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

Grilled Pizzas

You know that time I said I would be better about posting and then wasn't? Yeahhhh...sorry about that. BUT my little weather app tells me this weekend in Dallas is going to be warm and GORGEOUS! Which is hilarious since it was freezing last night. Anyway, this grilled pizza receip is to die for and is a perfect way to kick off the warm (or excruciatingly hot?) season.

When it comes to pizza I will literally eat it all. Lunchable mini pizzas? Duh. Domino's? Check. That new (but i guess really not so new) garlic crust is the bomb. Lover's pizza? Check. Campisi's? Check. Grimaldi's? Double check. There are so many other great pizza places around this city and I'm sure plenty I've never heard of. Union Bear in west village is one of my new favorites and I highly recommend it to anyone.

But with all of these options it's easy to throw away home cooking and my favorite motto of fresh is best.  I know it's pretty hard to get motivated, especially when you have to make some sort of dough. It's time consuming for sure! But it tastes amazing, it's healthier, and it's a good way to get kids, other family members or friends involved in the kitchen.

These little pizzas are also a great idea for a small party or get together. Every time I have made these I've set up a pizza bar and invited friends and family over to dig in. You just need to make a bunch of dough discs and chop up your favorite toppings like pepperoni, sausage, bell pepper, olives, jalapeno's, onions, etc. and let your guests make their own creations. It's great because it can be hard to cater to and please everyone at a party. This way you most definitely don't have to.

Without further ado your recipe! The dough recipe is courtesy of Ina Garten but i changed it up a tad and grilled it instead of putting it in the oven :)

Tan Tan's Grilled Pizzas
 **The dough makes about 4-5 pizzas
 

Dough essentials:
1 1/4 cups warm water
2 packages dry yeast
1 tablespoon honey 

Olive oil*
4+ cups all-purpose flour

Kosher salt
4 cloves garlic, sliced
5 sprigs fresh thyme
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Toppings

My Homemade Pasta Sauce

Whatever you want!

4 C. Mozzarella

Mushrooms

Bell Pepper

Pepperoni (I buy from butcher)

Sausage

Jalapeno

Olives

Onions

Pinapple

Ham

 

 

 

*I recommend  O Olive Oil's Roasted Garlic You'll have to order it, but it (and all of the flavors) is amazing!

 

Instructions:

Step 1: Combine the water, yeast, honey and 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a bowl (I use my hands, but if you want use an electric mixer with a dough hook). Allow the yeast to dissolve.

 

Step 2: Add 3 cups of your flour a teaspoon or two of salt and begin mixing. I start with a spoon and as it begins forming into a dough I add 1 more cup of flour and also cover my hands in flour (it helps with the stickyness). Work the dough until it becomes smooth. You can add flour if kneaded (haha get it?)

Step 3: Continue kneading until the dough is elasticy. Then coat your bowl and the dough lightly in olive oil, cover it with a towel, and all the dough to rise for about 30 minutes. No need for a warm location it will be just fine at room temperature.

Step 4: While that is rising you can make your garlic oil that coats your pizzas. Using a small sauce pan add 1/2 C. of olive oil, the garlic, thyme, and red pepper flakes together. Simmer over medium low heat so all of the flavor blends together. Just be sure nothing is burning. Let it sit for roughly 10 minutes.

Step 5: Divide the dough into equal pieces. Cover them with a damp towel and let them for 10 minutes. Then take each piece and stretch it, knead it, flatten it, whatever you need to do to get the dough in the size and shape you want. (this is a great time for kids to get involved).

Step 6: At this point you should do 2 things. Turn on your grill and heat up a fry pan on your stove with a little olive oil. You are about to cook the dough just a tad on the grill and while that is happening you can cook the sausage or soften your vegetables like bell peppers, mushrooms and jalapenos if desired.

Step 7: When your grill is ready to go. Brush ONE side of your pizza with the garlic oil you made earlier. Put that side down on the grill. (the olive oil will help it not stick to the grill). Try not to put it directly over flames if it can be avoided. You only want to let it cook for 5 minutes max. You want the bottom to appear lightly cooked. Then bring the pizzas back inside. Have everyone put their sauce and toppings on the cooked sides of their pizzas. I recommend toppings first then cheese on top. (as it melts the cheese traps the toppings so they don't fall off). Then bring them back out to the grill and cook through! You can gauge it based on the cheese. Once it is done melting start checking the bottoms of your pizza. I typically move mine to the little rack in my grill so it's further away from the heat to allow the dough to cook all the way through.

Then you can enjoy it!

I hope you don't let the fear of dough or the time consumption deter you from trying this recipe, because seriously you won't be disappointed! As always let me know if you have suggestions or if you try it another way! I'm always looking for new variations of my favorite recipes! Have a beautiful weekend!


xoxo & Happy Eating!

Tanner

Beb's Banana Pudding

I never know how to feel on Hayden's birthday. Should I be sad? Should I celebrate? Should I ignore it? It's the second hardest day of the year for me. I want to be happy and celebrate it but it's hard to ignore the lingering and nagging grief and sadness, She should be the one celebrating not me. But in true Hayden fashion I'm sure she is at the beach somewhere getting a super dark tan and reading the flood of Facebook messages that are finally all about her ;).

