Recipes

Love to cook and share great recipes for delicious foods.

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Easter Bunny Martini

This is a martini recipe to help you celebrate Easter.  It also helps calm your nerves if you are cooking for a large group or if you are around family members that are annoying you.  Don’t let the look of the martini fool you.  While it looks like a creamy chocolate milkshake, there is enough vodka in it to make any Easter (or any day) a good one.  It was made by Jeff the Bartender at Toscana Restaurant in Ridgefield, CT, http://www.toscanaridgefield.com.  If you live in the area, go there for some great Italian food.  Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

  •  1/3 combination of Absolut vodka and Absolut vanilla vodka
  • 1/3 Godiva chocolate liqueur
  • 1/3 dark creme de cacao
  • 1 small chocolate bunny (for garnish)

Directions:

Place ingredients into a martini shaker with ice.  Shake well with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass.  Using a small knife, make a slice upwards under the ribs of the chocolate bunny.  (Attention animal lovers:  this will not hurt the bunny).  Hook on the rim of the martini glass and drink.

Enjoy your bunny martini and have a Happy Easter…..if you can remember it after drinking this martini.  What holiday themed drinks do you make for your family and friends?

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Never Met Bread That I Didn’t Like

This is a quick recipe.  We eat a ton of Italian food here on Glen Road (have you noticed?).  What goes better with Italian food than garlic laced, herbed bread?  Nothing, trust me, nothing.  I have never met bread that I didn’t like.  Give this garlic herbed bread a try one night at dinner.  You and your family will love it. 

Ingredients:

  • 6 large garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley
  • 1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil leaves
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup good olive oil
  • 1 large baguette

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place the garlic, parsley, basil, salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process until finely minced.

Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat.  Add the garlic and parsley mixture and cook for 1 minute, until the garlic is tender but not browned.  Remove from the heat and set aside.

Slice the baguette lengthwise down the center, but not all the way through, and spoon the garlic mixture into the bread.  Place the bread on a sheet pan and bake for 8 minutes.  Slice diagonally and serve warm.

Super quick and super easy.  The kind of recipe that I like.  If you are in a pinch, I’ve also used dried parsley and basil flakes when I didn’t have fresh herbs on hand.  It won’t yield the same flavor intensity as using fresh herbs, but it does come out very tasty.  Give this bread a try and let us know how you liked it.  What other bread recipes do you have that you can share on Acorns On Glen?

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The Brooklyn Italian Grandmother Is Back And Cooking

This is our Brooklyn Italian Grandmother back in the kitchen and digging into a pile of broccoli rabe.  Otherwise known as cooking with your fingers only up to the base of your rings.  We can dig that, can you?  What has happened to the world of broccoli rabe these days?  They steam it….good for you.  Yuch, it is tasteless!  They stir fry it.  O.K., but limp and mushy.  They saute it in water.  That’s called boiling it where we come from.  We asked our Brooklyn Italian Grandmother to come back into the kitchen and make it the good old-fashioned way so that we could share it with everyone.  This is a great side dish and is quick and easy.  When you are making an Italian dish, cook up some broccoli rabe and see what the family says.  While many people say it has a bitter taste, we have found that if you cook it up the Brooklyn way, the rabe is soft and delicious.  I’ve held the Brooklyn Italian Grandmother down and measured and forced her to tell me her recipe.   So let’s take what I’ve forced out of her and cook up some broccoli rabe and go jewelry shopping all in one post.

Ingredients:

  • 2 large heads of broccoli rabe.  I found organic and super fresh.  We beg you to do the same.  Your body doesn’t need the chemicals. 
  • 3 tablespoons great olive oil
  • 7 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped.  More or less depending on how much you love garlic.  We adore it so use 7 cloves if you are truly a garlic lover.
  • 1 cup chicken stock, again go organic if you can
  • 1 chicken bouillon cube
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, or more to flavor to your liking
  • 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper or more to your liking
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes or more/less to taste.  We like it spicy.

Directions:

Trim the stalks of the brocolli rabe and rinse under cool water.  Roughly chop garlic cloves.

  Rings always look better with a garlic scent to them.  Multiple bracelets support the wrist during the chopping process.

Over medium heat, heat the olive oil and then add the chopped garlic and sautee until garlic is lightly golden in color.

Add the chicken broth and the chicken bouillon cube until they are lightly heated.  Then add the cleaned and rinsed broccoli rabe.  Don’t be nervous if the rabe is stacked high in the skillet.  It will quickly wilt down to a reasonable amount.

