Peanut Salad Dressing

I forgot to take a photo of the salad before we ate,
however, we used the dressing as a dip as well.

A short while ago was National Peanut Butter Day.

While my son decided to have a fluffernutter sandwich for dinner (that's marshmallow fluff and peanut butter for the un-initiated), we decided to use the peanut butter elsewhere in our meal.

I prepared a salad with shredded carrot, snow peas, a few other vegetables and some sort of dried/puffed noodles and whipped together a salad dressing loosely based on one I saw at Our Best Bites. The original recipe was Thai, however, we omitted the Siracha sauce, cilantro (we didn't have any) and swapped out the lime for lemon among other changes. I still would like to try the original recipe as I imagine it tastes excellent as well.

There was quite a bit of dressing in the end, and it was pretty thick, so we ended up adding extra water compared to the original recipe, and, after using it for salad on a second day, we used the dressing as a dip for vegetables. It was excellent.

Peanut Salad Dressing


1/2 cup peanut butter

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp sesame oil

2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

1 tbsp soy sauce

3 tbsp honey

2 tsp garlic puree

1 tbsp ginger puree

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup water

1. Place all ingredients except water in a blender and puree until smooth.
2. Slowly add water as required to reach the desired consistency.

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Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Just before the new year, I asked Jacob what his favourite cookie was. To my surprise, he told me it was the peanut butter and chocolate chip cookie I used to make him, (and later Meredith made for him) based on the Cookies for Rookies recipe from Crazy Plates by Janet and Greta Podleski.

When Jacob asked why Meredith's cookies turned out better than mine, Meredith pointed out to him that she knew the difference between baking soda and baking powder. Whoops!

We haven't made that recipe in years, so Meredith decided to make a batch for Jacob for a New Year's Day get-together.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 1/4 cup flour
1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
1/2 tsp each baking soda and salt
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup margarine
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees and prepare two cookie sheets (greased, or using parchment paper).
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, oats, baking soda, and salt.
3. Using a stand mixer, cream together the brown sugar, margarine, peanut butter, and buttermilk. 
4. Add dry ingredients and mix to form a smooth dough. Stir in chocolate chips.
5. Roll dough into 1-1/2 inch balls, and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. Using a fork, flatten cookies to between 1/2 and 1/4 inch thickness. Bake for 10 minutes. 
6. Immediately remove cookies from cookie sheet and cool on a wire rack.

Makes approximately 30 cookies.

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Squares

Squares:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/3 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup quick cooking oats
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 egg
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chip

Peanut Butter Glaze

• 1/3 cup icing sugar
• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• 1-2 tbsp milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 13x9 pan.
2. Mix sugar, brown sugar, butter and peanut butter in a large bowl. Stir in flour, oats, baking soda, salt, vanilla and egg and spread evenly on the bottom of the pan.
3. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and then immediately sprinkle with chocolate chips. Let stand for 5 minutes or until chocolate chips have softened and then carefully spread melted chocolate over the baked layer.
4. Refrigerate uncovered about 30 minutes or until chocolate is firm.
5. Prepare the glaze by mixing all ingredients until smooth and thin enough to drizzle.
6. Drizzle glaze, refrigerate again for 10 minutes and cut for serving.

Based on Hun, What's For Dinner?

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Broken Bakugans (Chocolate Cookie Peanut Butter Sandwiches)

• 1-1/3 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup packed yellow sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup margarine
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup peanut butter

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, both sugars, cocoa, baking powder and salt.
3. Cut in the margarine until the mixture is well mixed and crumbly.
4. Add eggs and vanilla and mix thoroughly.
5. Using a 1" cookie scoop, scoop mixture into balls on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 12-14 minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.
6. After cookies cool, make sandwiches using two cookies and about 1 tsp peanut butter.

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Peanut Butter, Banana, and Honey Cookies

• 1-1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 4 tbsp butter (unsalted)
• 2 cups brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 ripe banana, mashed (about 1 cup)
• 2 cups oats

Peanut Butter Honey Glaze:

• 3 tbsp smooth peanut butter
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp milk
• 1 tbsp honey

1. Preheat the oven to 350-degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon and set aside.
3. In the mixer bowl, fold butter, sugar and brown sugar and mix until smooth.
4. Continue mixing while adding peanut butter, honey, vanilla and egg.
5. Continue mixing and add the banana.
6. Continue mixing and slowly add the flour mixture.
7. Continue mixing and add the oats.
8. Using a cookie scoop, place dough balls 2-inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets or baking mats.
9. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden and cool on wire racks.
10. To make the glaze, combine peanut butter, powdered sugar, milk, and honey in a small bowl and whisk until smooth. If the mixture is too thick, add more milk. If it's too thin, add more sugar. Drizzle glaze over cookies once they've cooled.

Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies

Recipe inspired by Two Peas and their Pod

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African Chicken in Peanut Sauce

Served on a combination of white and black rice. It was
news to me that black rice turns the white rice purple
if you cook them together. 

• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 tsp chopped garlic
• 1 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 3/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper (or to taste)
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 kilos chicken pieces (with or without skin)

• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 medium onion, finely diced
• 1 red pepper seeded and finely diced
• 1 green pepper, seeded and finely diced
• 1 carrot, finely diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced
• 4 cups chicken broth or stock
• 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 small tomato, seeded and diced
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tsp minced fresh ginger
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1. Combine salt, pepper, 2 tsp minced garlic, onion powder, cayenne and oil, rub onto chicken and let marinate for 2-3 hours in fridge or overnight.
2. In a dutch oven, heat 2 tbsp oil, brown chicken in batches and set aside.
3. Add onions, bell peppers, carrot, garlic, and jalapeno and fry for five minutes, gently scraping the bottom of the ban with a wooden spatula.
4. Add chicken stock and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce to medium and let simmer for 20 minutes, uncovered.
6. Add peanut butter, tomato paste, tomato, thyme, ginger, coconut milk and pepper and stir for two minutes.
7. Add back chicken and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep sauce from sticking and turning chicken after 15 minutes.
8. Stir in cilantro and serve with rice.

Based on African Chicken in Peanut Sauce by John Spottiswood

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No-bake Chocolate Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Cookies

Long weekend goodies

It looks like my tweeting tasty items has paid off. Meredith decided to (not) bake some no-bake cookies from Baking with Sneakers, to bring to Penny's for a long-weekend dinner. Most of the cookies turned out, however, the last bit of mixture in the bowl got a little dry and wouldn't hold together.

Lucky for me, the recipe has some of my favourite ingredients for dessert (chocolate and peanut-butter), so the extra remains will stick around for a dessert topping. Reminds me of the Officer Reese skit from Family Guy where the cop shoots two car crash victims who got one's peanut butter in the other's chocoate, and vice-versa.

It's also the first dessert being prepared in the Haggis and the Herring's new location and kitchen.

No-bake Chocolate Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Cookies

• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cup soy milk
• 4 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 3 cups oats
• 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 cup rice krispies or equivalent cereal

1. Combine oil, sugar, milk and cocoa and bring to a boil. Let simmer for one minute.
2. Remove from stove-top, add peanut butter and mix until melted.
3. Add remaining ingredients and stir.
4. Drop spoonfulls of mixture onto parchment paper or a SILPAT nonstick baking mat and refrigerate until firm.

Recipe based on Baking with Sneakers


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