Like most people I have my own favourite recipes that I rely on and like to use often, but sometimes I also like to shake things up a bit and try something different. Usually when I bake Peanut Butter Cookies, I use my tried and true "Soft and Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies" recipe.
That is the one I have been baking for over 40 years and the one that we love the most. Sometimes I am tempted however to try something different.
I am also trying to use my cookbooks so that I know which ones to keep and which ones to give away. This book, The Weekend Baker by Abigail Johnson Dodge is one I have had for a long time and I confess, I have never baked anything from. I don't know why. Today I cracked it open to have a gander through and this Big-Time Peanut Butter Cookie recipe caught my eye.
Peanut Butter is one of my favourite things upon the earth. I am never without an open jar and a reserve jar in the house. It is just something I can't bring myself to live without. Skippy is my preferred brand. I buy it by the HUGE jar at Costco. I must confess, I am not fond of any type of British peanut butter, and I have pretty much tried them all.
This recipe is a bit unusual in that the only fat in it is the peanut butter . . . no butter or shortening in sight . . .
It also only uses five other ingredients if you count the candy covered chocolate buttons. The author used mini M&M's, but we can't find them here so I used mini candy covered cake decorating chocolate balls.
You cream the peanut butter together with soft light brown sugar, only 3/4 of a cup . . . creaming them until they are well combined.
You can use an electric whisk for this, or you can be lazy like me and use a wooden spoon rather than drag out the mixer. After that you beat in an egg . . . and some vanilla.
You can't have a peanut butter cookie without some vanilla in it can you!
After that you only need to stir in the flour. The dough is a really stiff dough . . .
I was quite surprised actually . . . I had not expected this stiff a dough . . . it was a bit difficult stirring in the chocolate bits but I persevered . . .
I had thought they might spread out a bit, but they really didn't spread out much. Hmmm . . . I wasn't too sure about this . . . I broke one open and tasted it. Very dense . . . fudgy almost like a brownie.
I wasn't too sure if I was going to be that fond of them . . . but they were still warm. An hour later, I tried one again once they were completely cold and I fell in love. These turned out fabulous! I was really pleased!
Big-Time Peanut Butter Cookies
Yield: 20
The only fat in these cookies is the peanut butter. Make sure you use a good one! Dense and fudgy, and using only five other ingredients. Simple.
ingredients:
- 285g smooth or crunchy peanut butter (1 1/3 cups) (I like Skippy), at room temperature
- 170g soft light brown sugar (3/4 cup, packed)
- 1 large free range egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 35g plain flour (1/4 cup)
- 170g mini candy coated chocolate bits (optional) (1 cup)
instructions:
How to cook Big-Time Peanut Butter Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 18-*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line two baking sheets with baking paper. Set aside.
- Cream the peanut butter and sugar together until well blended. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Stir in the flour until well combined. The mixture will be very stiff. Stir in the chocolate bits if using.
- Shape 2 TBS of the dough into a ball and place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Press down lightly with a fork.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 12 minutes, until puffed and looking dry on top. Let rest on the baking sheets for about 10 minutes before scooping off onto wire racks to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container.
While I am not sure that these will totally replace my regular peanut butter cookie recipe, I am sure that they are cookies I will bake again. They were quick to make and really do taste fabulous! Dense, fudgy and really chock full of rich peanut butter flavour. I am not sure I would do the chocolate candy addition again however. They might be better with mini M&M's instead of what I had to use. The author also suggests drizzling them with melted chocolate. I think that would be really tasty also! In any case I declare these winner/winners!
If you are a regular reader of my page you will remember that a few months back I went with a friend to a Moroccan restaurant for lunch one day and fell totally in love with Moroccan food . . . exotic North African food which is big on flavour, aroma and spice.
A Tagine is a type of a Moroccan stew which has been named after the clay pot it is traditionally cooked in. Wide and round at the base with a lid that is tall and tapered at the top with a small circular opening which is designed to return a lot of the condensation to the bottom of the dish, resulting in a stew which is rich, moist and luscious. You can of course replicate this effect by adding a paper cartouche to an ordinary flame proof casserole dish with a lid.
A cartouche is merely a circle of crumpled grease paper with a hole cut out of the centre. It works just as beautifully. Today I used my Le Creuset casserole dish with a cartouche.
Some of the flavours traditionally used in Moroccan food would be things like cinnamon, cumin, turmeric, ginger, coriander, saffron, mace, nutmeg, cloves, fennel, anise, cayenne, fenugreek, caraway, black pepper and sesame seed . . . so think warm spices, sweet spices, fragrant spices . . .
Their food can also be characterised by the use of dried fruits and citrus, which when combined with meat, fish or poultry, and the warm fragrant spices makes for a wonderful combination . . .
You will also find sauces which are frequently thickened by using ground nuts. Wholesome and again . . . flavourful.
This dish today uses chicken thighs . . . traditionally you would use bone in and skin on thighs, but all I had was the boneless, skinless ones, because we try to eat as lean as we can. They worked fine.
Along with the chicken thighs . . . I have used ground cumin, cinnamon, ginger and paprika . . . along with salt and black pepper . . . very aromatic.
The sauce also contains finely chopped onion and ground almonds . . .
Whole dried apricots provide a sweetness that goes very well with the chicken and other flavours . . .
I always buy the natural ones for the most part, which haven't been treated with sulphur They are not as bright orange and jewel-like as the other ones, but they are filled with untainted flavour . . .
Just use what you have . . . I am thinking a handful of prunes would also go very well.
