A Go-To Peanut Butter Chocolate Blondie Recipe & Gearing Up for Summer

Next week is the last week of school for my kids and I am trying to gear up for summer.  I have to admit that at this point in the calendar, after an intensely packed school year for me and my kids, I just want to sit on the porch, read books and drink lemonade for the next 2 months.

However, the reality is that my gang needs me to be a cruise director rather than a checked-out mom.   I start to have flash backs to Julie McCoy from The Love Boat.  (Or was this before your time?)

Thinking through and trying to create a strategy for managing (and maximizing) long summer days has become an annual ritual of mine. As I looked back at my post this week last year, I saw that I wrote about this AND the Chewy M & M bars that I had just discovered.  I can't tell you how many times I have made them in the past year, since that post! They were on heavy rotation in my kitchen.

Recently, I have added another bar cookie to my Go-To list. A few weeks ago, I was looking to make an easy but delicious dessert for small group in honor of Caroline's love of peanut butter and chocolate.  I found this one online, and it far exceeded my hopes.  It is gooey, just the right amount of peanut buttery and chocolatey, and is a bar which I love - as it is so easy!  It's made with things I had on hand, and is a cinch to whip up.

On days when I need to make a treat for a party, or a picnic, or a get together this summer, these Peanut Butter Chocolate Blondies are a good bet.

(I found the recipe on a blog and it made a small batch- which I wasn't expecting because her pan was rectangular and it threw me off- since I am used to a small batch being in a 9 X 9 pan.  I quickly doubled the recipe and made the large batch (9 X13 pan) for the crowd I was serving.  I have included ingredient measurements below for both sizes, as you might need the big for a crowd or might want a small batch if you are just making them for yourself- as they are hard to stop eating!)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Blondies

borrowed from The Sweet Talker (who borrowed from Two Tiny Kitchens)

(for a 9 X 13 pan)

1 cup peanut butter butter (I used natural- it made them nice and gooey; and you can use

 creamy or crunchy- your preference!)

2/3 cup butter, softened

1 1/3 cup white sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

2 cups chocolate chips

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(or for an 8 X 8 pan …so you don’t have to do the division J)

1/2 cup peanut butter (I used natural- it made them nice and gooey; and you can use creamy

 or crunchy- your preference!)

1/3 cup butter, softened

2/3 cup white sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup chocolate chips

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Preheat oven to 350˚. Grease baking pan.

In a medium bowl, cream together peanut butter and softened butter. 

Gradually blend in the brown sugar, white sugar, eggs, and vanilla; mix until fluffy. 

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into the peanut butter mixture until well blended.  

Fold in chocolate chips.

Bake for 30 minutes in preheated oven, or until the top springs back when touched. Don’t over bake!

Cool, and cut into squares.

Of course, feel free to add in other treats- like coconut, or Reese’s pieces, or M & Ms, or nuts into the batter.

So, in addition to making these bars and eating them, I'm working on a summer strategy for reading, projects, filling our days with productive, seasonal, relaxing and connecting things.  I am asking my friends with kids for good ideas to help with this. I used a punch card system last year that worked pretty well for my people.  My sister is working on this list of "optional activities" for summer that I am trying to figure out how to best mobilize into action.

I'm looking for a "summer central" type of spot in my house to post our plans/ideas/etc. Maybe the laundry room…or clear off the refrigerator and do it there?

We are also making a Summer Bucket List of things we want to do this summer including:
making lots of variety of popsicles and ice cream (more posts to come on those),
taking hikes to different trails/parks in the area,
pick fruit from local farms, just to get started.

I have all of these pipe dreams of learning to embroidery, learning how to play Rook as a family, working lots of jigsaw puzzles, doing house projects, and the list goes on.

And I have created my annual summer book stack- ones I need and/or want to read this summer.  I don't know how much of a dent I will make on this, but I am sure gonna try.

(I welcome any of your suggestions for managing the chaos of summer with kiddos!)

Regardless of how we end up ordering our days this summer, one thing is for sure: things will be busy in the  kitchen - with lots of hungry eaters and more time to get creative and try new things! 

Rice & Bean Salad

Do you ever have a recipe that you adore and make all the time, and then for some reason or another it fades out of your repertoire? And then one day you think of it, or see the recipe and say to yourself, “Why haven’t I made this lately? I love this dish!”  And then you make it again and it returns to your rotation of frequently-made-dishes.  This recipe is one of those. 