  What takes away from beautiful green, organic and fresh rabes more than diamonds and solid gold?

Lightly place a skillet lid on top of the broccoli rabe and continue to adjust it while the rabe wilts down.

  Lid protects jewels from damage but also allows steam to lightly clean the gems.  We call this multi-tasking.

As the broccoli rabe wilts down during the cooking process, raise the lid and add a teaspoon of salt to flavor during cooking.  Place the lid back on the rabes and saute for about 10 minutes.  Lift lid and turn over the broccoli rabe so the bottom is now on the top and place the lid back on for another 10 minutes.  Continue cooking until rabes are al dente, meaning tender but they still possess a little chewiness to them.

   Diamonds are forever….sing it.

When tender, add another half a teaspoon of salt and the pepper or more to flavor the broccoli rabe to your liking.  Add the red pepper flakes to add a little heat.  If you like it hot, add more.  If you can’t take the heat, don’t add any red pepper flakes.  Use your own judgement. 

Come on…have you ever seen such a beautiful and exotic side dish to complement your favorite Italian dish?  Broccoli rabe is not for everyone, but it is for most people that we have served it to in the traditional Brooklyn Italian Grandmother way.  Who needs to light up their life when you can rabe up your life?  Just a little hint–some great bread is delicious when you use it to dip in and soak up the broth from the rabes.  And remember, it also is a great way to clean your jewelry in an organic sort of way.  Give it a try….you won’t be sorry.  What side dishes can you share on Acorns On Glen that would be great with Italian food? 

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Strawberries and Bread

This is a pint of organic strawberries.  I got them at the organic market this week and needed to use them or they were going to go bad.  That’s the problem with strawberries for me.  You quickly need to use them or they need to be thrown out.  I know, you’re saying to me “that’s why them call them fresh”, but I wish they could last a little longer.  You know, like an apple or a pear.  Even given this one downside, the taste of a strawberry is one of my favorite fruit flavors.  So what should I make with them?  Shortcake seemed a little too summer like.  Strawberry ice cream was out given that it is still a little cold outside.  So I decided on making strawberry bread.  This recipe makes a very moist bread marbled with crushed strawberries.  It is a real change of pace and a great way to use those pesky strawberries that seem to lose their freshness way too fast.

Ingredients:

  • 5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon unsalted butter softened, plus more for pan
  • 1 pint strawberries rinsed, hulled, quartered, and mashed with a fork
  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8-by-4-inch loaf pan. In a small saucepan, bring strawberries to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring, 1 minute. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream butter, sugar, and eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy.

Add flour mixture alternately with 1/3 cup water, beginning and ending with flour.

Fold in reserved strawberries.  Scrape batter into prepared pan, smoothing top.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 1 hour (tent with foil after 45 minutes if top is getting too dark). Cool in pan 10 minutes. Run a knife around edges; invert onto a rack. Reinvert; cool completely.

I love that the loaf is so golden brown in color and I wish you could have smelled my kitchen.  The smell of baking bread and strawberries filled the air.  Add a little butter or cream cheese to a slice for an added taste bonus.  This bread is great for breakfast, a snack or any time you need something a little sweet.  Try strawberry bread for a real change of pace.  Your bananas will be jealous.  What have you been baking this weekend?

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When Did I Become Such A Follower?

This is the question I’ve been thinking about since we started Acorns On Glen.  When did I become such a follower?  Not when I was a kid.  In fourth grade, in the comments section of my report card, my teacher wrote that I was good at leading other children towards a common goal…..and that I was a good talker.  I was an officer in one of my grades in high school….I think it was freshman year.  I was editor of my school newspaper for a few years.  All signs were pointing in the right direction.  I was still a leader in college.  I was president of my pledge class at the fraternity.  I was a member of the elite summer orientation staff for incoming freshman.  Again, all signs were a go.   So when, as an adult, did I stop producing original ideas and leadership potential?  My vote…..when my sad ass discovered the internet and that damn do-it-yourself television.

Think back to your grandparents.  How did your grandmother learn to cook something simple, say a meatloaf?  She either learned by word of mouth or she learned by trial and error.  The recipe could have been handed down from generations of hard cooking women in her family.  She could have talked to a sister or a neighbor about making meatloaf and wrote down the ingredients and instructions that they gave her and then began to cook.  She used real, live human interaction versus online social networking.  She could have also gotten the idea in her head and cooked it through several different incarnations making sure to tweak things she didn’t like from the time before and remembering to keep things in it that were good.  Old time trial and error versus instant internet gratification.  With my family, maybe my father, aunts and uncle didn’t like my Grandma’s first shots at meatloaf making, but by the time I was a child, she had perfected her art.

