Peanut Butter and Nutella Cookies

Guys, I've been sick for like a month. It's starting to get ridiculous. I am nauseous CONSTANTLY (don't worry I'm not pregnant). The good news though is that while it has curbed my appetite I can still eat a variety of things that aren't chicken soup, ginger ale, or saltines. In fact I probably ate about 14 of these little gems, and I will argue until I'm blue in the face that they made me feel better (even if that feeling was 100% mental).

Truthfully though, these cookies are amazing. I rarely eat the stuff that I bake. I'm not sure why because I like sweets and I LOVE baking them. Perhaps I just get sick of it because I am tasting everything as I go along, or I don't want to ruin it if they turned out bad. Regardless of the reason, I hardly ever eat my own treats. So the fact that I ate so many of them should speak volumes about their deliciousness.

But the #1 factor about these cookies is how EASY they are to make (this factor also makes them kid friendly parents). Which is partly why I am posting them just in time for the long weekend. For those of us not going anywhere (or for those of you having people over) these are a great treat to make to ensure you enjoy this much needed long weekend.

I grabbed this recipe from One Hundred Dollars a Month or more precisely...Pintrest. No matter how I got there it is a really really great recipe, but i do make one change and that is adding more Nutella. I couldn't taste it enough in my first batch and I think it will be great with just a little bit extra.

Peanut Butter & Nutella Cookies

 Ingredients
1/2 C Unsalted Butter, softened
3/4 C CREAMY Peanut Butter (Jif is the natural choice)
1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C Brown Sugar, packed
1 Egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 3/4 C Flour
3/4 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 tsp. Kosher Salt
1/2 C. Nutella (at least!)




Instructions:

 Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper**

Step 2: Using a bowl or your fancy Kitchenaid mixing bowl add the butter, peanut butter, both white and light brown sugars, beat until smooth.

Step 3: Add the egg, and your vanilla extract and beat until combined. 

Step 4: Add the flour, baking soda and salt and continue beating until all of the ingredients are combined. make sure to get all that flour that inevitably sticks to the bottom of the bowl mixed in!
 
Step 5: Melt your Nutella in a microwave safe bowl. Gently pour it onto your dough. I think a zig zag pattern works best. Use your spatula (I used my hands because it was easier) to fold the Nutella into your dough. 
 
Step 6: Refrigerate your dough for about 15 minutes (it makes it easier to roll into balls. 

Step 7: Roll the dough into balls however big or small you want but I'd stay on the smaller side. Spread them out on your tray about an inch apart from each other. Use a fork to push the cookies down a little bit

Step 8: Bake them in the oven for 8-10 minutes. When you pull them out let them cool on a wire rack until room temperature (unless you want them gooey of course!)
 
**If you have never baked cookies on parchment paper you are MISSING OUT! Try it it helps them not stick to the pan making it really easy to get off the tray for cooling, and better yet...less cleanup for you!
 

I recommend storing them in an airtight bag or container with a piece of bread. Someone once told me that the bread helps keep the cookies moist. I'm not really sure why that is or if it really works, but I did try that this time and it worked for me!!! 

Happy Eating!

xoxo Tanner

Irish Oatmeal Bread

So I've told y'all i'm really on this bread kick...I can verify that with the 6 loaves I just ate at Spaghetti Warehouse.  So with that combined with St. Patrick's day and a weekend it's the perfect time for you to try this Irish Oatmeal Bread.

When it comes to everyday bread I'm pretty picky. For example I hate wheat bread....back in the day I hate to admit that I would dread going to my Aunt's house near lunch time because she ONLY had wheat bread. Disgusting...I wish I had done what she said though because now I am a bread addict and I like the ones that are the most worst for you. Mostly, I liked my all american Mrs. Bairds white bread plain and simple. OR sourdough, gotta love that.

But now that I'm a wee bit older and I understand that I can't eat bread all of the time and I should try to branch out to at least the slightly better for you multigrain breads I've faced a moral dilemma: Find new breads or quit eating bread regularly. that's such a silly question I could never give up bread. My whole immediate family should be considered grainavours. When we go to restaurants its disgusting how much bread we eat.