In the '90s I worked at a lovely stationery store, following college graduation and during graduate school.  I learned so much during those years from the incredible team of women that I worked alongside.  Things that became part of me.  They were a classy bunch (much more refined than I) and yet they loved me and mentored me in many ways.  Molly, a very deliberate and sophisticated lady, was our manager.  She oftentimes would pick up a prepared dish at Bread & Company or The Food Company (which was across the street) to have for lunch or dinner.  One of her go-to dishes was this Rice Salad.  I couldn’t afford to pick up food like that, but I was eager to taste, and then attempt to reproduce things at home.  It was so tasty: zingy, fresh, hearty, and so yummy! 

this is the "recipe" I've had in my recipe box all
these years- the list of ingredients from
Molly's salad

Molly had this brilliant trick. She would walk in, put her personal belongings away, place her food in the fridge, along with her car keys, and be about her day- knowing that she wouldn’t get past the door to head home without remembering her food.  I took note of this ritual and have adopted it in my own life. It's fool proof!

I sometimes wonder (in my very analytical mind) if I could untangle the web of my life and retrace the origins of my philosophies, habits, ideas, and even recipes - what all of the sources would be.  We have each adopted a multitude of things from countless people along our paths- which make us who we are!

If we live with our eyes open, our hearts receptive and our minds curious- we are capable of being shaped by the people around us.  Some things repel or just pass by, but some things stick forever. 

This dish was one of those things that became a staple for me and then went by the wayside and now is coming back. 

Rice & Bean Salad

1 1/2 cups brown rice- prepared as directed on package

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 1/2 cups grape tomatoes- sliced in half

2 green onions, finely chopped

1 cup crumbled feta cheese (or less if you prefer)

bottled Italian dressing - start with 1/2 cup and add more if needed 

Prepare rice.

My sister and brother-in-law gave us this rice cooker a
few Christmases ago- it is a kitchen tool he has used
that was new to our family.  We use it all the time
now.  It does the work for you, and you can focus on
the rest of the recipe. 

In the meantime, chop tomatoes and green onions. 

Drain and rinse black beans.

Gently toss together rice, beans, tomatoes and onions. 

Add feta.  Toss together.

Add Italian dressing a little at a time, folding in, and adding enough to lightly coat the salad and to your liking.  Season with salt and pepper as desired.

This dish is great because it only takes a few minutes to put together and it keeps well in the refrigerator for several days.  It is great cold or warmed.  It is delicious as a side dish with a piece of grilled meat, or as your main dish. It’s lovely for lunch or dinner.

I decided to use brown rice, to make it even healthier- though not as pretty, in my opinion. It's a recipe you can play around with and find the balance of ingredients you like.  

I made it recently and my girls gobbled it up!  (If you remember, my son is still working through his bean-phobia).  In fact, Lainey asked me this week if I would make it again because she "LOOOVEs it".  Music to my ears!

This was my lunch the other day as I was grading my last batch of exams.  

It was the perfect spring lunch for me.  A crisp sliced apple and a bowl of Rice & Bean Salad. Quick, tasty and filling! 

True Confessions (and Baked Ravioli)

During this season of Lent, our family has been practicing confession of our sins, our shortcomings and frailties at the dinner table.  We have this wreath in the center of our table with a little dish of toothpicks.  We stick a "thorn in the crown" representing our sin.  We have done this during this pre-Easter season for the past few years.  It is so convicting and powerful.  [If you don’t know of this ritual and want to know more (and the beautiful conclusion)- read about it HERE].

My kids have really engaged with this practice.  They quickly grab for the toothpicks, ready to confess.  They are aware of their struggles and the ways they have lived out of a selfish place.  This humility and self awareness seems so important.  (We have had a lot to confess lately- as we've had some rough days). It has been a beautiful and convicting experience to have my children model conviction for me.

One of the most humbling parts of it this year has been the repetition of sin in my days.  As I ponder the day's words, thoughts and deeds, I find that I repeat the same sins over and over.  The other day, I followed my kids’ lead by grabbing a toothpick.  And then I just held onto it.  My daughter asked, “Are you going to share your sin?” I said, “I’m thinking.” She replied with some suggestions of sins from my previous week, (thank you very much) “What about self pity, judging, impatience?”  Yep. Those are the ones.  The ones that keep surfacing.

The silver lining of this disappointment is that it has made me sick of myself! I have thought, “NO MORE SELF PITY!! THIS IS GETTING OLD!” And it has prompted me to resist when the urge to “compare and despair” rises up in me.   I have been fighting the temptation to let my comparison lead me to judging myself or others. (My comparison typically tends to lead to one or the other.)

While I’m confessing, here’s another. (Not nearly as ugly.)  I am tired of dinner.  I am tired of dinner planning, of preparation, of dinner itself.  I wish that we could just make a peanut butter and banana sandwich, or have a salad, or open a can of tuna, or take some "dinner pill" and call it a night.  But I have people in my house that like a real meal for dinner.  Sigh.

I am grateful for the longer days of sunshine, as it helps with my motivation.  My friend Lindsey was telling me this week that last month she planned out the entire month of dinners for her household.  I'm so impressed.  She said she went ahead and bought all of the non-perishables for the month and then bought perishables each week.  I think this is brilliant (and ambitious) and I'm hoping that maybe she will just give me her month-of-menus and I won't even have to think! We like the same kinds of meals, so I would be happy to adopt her plans. 