The garden is the same story.  How did my Grandmother know to only dig horseradish and grind it up in months that contained an ‘R’ in them?  She was right.  Months without an ‘R’ produce lousy horseradish…Julys and Augusts are just too hot.  Again, she had an idea and either consulted a real, live person or experimented on her own.  Somehow, she managed to figure things out.  She must have talked with someone on the rules of horseradish or sat down to some sad tasting pulp, but she figured it out.  She accomplished tasks knowing she had done her own research, made all the decisions and had done it her way.  She was her own expert.

Now take me!  I’ll confess.  I look at all of the things that I do to my house, that I cook or bake in the kitchen or that I grow in my garden, and while I’m proud of my accomplishments, they have most likely come from someone else’s original idea.  Ideas from others that I’ve said “Wow, I’d like to do that” and either copied or took the initial idea and tweaked it to fit my lifestyle.  When is the last time I sat down and said I’d like to make a dish in the kitchen that contained a certain ingredient and then added it and other ingredients in a bowl trying to create my tasty little idea?  Never.  If I ever did do that, God forbid if it was bad tasting.  Would I try it again with some new twists or would I just abandon the idea altogether?  If the first time was a flop, would I try to think it through and make it a success a second or third time?  I doubt it.

I’ve made meatloaf and worked in my garden recently, just like my Grandma did years ago.  My meatloaf recipe came straight off the internet from http://www.MarthaStewart.com.  I found the recipe in less than a minute.  As I printed my step-by-step instructions out, I sat there in a panic thinking what was meant by “good” ketchup in the recipe.  What the hell is “bad” ketchup?  In the garden, I decided to plant artichokes this year and see if they would grow in Connecticut.  How did I come up with this idea?  A picture showing them growing in my area off of someone else’s iPhone.  So what was my next step?  I googled “artichoke growing” on the internet and received hundreds of sites with step-by-step growing instructions.  So I then ordered the seeds (off the internet) from a seed company I saw mentioned on a TV show and then planted them in a growing system I heard described on the radio and then put them under a grow light I saw on another internet site.  By the way, the grow light had four and a half stars attributed to it on the internet meaning it was a customer top favorite.  How could I get the one that seemed better, but with fewer stars attributed to it?  Do you see what I’m saying?  Not one original idea in my head.  No leadership; no innovation; no thought leadership.  I’m a lemming just following the leader until I eventually fall off the side of a cliff.

In business today, there must be a slew of followers.  Perfectionist people who scour for innovation and new ideas by reading the internet for hours.  Site by site; post by post.  Anything new and exciting is printed off or typed into their computer.  They search on Google to find exactly how to make the idea a reality.  They tweak the original just a little to call it their own.  Then they introduce the final product to the world.  In fact, aren’t followers in the business world now called great executors?  This new term utilized in order to soften the blow to a group of people trained to follow others versus taking a risk on their own.  An executor, that’s what I am.  Not a leader or a thought provoker, but rather someone who can execute someone else’s idea to perfection.  My meatloaf looked just like the picture in Martha’s recipe; my grow light artichokes are picture perfect. 

Ideas=F; Execution=A+……that’s me. 

I curse you, Martha, Emeril and Ina.  Up yours, Vern and you Design Stars.  May seeds never grow in your Victory Garden, Old Man Crockett! 

So how do people of today change this course?  How do we become thinkers again versus just executing?  If my Grandma were here, I’m sure she could sit down and think up a solution.  Me?  I’m just going to Google it.  What do you think about leaders versus followers in today’s world?