A handful of chopped mint goes in along with the apricots . . . adding a lovely flavour as well . . . mint is a really under-used herb. Its quite common to serve it with lamb, but it goes very well in this dish.
Our house smelled lovely while this was cooking . . .
I served it with some cooked brown basmati rice, but couscous would be much more traditional.
Tagine of Chicken with Apricots & Mint
Yield: 4
A delicious Moroccan stew of chicken thighs and apricots. You can either cook it in a heavy flame proof casserole dish or a clay tagine pot.
ingredients:
- 3 1/2 TBS butter
- 6 X free range or organic chicken thighs
- 1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp sweet paprika
- freshly ground sea salt and black pepper to taste
- 100g ground almonds (1 generous cup)
- the juice and finely grated zest of one large orange
- 600ml light chicken stock (2 1/2 cups)
- 175g of soft dried apricots (I use the ones cured without sulphur, scant 1 cup)
- 3 TBS chopped fresh mint, plus more to garnish
instructions:
How to cook Tagine of Chicken with Apricots & Mint
- Preheat the oven to 160*C/325*F/ gas mark 3.
- Melt the butter in the bottom of a large heavy casserole dish. Add the chicken, 3 pieces at a time, and brown until golden brown all over, removing to a plate as you go along, and repeating until all the chicken has been browned. Add the onions to the drippings, along with the spices, and cook, stirring, until the onions have begun to soften and the whole mixture is very fragrant. Stir in the ground almonds, orange zest and orange juice. Nestle in the browned chicken thighs and pour the stock over all, giving it a good stir.
- Cover with a cartouche. A cartouche is a circle of crumpled baking paper with a hole cut from the centre. Cover with the lid of the casserole dish and place into the preheated oven. Roast for half an hour.
- Remove from the oven. Discard the cartouche. Stir in the dried apricots and the chopped mint. Return to the oven and roast for a further 20 minutes, uncovered. at this point the meat should be tender and falling from the bones. The apricots should be lovely and plump and the sauce thickened.
- Taste and adjust seasoning as required. Sprinkle with a bit more mint and serve. Couscous or rice go very well with this.
If you are a family that usually opts for a Chinese or an Indian meal on Saturday nights, I challenge you to try Moroccan for a change! I think you will be pleasantly surprised! A flat bread would be nice with this to help sop up all of that delicious gravy!
Of all the refreshing blueberry dessrts you can make, this recipe I am sharing today is one I think you are really going to enjoy!
These Little Blueberry Puddings are destined to become a family favourite. Served warm with cream or ice cream, they go down really well.
They are also very simple to make, using simple ingredients that you probably already have in your home, with perhaps the exception of some Wild Blueberry Conserve.
But take heart, if you don't have any of that, you can also use lemon curd, or even orange marmalade!
All are delicious! Trust me on this. You are limited only by your imaginations and what's in your refrigerator.
What will it be. There is really no limit, but I can tell you this, easy blueberry recipes like this one are my absolute favourite.
You make a simple batter, lightly flavoured with vanilla and fresh lemon zest, into which you fold some fresh berries.
I have never used frozen, so I can't say with any authority how well they would work.
You then divide the batter between six paper lined muffin cups. Why the paper? Because jam sinks and it sticks.
You will be glad that you used them. Trust me on this also!
Once you have filled the papers you swirl a teaspoon of jam (curd, or marmalade) into each and then scatter a teaspoon of Demerara sugar on top.
On a side note, can you imagine how delicious these are with lemon curd? Wowsa!
I believe in North American Demerara Sugar is called Turbinado sugar.
It adds a nice crunch to the top.
You then bake them in a preheated oven until golden brown. I like to dust the finished puddings with some icing sugar.
I think a little dusting of icing sugar prettifies most desserts don't you?
Let them cool for a bit, remove the papers and then pop each into a dessert bowl or onto a small dessert plate . . .
Warm and ready to be enjoyed with lashings of pouring cream . . .
A dollop of clotted cream . . . (that's the best!)
Or an ice cold scoop of vanilla ice cream . . .
No matter how you choose to enjoy these, one thing is certain . . .
You WILL enjoy them! Now start pre-heating that oven!!
Little Blueberry Puddings
Yield: 6
Moist and delicious. Serve warm with some pouring cream, clotted cream, or ice cream! I bake them in a muffin tin which I have lined with paper so that they don't stick.
ingredients:
- 4 TBS softened butter
- 95g granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
- 1 large free range egg
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- the grated zest of one lemon
- 140g plain flour (1 cup)
- 60ml milk (1/4 cup)
- 75g fresh blueberries (3/4 cup)
- 6 tsp wild blueberry conserve/jam
- 6 tsp demerara sugar (turbinado)
You will also need:
- Icing sugar to dust
- pouring cream, clotted cream or ice cream to serve
instructions:
How to cook Little Blueberry Puddings
- Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Line a six cup muffin tray with cupcake liners and spray the liners with non-stick cooking spray.
- Cream the butter together with the sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, lemon zest, and the vanilla. Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Add to the creamed mixture alternately with the milk beginning and ending with dry mixture. Fold in the fresh berries.
- Divide the batter between the six prepared cups. Top each with 1 tsp of blueberry jam and swirl it in with a toothpick. Sprinkle each with 1 tsp of the turbinado sugar.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.
- Let sit in the pan for about 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack and dust with icing sugar. Remove the papers and place each in a bowl or on a dessert plate and serve fairly warm. Pass the cream or clotted cream, or top with a scoop of ice cream. Delicious!
Any leftovers can be gently reheated and served. (As if there would be any leftover, lol) Enjoy!
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