May 25
2013
I’ve been wanting to make these cookies for a while now. My husband’s favorite kind of cookie is peanut butter and since he’s spending most of his Memorial Day weekend repairing a fence I decided to make him a treat.
All the peanut butter cookies I’d made up to this point have contained flour. And while they’ve been good, they lack the strong punch of peanut butter flavor that would make them stand out as a really good peanut butter cookie.
So when I found this recipe at the And Then We Saved blog, plus the many flavor variations she describes to make from one standard, flourless recipe, I knew I had to try them.
I’m partial to these fluffernutter ones, which simply have some marshmallow cream swirled into the batter; but she’s added Nutella to the batter instead, which I think would also be stellar. Click on the blog link below to view her recipe and the other variations she describes.
Our family vacation is coming up and I’m going to be sure and make another batch of these for the road!
Flourless Fluffernutter Cookies
2013-05-25 15:50:00
Yields 20
1 c. natural peanut butter
1 c. sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 t. vanilla extract
1/2 t. sea salt
6 T. marshmallow cream
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place racks in upper and lower thirds of oven.
In medium bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, sugar, beaten egg, vanilla and salt until well combined.
Gently stir in the marshmallow cream until evenly streaked through the cookie batter.
Evenly scoop mounds of dough onto cookies sheets lined with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. I used a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop.
Bake 10-11 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking time.
Adapted from And Then We Saved
Foodtastic Mom http://www.foodtasticmom.com/
May 24
2013
This was a totally last-minute dish that I hadn’t planned to make. Thanks to my husband who decided to invite friends for a cookout and assured me we’d figure out the food when everyone got there. Does he not know me at all? Seriously, I was happy to host our friends and neighbor, but while I may procrastinate in most other areas of my life, feeding people is not one of them. I like to be prepared.
Luckily, I had some good ingredients already in the house and was able to come up with this orzo salad on the fly. I even took the leftovers the next day to my Christian Moms end-of-year brunch and friends asked for the recipe, so that made me happy. I used fresh mozzarella cheese because that’s what I had, but I think this salad would be just as good, and maybe even a bit better, with crumbled feta cheese instead.
This would be a good side dish for your Memorial Day festivities this weekend as well… hint, hint. It’s surprisingly cool around here this morning (Friday). I’ve biked my son (second grade) to school for the first time this week because Tuesday our elementary celebrated its first official Walk/Bike to school day. I’ve really enjoyed it and wished we started riding earlier in the year. Also, my son is a sleeper and kind of tough to get out of bed on school days…except now that he gets to look forward to riding his bike, he is bright-eyed and ready to go. Today my husband got to ride with him since he’s a teacher and actually had his last day of teaching yesterday (lucky dog). So I have to share these pictures…
Orzo Pasta Salad with Cucumber and Tomato
2013-05-23 15:25:32
8 oz. orzo pasta (1/2 box)
1 English cucumber, peeled and diced
4-5 tomatoes, cored, seeded and diced
3 T. grape seed oil
1 large shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 lemons, juiced
1 T. honey
1 t. dried dill
1 t. kosher salt
1/2 t. cracked black pepper
6 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, crumbled (or use feta if you prefer)
Heat skillet over medium heat. Add the grape seed oil and shallot and saute until shallot begins to brown. Add garlic and saute for about one minute more until fragrant. Remove pan from heat and whisk in the lemon juice, honey, dill, salt and pepper.
Add the chopped cucumber and tomato to a large bowl and pour the dressing over the vegetables.
Meanwhile, cook orzo according to package directions. Drain and rinse well under cold water.
Add orzo to vegetables and dressing and mix well to combine.
Toss in crumbled fresh mozzarella cheese. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour until chilled to serve.
Foodtastic Mom http://www.foodtasticmom.com/
May 22
2013
This makes me happy.
I love a half a bagel in the mornings. My favorite happens to be the whole grain from Panera. I buy them whole, slice them in half as soon as I get them home, then put the halves in a Ziploc freezer bag and store in the freezer, so they are ready in the mornings for the toaster.
I vary my toppings… sometimes it’s hummus, sometimes peanut butter (with honey or sliced banana), and a lot of times it’s cream cheese and preserves. And let me tell you, these homemade Rhubarb Grapefruit Preserves are a great way to dress up your morning bagel.
After making the strawberry rhubarb crisp last week, I kept thinking about what else I could make with rhubarb. For whatever reason, grapefruit and cardamom marmalade with rhubarb popped in my head and wouldn’t you know it, but several recipes for this ruby-red ambrosia do exist. I borrowed from The Wednesday Chef blog, who shares Chez Panisse’s recipe (you know, Alice Waters’ restaurant).
Making these preserves made me happy. It smelled wonderful and it made two jars, perfect to make a friend of mine happy with a gift. And today as I’m writing this post, I’ve been listening on repeat to Pharrell Williams’ new song for Despicable Me 2, “Happy”. I’m so excited for the movie to come out… the trailer has me in stitches. You’d think I was still a kid! And this song is so catchy and just plain awesome. Click on the minion picture to go to Rolling Stone and take a listen for yourself… then make some of these preserves.
Rhubarb Grapefruit Preserves
2013-05-22 15:29:24
2 lbs. fresh rhubarb, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
2 organic ruby-red grapefruit
3 c. sugar
1/4 t. cardamom
Wash and cut rhubarb. Wash skin of grapefruit and zest both with a microplane grater. Just the colored skin, not the white underneath. Add the cut rhubarb, grapefruit zest, cardamom and sugar to a large stock pot. Squeeze juice from both grapefruit into the pot also. Stir to mix.
Heat over medium heat until boiling. Stir occasionally and allow to simmer for 30-40 minutes, or until the rhubarb has completely broken down and the mixture is very thick, like preserves.
Remove from heat and allow to cool in pot on the counter for 20-30 minutes.
Spoon preserves into glass jars and store in refrigerator. If storing in freezer for later use, be sure to leave at least an inch of space at top of jar, so your jars don't explode (from expanding preserves) when frozen.
If you know how to can, by all means, can it!
Adapted from The Wednesday Chef
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