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Blondies With A Twist

This is a plate of brown butter toffee blondies. I’m not sure the first time I ate a blondie.  Growing up, we always had cake or cookies around the house.  Every once in a while, we would make chocolate brownies.  I never remember a blondie.  In the cafeteria where I work, there is a dish of blondies for sale every day.  Maybe that is where I first ate one, who knows?  Bottom line, wherever they were introduced to me, I really like them.  When I eat one, I feel that they are a little bit like a cookie and a little bit like a brownie all rolled into one.  It is also nice to try something every once in a while that doesn’t have chocolate in it.  Don’t get me wrong, chocolate is still a great thing.  It’s just that every once in a while you want something different and these blondies do the trick.  There were two reasons I wanted to make this dessert.  First, this recipe uses toffee.  When I read this in the recipe, I was at a loss where I could buy toffee.  Finally, I discovered that you can buy toffee chips in the supermarket in the same section as chocolate or peanut butter chips.  Second, this recipe also calls for brown butter.  Brown butter is simply a method of cooking butter on the stove top until it turns a deep golden color.  At the bottom of the pan, there is a light layer of browned particles, which are the solids in the butter that were browned by the heat and then fell to the bottom of the pan.  Make sure you scrape them up and put them in the batter as they have excellent flavor.  Brown butter gives the blondies more depth of flavor.  I’ve heard brown butter referred to as a nutty flavor, but I simply think that it adds a deeper butter flavor to the blondies.  You taste a rich buttery sensation in your mouth when you bite into the dessert.  Try these blondies for a change of pace.  They are great!  Let’s start mixing and baking:

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 cups packed light-brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts (about 4 ounces)
  • 1 cup toffee bits (remember, you get these right beside the chocolate chips in the supermarket)

    • Directions:

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9-by-13-inch baking pan.

    In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the butter until it turns golden brown; remove from the heat, and let cool.

    At the beginning of the butter process.

    At the end of the butter process…see how golden brown in color.

    Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.

    In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine browned butter and both sugars; stir with a wooden spoon until combined.

    Attach bowl to mixer and turn on; add eggs into mixture one at a time.

    Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

    Add vanilla, and beat to combine.

    Add flour mixture, walnuts and toffee bits.  Mix until thoroughly combined and then pour into the prepared pan.

    Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes (do not overbake). Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before turning out of pan onto a cutting board.

    Cut blondies into 3-inch squares. Blondies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.

    So next time you are looking for a dessert with a little bit of something different, give these blondies a try.  Soft, chewy with that deep butter flavor and toffee goodness, you can’t go wrong with this recipe.  As well, the recipe was easy and quick which is always a plus.  Blondies…go for it!  Do you have any dessert recipes that have that little bit of something different to them that you can share on Acorns On Glen?

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    All About Beans

    This is a pot of easy-to-make baked beans.   The recipe is from garden blogger and author Margaret Roach.  She was recently on an episode of “The Martha Stewart Show” to celebrate the publication of her latest book and she cooked these with Martha.  Given that they were vegetarian, I decided to make some.  I think it is a good idea to try and eat a meatless meal as often as you can.  I felt good that everything in the pot was fresh.  I read the side of a can of baked beans in the supermarket and there were some ingredients that I could not pronounce.  How can they be good for you?  With this recipe, you know you are getting quality food.  This recipe makes a lot of baked beans so you can freeze what is left over and eat them at a later time.  Even though this recipe is vegetarian, if you are a meat eater, try substituting thick-cut bacon for the onions.  This recipe serves six.  However, I doubled the recipe to ensure I had a lot of baked beans left over to freeze.  Join me now as I make a pot of vegetarian baked beans:  

    Ingredients:

    • 1 pound dried cranberry, navy or yellow eye beans
    • 1/4 cup molasses, preferably organic
    • 1/4 cup maple syrup
    • 1/4 cup grainy mustard
    • 6 fresh, peeled, or canned whole plum tomatoes (a large 35-ounce can holds 12 tomatoes)
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
    • Boiling water
    • Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

    Before we begin cooking, let’s talk about the beans I used, again thanks to Margaret Roach.  In her TV segment, she mentioned a place to buy great beans.  The beans come from Rancho Gordo Specialty Foods in Napa, California.  What makes these beans special is that they are grown from heirloom seeds.  I used cranberry beans in the baked beans that I cooked.  Visit Rancho Gordo at their website, http://www.ranchogordo.com.

    Directions:

    Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

    Place beans in a large bowl and add enough water to cover; let soak overnight.

    Drain and place into a pot; add enough water to cover and simmer over medium-high heat for 30 minutes. 

    Drain and transfer to a large bowl; stir in molasses, maple syrup, mustard, and tomatoes.  Set aside.

    Coat the bottom of a Dutch oven or a 9-by-13-inch high-sided baking dish with olive oil.  Add onions and top with bean mixture.  Add enough boiling water to cover bean mixture by 1 inch.  Cover Dutch oven with lid or baking dish with parchment paper-lined aluminum foil.  Transfer to oven and bake until beans are softened, about 1 1/2 hours, checking water level and adding more as necessary.

    Uncover beans and continue baking until thick and syrupy, about 45 minutes more.  Season with salt and pepper and serve.

