Don't Feed Peanuts to a Baby

But you should definitely feed them these lovely PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES! Or at least entice them by slowly eating with a huge glass of milk. (Do babies have jealousy before kindergarten? Probably.)

So, with it being fall and all, it's time for cookies. There's really no special season for cookies, but it seems logical that now is the time you'd actually WANT to turn on your oven. For me, my oven acts as the heater in my small little converted-attic home. As the fog starts rolling in every night, this fast recipe seems like a logical solution to the late-night chills.

This recipe is from the ever-classic Best Light Recipe Cookbook from Cook's Illustrated, so feel free to go with the less-fatty version below (though it's kinda easier to just throw in the peanut butter that you've already got on hand...but it's your call).

Peanut Butter Cookies

1 1/4 c unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
4 tbs (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 large egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tbs chunky peanut butter
1/4 cup dry-roasted salted peanuts, chopped coarse*

*Feel free to substitute with 1/2 cup of chunky peanut butter. More fat, but it might save you from a trip to the store.

1. Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk the butter, egg, and vanilla together. Stir in the brown sugar and peanut butter until smooth, smearing any remaining clumps against the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Stir in the flour mixture and peanuts until thoroughly combined.
3. Create 1-inch balls of dough and place on baking sheet about 2 1/2 inches apart. With a fork, make an X on the top, smooshing down the dough. Lightly sprinkle with sugar.
4. Bake the cookies, one tray at a time, until the edges are lightly golden and the centers are just set, about 11 to 13 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through backing. Seriously, stay close to the oven and DON'T overbake. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then serve warm or transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. If you don't have a wire rack, just put down some wax paper on the counter and place the cookies on top. After a minute or so, flip the cookies over so the bottom is facing up - this helps making both sides of the cookies crisp.

Makes 24 (though I always only end up with about 15)

Tea's for Me

So I went to Spain a month ago.

It was great. All over the country - Barcelona, Granada, Sevilla, Ronda, Madrid - and even a quick stop in Paris.

I had some nasty food. In some little inn in Granada, my whole family decided to order the same meal - beans with ham. Sounded good after a day of flying. No-hoooo. It was a PILE of something like Northern Beans in a soup of vinegar. Ick. The rest of our day was a disaster.

But then there was the most amazing food. Churros y chocolate in Madrid, shfancy cheap gourmet in Barcelona, Moroccan delights in Granada.

But what I brought home from all of it was the tea.

We were in the Moroccan quarters of Granada, checking out all the fashionable genie sweats and bracelets made out of pasta...fantastically interesting wares, might I add. There was a store at the very end that had this tea pot with a portrait of a Persian sultan on it. What? And two feet from the teapot was a Victorian glass lamp with the same image. Huh? Who does that and who is this guy? (As you can see, I bought it and it's now sitting in my house. The Sultan's happy to be in America.)

Well, we went to dinner at this Moroccan restaurant where the shop owner (with the tea pot) suggested. He said "I trust Mustafa with the pouring of my tea." I liked that he judged a restaurant by the quality of tea they served and that a man named Mustafa ran the place.

It was the best meal we ate the entire trip.

Mustafa began to linger at our table as the night went on. We kept asking for more mint lemonade and for him to bring out his favorite dishes. Soon my mom offered to become his assistant for a week and I think they made a deal at some point in the night. We were giddy.

By the end of the night, I got the recipe for the best tea I've ever had. It was ridiculously sweet but so refreshing after a big dinner.

So, here's the recipe for the best tea. Keep in mind that you need a teapot that has a drain/filter thing. (You know, before it gets out through the mouth. Otherwise, you'll be drinking leaves like it's a wilted salad.)

Moroccan Tea!!
serves about 4-6 small teacups

What you'll need:
-Loose green tea*
-Fresh mint
-Orange blossom (if you can get it)
-Granulated tea
-Boiling water
*If the green tea is a little dirty (or if you got it from some outside vendor like they do in Granada), put the tea leaves in the pot, fill with boiling water, swish around and pour out the water. This will clean the tea leaves while still keeping them in the tea pot. At that point, put in the rest of the ingredients and continue on.

What you'll do:
-Put about 1 - 1.5 tbs of green tea in the tea pot, along with a half-handful of fresh, washed mint leaves. Add 1/2 tsp of orange blossom and 1 tbs of sugar (more or less, depending on how sweet you want it).
-Add the boiling water and stir.
-Let it sit for 2-5 minutes.
-Pour into small teacups and enjoy.

The Summer Fairy Likes Biscuit-Style Cobbler

Apparently there are different types of cobbler. I grew up with the kind of cobbler that's a goey-sweet mess of blueberries topped with a layer of crispy brown sugar. Kinda like a streudel without that extra bumpy part. And then there's the kind that, to me, was heresy - biscuits sitting on top of that fruit goo. It sounded ridiculous, like some back-country hicks decided to take their leftover biscuits and gravy and throw some fruit under it. No. Thank. You.

Well, a week ago I decided to be a nice coworker. I was going to make a peach cobbler. I've been working my way through The Best Light Recipe cookbook and I thought it was high time to see what their desserts were about. The original recipe calls for blueberries, but there are variations for sour cherry, strawberry, strawberry-rhubarb, apricot, peach, plum, and raspberry/blackberry cobbler. It's nice they thought ahead and tried out the whole produce section. It actually got me thinking that I could make any variation, so after the peach, I bought a couple pounds of good-smelling organic white nectarines. Though the texture got a little slimy, it was goooood. Somehow these biscuits are just the right texture...I'd be happy to bake them alone and eat with gravy any day.


