TGROAT? Really?

In a recent Flipboard search for holiday meals, I locked-on a Bon Appetit recipe with this title:

Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies are The Greatest Recipe of All Time

What a claim!  Best of the best?  The use of a superlative adjective (found in so many titles we read anymore) got my attention, and I did not move on (would you have?)...rather, read on to discover what this cookie was all about.

You know that I spend a great amount of time perusing recipes, looking for something tasty to prepare.  Mostly I spend time under the umbrella of ANYTHING SWEET.  I say mostly because I am also very keen on health and the truth is...health wins out...always.  Many of my friends imagine that my sweet tooth rules my existence, but it does not.  Yes, the hunt for that new dessert keeps me internet-occupied and subsequently busy in the kitchen, but my day's plan never includes time for a sugar-induced coma.

I made the choice to stop purchasing items like cookies, cakes, bars, doughnuts, etc. quite some years back with the notion that when I wanted to indulge, I could have some knowledge and control over the ingredients I ingested.  Baking fills in where purchases no longer exist, but my love of kitchen activity/behavior is bound to health.

Okay, back to this cookie.  At first glance, it was not much to look at.  But I read through the backstory and was piqued by the ease of method, the brevity of ingredients, and hold onto your hats... the fact the these could be prepared and served in under an hour!  Was this enough to earn the TGROAT vote?

I decided to do what I love to do: I made these cookies.

Notes:

1.  FYI- There are variations on the BA recipe like this one from The Food Network.  

2.  The recipe from BA yielded 60 cookies, but if they failed to deliver, that would be a lot of waste, right?  So I cut the recipe in half and got 28 ping pong-sized cookies (2-bite cookies).

3.  I added an ounce or so of dark chocolate (broken into small pieces) when the oatmeal went into the mix.  This is an option.

4.  I used one cup of sugar, even though I should have used only 1/2 a cup.  It worked.

5.  I did not need to refrigerate the cookies after placing them on the cookie sheet.  They firmed up on the counter within 10-15 minutes.  Could be the season...it is December. 

6.  The leftovers were put into a cookie tin and then refrigerated.

7.  A one saucepan recipe...what's not to like about this?

8.  The cookies have a confectionary profile...kind of like a piece of fudge with some heft.

Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies

(Yield depends on size of cookie; see note above)

1/2 stick of salted butter

1/4 cup milk (I used 2%)

2 tablespoons of cocoa powder

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/8 teaspoon salt (optional)

1 and 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats

1-2 ounces of dark chocolate (optional)

Directions

1.  Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper, waxed paper, or silpat.  Set to the side.

2.  Into a medium-sized saucepan, place the butter, milk, cocoa powder, and sugar.

3.  Turn the heat to medium low and melt the butter, stirring to combine all ingredients.

4.  Turn heat up, and bring to a boil, stirring. 

5.  Allow to boil for one minute while stirring.

6.  Remove from heat and add peanut butter, vanilla, salt (if using), oats and extra chocolate (if using) into the saucepan.

7.  Mix until evenly incorporated.

8.  Use a spoon to scoop up dollops of batter and place onto the cookie sheet. (Using one hand, I was easily able to form the dollops into roundish cookies before placing them onto the cookie sheet.)

 9.  Let cool on cookie sheet.  They are ready to eat almost immediately.  Enjoy!

Am I ready to get behind the bold opinion that this cookie is the greatest recipe of all time??  That's tough to say because as usual, I was online today searching for and reading recipes, and guess what headline I saw from Bon Appetit?

                           Chili Colorado is the Greatest Recipe of All Time

:)  

Homemade Peanut Butter

I should be concentrating on where I am going today.  I should be packing for Paris.  I am leaving in less than 3 hours.  But where am I, and what am I doing?  Yep, I am in my kitchen preparing homemade peanut butter for sandwiches on the flight.  It's the truth!

I have wanted to make this recipe from Brown-Eyed Baker for awhile, but haven't gotten around to it.  Why get around to it on the day that I'm heading across the Atlantic?  Well, the short story is that we normally pack a meal/snack on a long flight, especially one like this where we arrive tomorrow morning and you never know just how long it will take from Charles De Gaulle to downtown...and I want us to be prepared.

Yes, I know that the airline will provide a dinner and a breakfast.  But what is that exactly?  This is what drives me to prepare something here...just in case I don't like what I'm served.

The only modification of this recipe was to cut it in half.  Rather than yielding 2 cups, I made only 1 cup of peanut butter.  This recipe is completed in less than 10 minutes because...well, it only has one ingredient! Winner!

Homemade Peanut Butter

2 cups of dry roasted peanuts

Directions:

1)  Place the dry roasted peanuts into food processor.
2)  Process for 2-3 minutes.  The peanuts will go from a granular to dough-like consistency and then right to heavenly smoothness.

Peanut Butter Bagel avec un peu de sel

Wrapped and ready for carry-on

Peanut Butter Date Cookies

I am a huge fan of peanut butter cookies, but not so much dates.  For me, dates are soooo sweet (yep, I said that...) that I prefer them in something that can power through their sugary nature.  Happily, a crisp green salad with crunchy vegetables, some goat cheese, sliced dates, and a lemony vinaigrette is just the ticket!  But I digress...

I would never think to introduce a dessert cookie (already successfully sweet) with the ultra sweetness of dates.  But, that was yesterday, and today is a new day with new learning :)  These cookies are still powered by the flavor of crunchy peanut butter, and honestly, they are more prettily speckled because of the addition of dates than they are full of date-y-ness.

Over the years, I have tweaked this Food Network recipe.  It asks for smooth peanut butter, but I use crunchy with salt.  It asks for all-purpose flour, but I use self rising (and leave out the salt and baking soda).  It does not ask for dates, but I used them!  Ta!Da! A new recipe is born.

Notes:
- I used salted, chunky peanut butter, but if your peanut butter has no salt, you may want to add 1/2 teaspoon when you add in the flour.
- I chill the cookie dough before rolling the balls because I find the rolling easier.
- The finished cookies also freeze well in zip-lock bags for quick desserts!
- The use of dates is completely optional.  Without them, this recipe is still a keeper!

Peanut Butter Date Cookies
Yield:  6 dozen cookies (1.5 inch diameter)

1 cup sugar, plus 1/4 cup additional for rolling
1 stick butter at room temperature
1 egg at room temperature
1 cup chunky peanut butter
1/4 cup dates, chopped finely
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/2 cups of self-rising flour

Directions

1.  Your oven will need to be at 375 º F when you are ready to bake.
2.  Place a piece of parchment paper on your baking sheet or grease your baking sheet.
3.  In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
4.  Add the egg and mix.
5.  Mix in the peanut butter, chopped dates (if using), and vanilla until smooth.

 Crunchy peanut butter with bits of date

6.  Add self-rising flour and mix again until well-combined.
7.  Collect dough onto a piece of saran wrap, shape, and wrap tightly.

8.  Place in refrigerator for an hour or so.
9.  When ready to bake, preheat oven, and remove your dough from the refrigerator.
10. Place your extra 1/4 cup sugar in a bowl.
10. Pull off pieces of dough and use your hands to roll into 1" balls.
11. Roll balls in the bowl of sugar.
12. Place on baking sheet.  They can be close as they do not spread much.

13. Use a fork for indentations if you wish.
14. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

15. Cool a few minutes before removing from sheet.
16. Soak your utensils in the mixing bowl.  Get to it later.