I really embraced cooking after she died. It was an outlet, I didn't have to think. But most importantly the smells and the food itself were so comforting. Pasta's, cupcakes, popcorns...all that stuff that is so bad for you but warms your heart and reminds you of home all at the same time. I've often thought about writing a book about cooking through grief and how it helped me get by. As tragic as this situation has been and still is, the silver lining was that I found a love for cooking and sharing that with all of you.

Today I have really loved seeing everyone remembering, wearing purple or pieces of her clothing, eating her favorite foods. So it's only appropriate to share a recipe for one of her all time favorite foods...Banana Pudding.

 

First, you need a little back story on this gem of a snack. I guess it all goes back to Black Eyed Pea. We had one down the street and frequently ate there as a family. I don't think anyone ever ate their meals especially not the vegetables, but we certainly ate that banana pudding. It was a moment where all four of us could come together and appreciate something (that doesn't happen often). This period was follwed by a lull in banana pudding eating. Not to worry though, we more than made up for lost time when Hayden moved up to New York with me. I had discovered that Magnolia Bakery offered a $45 dollar tub...yes a large TUB of banana pudding. I made the mistake of telling Hayden about these heavenly tubs, and soon she was there on a regular basis. She would single handedly devour those tubs. She might have claimed to buy one for her whole apartment, but we all know she would just finish it alone in one sitting. Those expensive tubs brought her so much joy, and brought the rest of us years of laughs with her then and now.

The banana pudding recipe I'm going to share with you is by Paula Deen. Everyone can have their opinion about her, but the lady is a darn good cook. And her banana pudding is absolutely amazing. Lots of southern families have family recipes that have been passed down, but do yourself a favor and give this one a try. It might just become your new favorite and one of the best ways to remember Hayden.

Beb's Banana Pudding

2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies*
6 to 8 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 box instant** French vanilla pudding (5 oz.)
1  package cream cheese (8 oz), softened
1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz.)
1  container Cool Whip thawed (12 oz)

*Make sure to get the seasonal ones for Christmas!

**Make sure you get instant! This is essential

Step 1: Use the cookies to line the bottom of a 13 by 9 inch casserole dish, Then make a second layer with the sliced bananas.

Step 2: Blend the milk and pudding mix with an electric mixer. In a separate bowl, mix the cream cheese and condensed milk together until smooth. (DON'T CHEAT! Make sure it's smooth). Gently add the cool whip into the cream cheese mixture and then add to the pudding mixture. Stir until completely blended.

Step 3: Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas. Then top it off with a final layer of cookies.

 

Step 4: Refrigerate! You could eat it right away but I suggest refrigerating for 1-2 hours so it gets nice and cool. The way banana pudding should be eaten.

 

I hope you like this recipe as much as I do. It has become a staple in my recipe arsenal, and it is a quick and easy dish to bring to any get together or party you may have especially during this hectic holiday season. 

Happy Eating and lots of love to HH today. Happy Birthday Beb, we all love you very much

xoxo Tanner

Elf Letters!!!!!!

Imagine yourself back as a little kid and how badly you wanted your heros to write you a letter? Or at least receive a response to yours...Now imagine actually getting one!!! The happiness would be overwhelming. Even if you were quickly distracted by bigger better things as most kids are.

A couple of years ago I started writing letters to my younger cousins from "Bernard the elf." I'm not really sure where the idea came from but the name Bernard totally came from the Santa Claus, which has recently posed a problem, but I'll talk about that in a minute. Bernard writes to the kids every year in early december telling them stories of the North Pole reminding them to be good and some tid bits about himself and Santa. I probably have more fun coming up with the stories than the kids do reading the letters. But there is nothing I love more than watching their animated faces as they tell me the latest story from Bernard or them pointing out similarities with the North Pole in everyone's favorite Christmas movies.

Here are some examples of ones i've written....

The older of the cousins finally put two and two together that Bernard might be the same Bernard from the "Santa Claus" movie with Tim Allen. I can't decide if I really want them to think that or not because I don't want them to think movies aren't real and thus Bernard isn't real. I don't know my aunt just stared at them wide eyed haha they can come to their own conclusions. 

With the letter writing we have come across a few issues though. First of all, think through what you are sending!!! This year I sent an application to a reindeer completely ignoring the fact that if they responded I would have to REJECT them!!! Clearly I can't let them be reindeer, when they can't actually go to the North Pole. I rectified this situation, by naming her an official Representative of the North Pole instead. It seemed to be at least a semi-acceptable alternative. But don't worry Santa was plenty impressed with her application, that's why he offered her the "better" job.

Another issue this year was that 3 children got letters but one never made it. They explained to him that the boy letters were mailed separately from the girl letters. Haha again this seemed to work ok, but i'd try to make sure they get there altogether! I made up another story about messenger penguins and a norwhale eating the mail...if you want to know the story you'll have to ask. :)

Anyway, I think the elf letter writing is such a fun way to get involved with younger relatives or even a fun thing to do with your own children.