Anyway, this dilemma pushed me to find better for you recipes and I love this one I found from Cooking Light via MyRecipes.com (credit also to pintrest). This meets me half way. It uses half white bread, half wheat bread, and also uses oats. It's a better for you bread without giving up white bread entirely. This recipe is GREAT for every day bread and it works well as toast too.

Words of warning: Bread without a bread machine can be a little tricky and you need to be patient. If you are having problems please feel free to contact me or leave a message in the comments so I can help you figure it out!
  
Irish Oatmeal Bread
    
          Ingredients: 

•   2 1/4 C. Boiling Water
•   1 3/4 C. Quaker Oats
•   1 Tbsp. Salt
•   3 Tbsp. Butter
•   3 Tbsp. Light Brown Sugar, Packed
•   2 Packages of active dry yeast
•   1/2 C. lukewarm water
•   3 1/4 C. All-Purpose Flour, Divided
•   3 C. Whole Wheat Flour
•   1 Large Egg, gently beaten

Step 1: Combine the boiling water, oats, salt, butter and light brown sugar in a large bowl. Set aside for about 25 minutes.

Step 2: Towards the end of that time dissolve the yeast in warm water and let stand until it's foamy. (Pour the packets into the water and use a fork to gently whisk it. a couple of minutes later whisk again and you should be good to go). Add the yeast to the oats mixture.

Step 3: Slowly begin adding 2 3/4 C. of the white flour and the 3 cups of the wheat flour to the mixture, stirring as you add each cup. (Once it becomes dough like I find it's easiest to begin gently kneading with your hands.)

Step 4: Bring the dough onto a lightly floured flat surface and continue kneading the bread until it is smooth and stretchy. (Be patient this part can take some time). Keep adding the rest of your white flour a tiny bit at a time. You may not need it all, so stop once your dough is no longer sticky. Put the dough back into the bowl, cover and let rise in a warm location for about an hour. (during this time the dough should grow in size).

Step 5: Use your fingers to "deflate" the dough and let it sit for a couple of minutes. Then divide your dough in half and shape the dough as you please. You can put it in loaf pans, or cook them on baking sheets as I did. As you work with the dough and knead it into your desired shape try to eliminate airpockets and ensure the dough is "sealed" all the way around.

Step 6: Again let your dough rise. This time for about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees during this time.

Step 7: Brush your beaten egg over the tops of your loaves, and bake for 50 minutes or until the loaves are browned and "sound hollow when tapped".


And your done!  It's a little time consuming, but I promise it's worth it and you can do it while watching TV on a Sunday afternoon.

Happy Eating!

Tanner

Stuffed Peppers

It is GORGEOUS outside here in Texas and makes me think that pesky groundhog was wrong about six more weeks of winter. With excitement for spring but the threat of more snowy and cold days ahead I wanted to post a recipe that kind of covers both.

These stuffed peppers are a recipe that I have adapted from Kayln's Kitchen. It's really wintery comfort food that is still on the lighter side. They have proved to be a very popular and easy weeknight meal over at my house. My dad has requested them multiple times. If you know my dad that truly speaks to their quality. He will eat everything but never seems to really "like" anything!

So one of the best things about this recipe is it's flexibility. You can really customize it to meet your family's tastes. You could substitute italian sausage for turkey sausage, ground beef with taco seasoning, or even just chicken you pull off a rotissiere chicken. Don't like corn? No problem just switch out the vegetables however you like! Experimenting with the flavors is half of the fun.

I've also been testing out different flavored olive oils. And it's amazing how it can impact the flavor of your dish. So far my favorites have come from O Olive Oil in California. They have been on my favorite "bargain" shopping website Ruelala a bunch, so I have been able to try quite a few of the flavors for a heavily reduced price. My personal favorites are the Jalapeno Lime and the Fresh Basil (I use this when making my Pasta Sauce recipe!. But there are several to choose from.

Another way to mess with this recipe is the type of rice you use. I use pearled cous cous, Kalyn's Kitchen uses brown rice, but you could really use any. I bet Zattarain's boxed Spanish Rice would taste pretty good as well.

If you mix up the recipe let me know some of the variations you try! I'd love to have a running list of great variations so that I can mix it up. If certain flavors work well for you feel free to post them in the comment section so everyone can benefit!