    These baked beans taste great.  They can be a great winter comfort food, but I also like baked beans during the summer with a grilled hamburger or hot dog.  Is there anything more American than that?  I have to tell you that you will not miss the bacon if you make the vegetarian version.  The beans I used were also much better than those found in canned baked beans.  Bigger, plumper, a little more substantial when you chew them…Rancho Gordo beans are a real find.  Thanks again to Margaret Roach for the bean find and the recipe.  You won’t be sorry you made these baked beans.  Do you have other vegetarian recipes you can share on Acorns On Glen?

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    Another Great Steak Plus Fries!

    This is another great steak recipe…..plus fries!  I know you will think this is a lie, but I don’t really eat that much red meat.  It really is by chance that I have posted so many steak recipes on Acorns On Glen.  I eat a lot of fish, pasta and chicken, but every so often, I crave a steak.  So the next time you crave a steak, here is a great recipe to cure your craving.  It all begins with that pretty little picture of meat above….the hanger steak.   

    A hanger steak is a cut of beef steak prized for its flavor.  In the past, it was sometimes known as “butcher’s steak” because butchers would often keep it for themselves rather than offer it for sale.  Hanger steak resembles flank steak in texture and flavor.  The hanger steak is not particularly tender and is best marinated and cooked quickly over high heat and served rare or medium-rare, to avoid toughness.  Anatomically, the hanger steak is said to “hang” from the diaphragm of the steer.  The diaphragm is one muscle, commonly cut into two separate cuts of meat: the “hanger steak” traditionally considered more flavorful, and the outer “skirt steak” composed of tougher muscle within the diaphragm. The hanger is attached to the last rib and the spine near the kidneys.  The hanger steak has historically been more popular in Europe, but over the last several years, it has slowly become more popular in the United States.

    What I liked about this recipe was how easy it was to prepare.  I loved the taste of the marinade and enjoyed serving the steak with Dijon mustard and carmelized shallots on the side.  The other great thing was the addition of the oven-baked fries into the mix.  I’ve never met a potato I didn’t like.  What could be bad about steak and fries?  I baked my fries into more of a hash brown looking dish versus cooking them longer so they would be crispy fries, but the choice is yours.  Here we go as we cook us up some steak and fries:

    Ingredients:

    For the steak:

    • 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
    • 1/4 cup sherry vinegar
    • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
    • 4 teaspoons Dijon mustard, plus more for serving
    • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
    • 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of hanger steak
    • 5 medium shallots, halved or quartered
    • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

    Directions:

    Whisk together 1/4 cup oil, the vinegar, garlic, mustard and Worcestershire sauce in a large glass dish.  Place steak in dish; turn to coat with marinade.  Let steak marinate, turning often, for at least 20 minutes.  I kept my steak in the marinade for about an hour.

    Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add shallots; cook, stirring often, until just golden, 2 to 3 minutes.  Reduce heat to medium-low.  Season with salt.  Cook, adding 1/4 cup water in batches as needed to keep shallots from sticking, until tender and caramelized, 15 to 18 minutes.  Transfer shallots to a plate.

    Wipe out skillet.  Heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Remove steak from marinade; pat dry.  Season with salt and pepper.

     Cook steak, turning once, until an instant-read thermometer registers 140 degrees (for medium-rare), 10 to 12 minutes per side.  Tent with foil; let stand at room temperature 10 minutes.  Season with pepper.

    Meanwhile, wipe out skillet; reheat shallots over medium heat.  Thinly slice the steak and serve with shallots and mustard.

    Ingredients:

    For the fries:

    • 2-3 russet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled
    • 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for baking sheets
    • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

    Directions:

    Using a mandolin, cut the potatoes into ultra-thin shapes (or “shoestrings”).  You can do this up to four hours ahead; to prevent discoloration, place cut potatoes in a bowl of cold water in the refrigerator until ready to use, then gently pat dry with paper towels.

    Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Lightly coat two baking sheets with oil.  Toss together potatoes, oil, and 1 teaspoon salt in a bowl.  Dividing evenly among prepared baking sheets, arrange potatoes in a single layer.

    Bake, turning potatoes with a metal spatula a few times and rotating sheets halfway through, until crisp and golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes.  Transfer potatoes to a large piece of parchment paper; let cool 5 minutes, then season with salt and pepper, and serve.

    Pretty easy, right?  Both recipes feed 4 people.  Although I have posted a couple of steak recipes here on Acorns On Glen, I have found that each one is very different based on the cut of steak that we used.  See which one you like better-ribeye vs. hanger steak.  I think you’ll find that both of them are equally as tasty as the other.  Enjoy!  Have you liked the recipes we’ve posted so far here on Acorns On Glen?

