the inside. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with fudgy crumbs. Do not overbake!

Cool the brownies before slicing. To slice, pull the brownies out of the pan using the foil. Since these brownies are pretty moist I found the easiest way to cut them is with a pizza cutter. Cut the brownies in big or small pieces depending on how much you want to indulge in. :)

Mmmmm, nothing beats a warm brownie. Except maybe a warm brownie with a scoop of ice cream on top. Overall this was a pretty good recipe for a standard brownie. Nice and moist, chewy, with that light crust on top. And the ingredients are pretty basic, so as long as you have the chocolate they're a snap to make. (Pretty instant gratification as far as baking goes.) I like a deeper chocolate flavor though, so I guess the search will continue. But it was a delicious start!

Chocolate Brownies
recipe courtesy of Baker's Chocolate

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 1/2 sticks of butter or margarine (3/4 cup)
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup flour
(A pinch of salt if you use unsalted butter)

In a microwave heat chocolate and butter in a microwave safe bowl for 2 minutes on high or until butter is melted. Remove the bowl and stir until the chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in sugar. Add eggs and vanilla, stir and be sure not to scramble the eggs. Stir in flour (and salt). Pour batter into a 9x13 pan lined with foil and greased. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until just set and a toothpick comes out with fudgy crumbs. Cool and enjoy!

For the purposes of this search I will not be changing any of the recipes I try. But that doesn't mean you can't! Feel free to add in nuts or different flavorings.

The best cookies ever!

Not only are these Cake Mix Cookies the best cookies ever, they're also the easiest cookies to make. There are only 5 ingredients! If someone asks me to bring a dessert to something, these are the cookies I'm bringing. Make them for yourself and you'll see why!

Here are the ingredients: 1 box cake mix (pretty much any flavor but Classic Yellow is still my favorite), 1 stick of butter, 1 package cream cheese (I used 1/3 less fat, gotta watch my figure), 1 egg, 1 tsp vanilla

Cream together the butter and cream cheese until nice and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Dump in the cake mix and beat until just mixed. (Don't worry about tiny clumps of cake mix, it happens.)

Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place on a non greased cookie sheet. I top them with some sprinkles, just cause it's fun. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack and enjoy! See how easy that was?

The cookies are delicious but I think my cat's more interested in that glass of milk!

Cake Mix Cookies
(makes about 4 dozen)

1 box Classic Yellow Cake Mix (I've also tried Red Velvet and Pineapple)
1 stick butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
Sprinkles (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat together butter and cream cheese until nice and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add in egg and vanilla and mix. Dump in cake mix and beat until just mixed. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Top with sprinkles if desired. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Enjoy with a glass of milk!

If you want the full yellow cake experience, top with your favorite chocolate frosting! Red velvet cookies with cream cheese frosting is also delish!