Stuffed Peppers

                   Ingredients

                  1 Box of Pearled Cous Cous

            4 Large Bell Peppers, any color

            1 Large Onion, Diced

            Olive Oil

            1 Lb. Spicy Italian Sausage

            Oregano

            1/2 Bag of Frozen Corn

            3 Green Onions, diced

            Parmesan Cheese

            Salt and pepper to taste 

            Panko Bread Crumbs

            2 tbsp. Butter

            Cabbage

Step 1: Chop the tops off of the peppers and pull out the seed balls. You can use a knife to carefully shave the bottom of the peppers so they will stand up. Cut is much as you can off of the discarded pepper tops and chop it up to use in your stuffing mixture.

Step 2: Cook to CousCous according to the packages instructions.

Step 3: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. While your Cous Cous is cooking. Dice the onion. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan with high sides. (don't have one? a sauce pan works ok too!). Add the onion, green onion, diced peppers, corn, and oregano  to taste until soft and fragrant. 

Step 4: Remove the vegetable mixture and pour into a bowl and set aside. Using the same pan heat a tad more olive oil and cook the sausage until browned. Then add the vegetable mixture back into the pan and sautee for about 3-5 minutes to blend the flavors. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Step 5: Mix in about 1/3 C. of parmesan into the mixture until melted.

Step 6: Line your pan with a very thin layer of olive oil. Stuff each pepper with the mixture and set into your pan. Mix 1/2 C. of parmesan and 1/2 C. of Panko bread crumbs together in a small bowl. Pour on top of your peppers. (and by pour i mean use your hands to create a thin layer of it over the peppers). Bake the peppers for about 20 minutes or until the pepper is soft and the tops are turning brown and crispy.

Step 7: If you have extra stuffing you can cook it in it's own dish with panko and parmesan on top. I love eating it for breakfast!

Step 8: While your peppers are cooking. Use the same pan to melt 2 Tbsp. of butter. Saute the cabbage until soft and slightly wilted. Season with Salt and Pepper.

Step 9: When everything is done make a bed of cabbage on your plates and lay the pepper on top and enjoy!

It may seem like there are a lot of steps, but there really isn't and it's fairly easy. If you do the chopping up front it will save you a lot of time as you work through the recipe. I hope you enjoy it, it's one of my new favorite recipes!

Happy Eating!

Tanner

Cinnamon Sugar Bread

I'm not sure if I have talked about my obsession with bread. I haven't had the opportunity to cook a lot lately because I've been so busy, which is a HUGE BUMMER! That being said I am constantly looking for bread recipes.

I will be the first to say that I love Mrs. Bairds and Sara Lee, but there is something about cooking bread from scratch. The satisfaction that you made that, even after all the frustrating kneading or dough not rising right. And most importantly the smells! I remember my mom making them in her bread machine when I was little. It was always a real treat to get the homemade bread the really really good stuff. 

Unfortunately we no longer have a bread machine so I have had to find other, at times more difficult, ways to make breads. Over the next weeks as I post these bread recipes I will do my best to simplify and to let you know which ones are best when starting out. 

Bread is challenging especially if you've never seen it done before. You don't know what to expect, you don't know if the dough has risen enough..all are valid fears but you don't have to be so critical. It works a lot easier than you think! So...

 DON'T FEAR THE BREAD! BE THE BREAD!

This particular recipe I found on Averie Cooks. I really, really like it. And it wasn't too difficult...mostly because it doesn't use yeast. (so not a true bread) but that's ok. What matters is that it is scrumdiddilyumptious and you are going to LOVE it.

         Cinnamon Sugar Bread

                         1/3 C. Granulated Sugar

                         1 Tbsp. Cinnamon

                         1/4 C. Unsalted Butter, melted

                         1 Large Egg

                         1 C. Light Brown Sugar, packed

                         1/4 C. Vegetable Oil

                         1 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract

                         1 C. Buttermilk

                         2 C. All-purpose Flour

                         1 tsp. Ground Nutmeg

                         3/4 tsp. Baking Soda

                         pinch of salt

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350. Melt a tablespoon or two of butter and use a paper towel to rub the sides of the pan and coat lightly with flour. 

