Best Peanut Butter Cookies Ever

Right now...

1. Go into your kitchen. Preheat your oven to 350 F.
2. Using a stand mixer, mix 1 cup of commercial peanut butter with 1 cup of brown sugar, 1/3 cup of white sugar, 1 egg, 2 tablespoons of vanilla and a pinch of kosher salt together until combined. Add some orange zest if you are feeling springy.
3. Using a little ice cream scoop (or a spoon), form into balls. Place on a parchment paper lined sheet pan. Resist the temptation to smash them down. They spread a little so leave some room between them. Top each cookie with a little chunk of bittersweet chocolate. Sprinkle some kosher salt (or sea salt) over the pan.
4. Bake for about 12-15 minutes in the oven to cook the egg and to set.
5. Let them cook on the cookie sheet for about 5 minutes before removing to a rack.
6. Try not to eat them all in one sitting.

These would make a great hiking cookie. And they make an excellent scrapbooking cookie.

Recipe taken from the Amateur Gourmet and tested by me on Friday. It is originally a Paula Dean recipe. Who knew she could make something without butter?

Italian Chicken Sandwich

I am one of those people that takes their camera everywhere. It is always in my purse. So why can't I remember to take pictures! I decided to blog this yesterday - after we'd eaten and cleaned up - hence I only have one picture.

For some reason, this dinner reminded me of my dad. I don't think he's ever made it for me, but it just struck me as something that he *would* make. So I am officially claiming this is "Dad Inspired Cuisine."

Italian(ish) Chicken Sandwiches

- 1 pound of chicken breasts (you could make with less if you want to be more frugal)

- 1 zucchini, diced

- 1 red pepper, diced

- 1/2 medium onion, chopped

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 1 14 oz can of crushed tomatoes

- Dried basil and oregano

- Fennel seeds (these totally make the dish!)

- Rolls

- Parmesan or Romano cheese

In a skillet, saute the zucchini, red pepper, onion and garlic until everything is soft and the onion is translucent. Add a generous sprinkle of the fennel seeds and cook for a about a minute longer. Transfer to a plate. In the same skillet, add the chicken and saute until cooked through. Return the vegetables to the skillet, add the tomatoes and add a generous sprinkle of the basil and oregano. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer until you've got all the rest of your dinner ready. Serve on the toasted buns topped with the cheese.

This dish is extremely customizable based on your dietary needs. As it stands, it is fairly low fat. For a low sodium version, use unsalted tomatoes, don't season with the salt and pepper, top with fresh mozzarella and serve over pasta cooked in plain water. If you aren't a fan of the veggies, swap them out with veggies you do like (eggplant would be great in this as would mushrooms.) And it is fast for a busy weeknight.

Anyway, thanks for the inspiration, Dad!

A Little Bit Obsessed

You know it's bad when the fabric lady at Hobby Lobby says "another bag?"

Bag: Basic Messenger Bag

Fabric: Hobby Lobby

Monday Monday

Another confession time and this time not about Twilight. I actually like Mondays. Not a huge revelation to be sure, but common wisdom dictates that I should hate them. Despise them even.

Not so here. Mondays, while even though they mean I have to go back to work, also represent a fresh start, a chance to hit the re-do button on my chore list and everything, at least right now, is organized and ready to go. I also have FIVE full days to get all my stuff done. It's never a good realization when it's Thursday and you still have miles to go before finishing your week's work.

So there you have it. Mondays rock! Tuesdays...now that is a totally different story.

Friday Link Roundup

An eclectic collection of links this week...

• When I was in elementary school, I had two favorite educational films. One featured all sorts of things magnified into futuristic landscapes using an electron microscope and the other was super slow-mo film capturing various things like bullets being fired through an apple. This collection of high speed photographs clearly invokes the latter. Super sweet.
• From the "who knew?" category: The World Beard and Mustache Championships
• The best response I read to Clay Shirky's sexist rant against women. I am putting out the best response - not the link to Shirky's essay. If you want to read that drivel, you can find the link there.
• The funniest thing I saw all week, hands down. Oh Stephen, is there nothing you won't do?

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Skate Expectations - Speedskating Race - Shani Davis
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Economy

Happy weekend!

Today

(this is Thursday's post, but Vimeo was slow to upload and convert last night so here it is today...)

• Surprised a co-worker
• Had dinner with my girl (fab enchiladas, Liz!)
• Bemoaned the fact that peanuts are not actually nuts (criminal, I say!)
• Cleaned up cat pee
• Wore a new pair of boots
• Walked in an alto and out a soprano

And solved this mystery...

Super Doggy from Txgrrl on Vimeo.

In Progress

A messenger bag

Learning how to create argyle. Still not quite there yet.

Commemorating an excellent vacation

Creating music files

And figuring out how my dog trapped herself in the forbidden living room - ALL DAY - while leaving all the baby gates perfectly intact. Hrm....