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    Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies

    This is a confession.  I love peanut butter.  I like it on toast, on a banana and sometimes I just stick a teaspoon right into the jar and eat it without anything else.  However, the number one way I like peanut butter is in a cookie.  I saw this recipe in a magazine and knew I had to make it.  Not only does the cookie itself have peanut butter in it, but the cream frosting in the center of the sandwich also contains my secret pleasure.  They are delicious!  The recipe is also pretty easy.  Just mix, refrigerate, slice and bake.  I hate recipes that are complicated and take all day.  Join us here on Acorns On Glen as we make these peanut butter delights. 

    Ingredients:

    For the cookie:

    • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1/4 teaspoon salt
    • 2 cups all-purpose flour
    • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
    • 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
    • 1 cup smooth peanut butter
    • 1 large egg

    For the filling:

    • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
    • 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
    • 3/4 cup smooth peanut butter, preferable natural
    • 3 tablespoons heavy cream

    Directions: 

    In a bowl, whisk together baking soda, salt, and 2 cups flour; set aside.

    In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, brown sugar, and peanut butter until light and fluffy; beat in egg.

     With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture, beating just until combined (do not overmix).

    Form dough into two 8-inch-long rectangular logs. Wrap each log in waxed or parchment paper; freeze until firm, about 1 hour.  I made mine late in the evening and chilled overnight.

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. With a sharp knife, slice dough 1/4 inch thick; place on two baking sheets, 1 inch apart.

    Bake until cookies are puffed, 12 to 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer to wire racks; let cool.

    Make filling.  Beat all ingredients with an electric mixer on medium until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down side of bowl.  Use immediately, or refrigerate in an airtight container up to 3 days.  Bring to room temperature; stir with a flexible spatula before using.

    Spread about a tablespoon of filling onto the bottom part of one cookie.  Place another cookie on top placing the bottom part on top of the filling.  Finish filling the remaining cookies and then dive in and have a couple.  The recipe makes 30 completed cookies.  What food item (like peanut butter) can’t you get enough of when it is in the house?

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    iPad Brownies

    This is a pan of cream cheese brownies right out of the oven.  I have never met a pan of brownies that I didn’t like.  What made these different is not the addition of cream cheese or any special chocolate.  What made these different is that this is the first time I found a baking recipe on an application from my iPad and used the iPad throughout the process to make the brownies similar to how I would have used a cookbook.  Just like it has for regular books, the iPad has brought cookbooks into  the digital tablet era. While I still like the look and feel of a book and a cookbook, a digital recipe is nice especially if you are looking for something to make in a quick fashion.  That’s the story of these brownies….I needed to make a fast dessert for dinner with friends.  Join me as I make these cream cheese brownies for my dinner party: 

    Ingredients:

    • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for pan
    • 1 cup plus two tablespoons all-purpose flour
    • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
    • 4 ounces room-temperature bar cream cheese
    • 1 1/2 cups sugar
    • 4 large eggs

    Instructions:

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush a 9-inch square baking pan with butter.  Line bottom and two sides with a strip of parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the two sides.  Butter paper, and set pan aside.  In a small bowl, whisk 1 cup flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt; set aside.  Place 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter and chocolate in a large heat-proof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of gently simmering water.  Heat, stirring occasionally, until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes; remove bowl from pan.

     Add 1 1/4 cups sugar; mix to combine.  Add 3 eggs, and mix to combine.  Add flour and cocoa mixture; mix just until moistened (do not overmix).

    Prepare cream-cheese mixture:  Whisk bar cream cheese with 2 tablespoons room-temperature butter.  Whisk in 1/4 cup sugar, 1 egg, and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour.

    Alternately spoon chocolate batter and cream-cheese mixture into pan; with the tip of a paring knife, swirl to marble.

    Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 50 to 60 minutes.  Cool in pan for 30 minutes.  Using paper overhang, lift brownies out of pan; transfer to a rack to cool completely (still on paper).  On a cutting board, using a dampened serrated knife, cut into 16 squares.  Store in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 2 days.

    Needless to say, my friends devoured the brownies.  Quick, fast, easy, delicious.  The way a recipe should be.  Try this recipe and also investigate the different baking and cooking applications available for the iPad.  Do you have a favorite quick dessert recipe you would like to share with us on Acorns On Glen?