Sweet Biscuits! Peach Cobbler
serves 8

Filling
1 3/4 - 2 pounds fresh peaches, pitted, peeled and sliced (not too thin, but not in quarters...maybe eighths or tenths)
1/4 cup sugar (add a bit more if the peaches aren't sweet)
Pinch of cloves (I used whole, but ground would be better)
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tbs. brandy (if you have it)

Biscuit topping
1 cup (5 oz.) unbleached all-purpose flour
3 tbs. yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup plus 2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3 cup buttermilk
3 tbs. unsalted butter, melted
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon

For the filling: Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat the over to 400 degrees. Toss the fruit filling ingredients together in a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. If you don't have this size pan, any casserole dish would do. Place the pie plate on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until the fruit releases its liquid and is hot and bubbling around the edges, about 20 to 30 minutes.

For the biscuit topping: Meanwhile, whisk the flour, cornmeal, 1/4 cup of the sugar, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl; set aside. In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk, butter, and vanilla together; set aside. In a third bowl, mix the remaining 2 teaspoons of sugar with the cinnamon; set aside.

When the filling is ready, stir the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture with a rubber spatula until just combined and no pockets of flour remain. Remove the cobbler filling from the over and stir. Pinch off 8 equal pieces of the biscuits dough and arrange them on top of the hot filling, spaced 1/2 inch apart. Sprinkle the tops of the biscuits with the cinnamon sugar.

Continue to bake the cobbler until the biscuits are golden brown on top and cooked through and the filling is again hot and bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool the cobbler on a wire rack for 15 minutes before serving.

(recipe and directions taken from Cook's Illustrated's The Best Light Recipes cookbook, with notes and some changes made)

prep time: 30 minutes
cook time: 40 minutes

Shrimp Really Does Have a Best Friend

Shrimp really does have a best friend and her name is Papaya Chipotle Pineapple.

Shrimp can be pretty boring and smelly. We've all been there...hanging out with someone you really don't want to be around. And somehow you forget who you are, where you're from, how old you are, and when your last shower was. But then there are the people that make you feel fresh and wonderful...and it's worth keeping them around.

Enough about best friends, let's cook.

Shrimp can taste nasty. I honestly don't hold anything against people with an aversion to shell fish...but there are ways to avoid this. Take note: frozen, uncooked shrimp is so much better than not-frozen or cooked-then-frozen shrimp. It's actually rather logical...shrimp that's frozen right out of the water is kinda only a few hours dead. Does that sound nasty? It shouldn't because this will be the best meal yll eou'at...ever (as will every other post on here).

Shrimp-tastic Yum Yum.....
serves 4
1 lb. (about 20 pieces) frozen, uncooked shrimp
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. granulated sugar
1 tbs. olive oil
1-2 tbs. Papaya Chipotle Pineapple sauce & dressing*

Thaw, peel and devein the shrimp. Place a papers towel on the kitchen counter (or plate if you're paranoid) and lay the shrimp flat on it so that it begins to dry. Place another towel on top and dry. Let the shrimp dry for an additional few minutes.

Place shrimp in a bowl and add the salt and sugar. Stir the shrimp until coated.

In a medium to large skillet, heat olive oil over high heat. Once hot!, place shrimp (on it's side, not spine) on the skillet. Cook for about 3-5 minutes, then flip with a fork (if this is taking you a long time to do, take the pan off the heat). Cook the other side about 3 minutes. At this point, the shrimp should be nice and golden on both sides, while cooked in the middle (you'll know because it won't be pink anymore).

Place hot shrimp in bowl and pour sauce on top. Stir so shrimp is coated, then serve hot.

prep time: 10 minutes
cooking time: 10 minutes

*This dressing can be found lots of different stores minus most grocery stores. If you're in Los Angeles, the Fish King in Glendale has it for sale in the fish market area. If you're roaming the Hillcrest farmer's market in San Diego, chances are you'll run into the Earth & Vine display. If you're living somewhere else, go to the Earth and Vine website to order it.

My Kitchen is in a Fort

I have become a citizen of the twenty-first century: I have a blog. And not just a blog about my feelings...but one that will hopefully be useful.

Rewind, two months ago:

Rachel: "I mean, I just don't even know where to start. Sometimes I have the time to make something really good, but even then I don't know what to cook."

Me: "Yeah..."

R: "And even then, I'll need to try to make something when I don't have time. I mean, you cook, like, EVERY DAY. Seriously, you should help people like me."

Well, Rachel, this blog is for you. Bless your heart.

As I was researching other food blogs to throw on the side of this thing to make it seem like I know what I'm talking about, it became clear that there aren't many places that have recipes that only take 20 minutes and 3 ingredients. I mean, I guess these people just sit at home and make fancy food all day long and then use their blogs as shrines to their good taste buds...but as for me and (maybe) you, I (1) don't have lots of money, (2) work all day and sometimes night, and (3) would rather spend the time eating the food with others than stressing over it alone in the kitchen.

Look, let's just cook and then move on with the day, right? Well, hopefully you'll enjoy it and start learning as you go. Email me with your favorites and I'd be happy to pass it along.

I didn't go to culinary school, but I have a subscription to Cook's Illustrated and a pile of about 10 cookbooks. Most of the recipes that I'll have on here are from somewhere other than my brain - whether it's a friend's, a blog's, a book's, or from some tv show.

Well, happy cooking.