Step 2: Mix the Sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl. You'll use this later.

Step 3: Melt 1/4 c. of butter in the microwave and cool slightly. In a large bowl combine the butter, egg, brown sugar, oil, and vanilla. Then whisk in the buttermilk.

Step 4: Add the flour, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Stop stirring once everything is combined. (the batter may not be smooth and that's ok). 

Step 5: Pour half of the batter into prepared pan(s). Gently pound the tray on the counter to smooth the batter. Pour some of the cinnamon sugar over over this to create a cinnamon ribbon in the bread. Then pour the remaining batter on top. Again gently pound the tray on the counter to smooth.

Step 6: Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon sugar on top! It will help the crust become crunchy. Stick it in the oven and bake! Averie Cooks recommends 45-55 minutes, I started checking on mine at 35 minutes and when it was no longer jiggly in the center stuck a tooth pick in. If it comes out clean you're done!

It's really really really good! I hope you enjoy eating it and that it's not too hard for you to make. If you like the recipe I hope you keep reading my blog for more, but also be sure to check out Averie Cooks to see more of her great recipes.

check back this weekend for some yummy Valentine's treats!

Happy Eating,

Tanner

Christmas Morning Cinnamon Rolls

Who doesn't love Cinnamon Rolls?

Fair warning! If you want to do this you have to start them on christmas eve, and give yourself a little bit of time in the morning. But they are SO worth it! They have been really popular with my friends, and aside from the time letting things rise they aren't too too difficult.

They will make your house smell delicious, and make everyone in your family both big and small so happy. If it doesn't....you can blame me! I did make some notes (they are in purple) of specific things that have worked for me when using this recipe

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

For the Dough:

1 Tbs. active dry yeast (one package)

1/2 c. warm water

4 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

4 large eggs

1/4 c. sugar

2 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 c. unsalted butter (at room temp.)

For Filling:

1/2 c. unsalted butter melted 

1/2 c. sugar mixed with 1 tbs. ground cinnamon 

***I would make a little extra of this

For the Icing:

1 c. confectioner's sugar

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

2 tbs. unsalted butter (melted)

2 Tbs. whole milk

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Instructions!

Step 1 - Making the Dough

     *Note: they use a stand mixer  with the dough hook, but I just use my hands or a spoon. It's just as easy and you get less messy. Anyway, sprinkle the yeast over the water and allow to bloom for a few minutes then whisk until smooth.

      Whisk in 1/2 c. of the flour. Cover with plastic wrap and let it stand in a warm spot about 30 minutes. (I always put it on top of the dryer and let it run)

       Add the eggs, sugar, salt and remaining flour to the mixture. Knead it on a medium speed until smooth, Again I just use my hands (put a little flour on your hands first it helps counteract the stickiness)

      Add the room temperature butter and continue to knead adding flour to reduce stickiness as needed. Do this until the dough is smooth again. **If you are using your hands make sure you really work in the butter so it doesn't get clumpy. 

      Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about 2 hours. 

Step 2 - Making the Rolls

     Butter a 9 by 13 inch baking dish

      Roll out the dough into a huge rectangle (about 15 by 10 inches - if the dough keeps pulling backwards rest a damp towel on top of the dough for a couple of minutes and try again). 

   

      Brush half of the melted butter over the rectangle, but leave about a 1-2 inch strip butter free. 

     Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the butter (I'd press it into the dough just a little bit).

     Starting with the side that has butter to the edge...roll up the rectangle. The snugger the better!

     Cut your giant roll into 10 pieces and place them cut side up in the dish. 

     Brush with the remaining butter, cover with plastic wrap and let them rise in the refrigerator overnight.

Step 3 - Baking the Rolls

     The next morning, remove them and let them rise until half again as high (about an hour - but I am normally too anxious to wait this long and it's been ok)

  

      Preheat oven to 350 degrees and Bake until golden brown (about 30 minutes)

      Let cool and brush with the glaze

Step 4 - The Glaze

    In a small bowl sift together confectioner's sugar and salt

    In a different bowl whisk together butter, milk, and vanilla.

    Stir into the sugar to form a smooth paste and spread over rolls

THEY ARE SOOOOOOOOO YUMMY!!!!!!