If my daughters had it their way they would choose pasta every meal.  I really try to limit it to one dinner a week.  I felt like I needed to add another pasta dish to my repertoire.  I was trying to think of something easy but different and delicious to make.  I didn’t want to do a meaty lasagna- for the sake of cost and trouble and my meat-adverse people.  My family loves ravioli.  I found a recipe from Martha Stewart's EVERYDAY FOOD for Baked Ravioli.  It is so simple and is lasagna-like in that it has the pasta, cheesy and savory filled, with red sauce in between, but much less work. 

I followed her recipe, and even made the sauce she instructed to make.  It was so delicious.  I think next time, I confess, I might just make it with jars of good quality pasta sauce. The homemade sauce didn’t make that much of an impact.   Then the recipe would be even simpler!!  I also think I'll attempt to sauté some vegetables to layer into the dish- maybe zucchini and squash to incorporate some healthiness.

Baked Ravioli

(adapted from Martha Stewart’s EVERYDAY FOOD)

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

coarse salt and ground pepper

1 ½ tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. basil

1 can (28 oz.) diced tomatoes

1 can (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes

2 (1 lb. bags) store-bought frozen cheese ravioli

2 cups shredded mozzarella

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

 [OR if you are making it with bought sauce- omit first 8 ingredients and replace with 2 jars of pasta sauce. ]
And, if you are making for a smaller crowd, you could make it with one bag of ravioli and one jar of sauce and make it in a square baking dish.

Preheat oven to 425˚ degrees.  Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and season with salt and pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add spices.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, breaking up tomatoes with a spoon, until sauce is thickened and reduced (about 20-25 minutes).  OR heat up 2 jars of quality pasta sauce.

Meanwhile, cook ravioli in a large pot of boiling water, salted.  Cook for just a few minutes- until pasta rises to the top of the pot.  Drain pasta.

Toss sauce with pasta.  Pour into a large baking dish (13 X 9).  Sprinkle with mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.  Bake for 20 minutes or until golden on top and bubbly.  Cool slightly before serving.

chop

simmer

boil for 3 minutes

pile in a dish

stir in sauce

top with cheeses and bake

Done!

I hope you are having a lovely beginning of spring, a meaningful season of Lent (if this is something you practice), and inspired dinners!

Irish Soda Bread: Top O' the Morning to You!

March is a full month- it holds Lent (the liturgical season leading up to Easter);  it’s National Reading Month (which I love); it’s National Social Work Month (of which I am a part); and St. Patrick’s Day.

I have been thinking “Irish”, in anticipation of St. Patrick’s day.  Our family tradition is eating Lucky Charms and wearing green.  Last year we ate Lucky Charms for dinner- and that was a hit, so we plan to repeat that tradition this year.  I’ve been learning about Irish Soda Bread and have attempted a few loaves of different varieties, made with different recipes, and have found one that I think is delicious and a great go-to loaf of quick bread! 

If you don’t know about Irish Soda Bread, here’s the story. It is called "soda bread" because it is made with buttermilk and baking soda- causing the reaction which allows it to rise (rather than yeast which requires rising and resting time).   It's sometimes made with currants or raisins and other times a more nuttier brown bread version. The Irish oftentimes make this as a dinner loaf of bread.

The first loaf I made was from the Back in The Day Bakery cookbook which contained currants.  It was so tasty with butter and jam and great for breakfast.  It was just a touch of sweet because of the currants but perhaps a little deceiving, as it is not a sweet bread, as one might think by the looks of things.

When I brought it to my office to share, my colleague Jenny mentioned having recently seen the America’s Test Kitchen episode where they made beef stew and Irish Soda Bread, and it made her want to make it especially since they had melted butter brushed on the baked loaf!

So I came home and looked up the episode and watched it and it looked so good (as did the Beef Stew, which I wouldn’t typically crave, but looked exceptional).   America’s Test Kitchen is the source of Cook’s Illustrated magazine and the BEST RECIPE cookbooks, which I have mentioned HERE.  I had never watched the Cook’s Country Show, and I’m so glad Jenny mentioned it, because I loved it!

Since watching the episode, I have made the bread 3 times- each time learning more about it.  It is more of a nutty “brown bread” recipe.    I think for a meal bread, it’s more universal to make this version without the currants, though I like the sweetness and texture of the currants.  Instead of the whole wheat/ white flour combination for which the recipe calls, a couple of times, I simply used white-wheat flour.  It worked well. 

With the first loaf of this version,  I sliced it and served it with butter and jam at church.  A couple of days later, I made a loaf to go with the Chicken and Wild Rice Soup we had for dinner.  It was a treat to have a fresh loaf of bread with dinner.  It is that quick and easy. You really should try making it!

This recipe produces a dense and wheaty loaf with a buttery, and craggy crust.  

Irish Soda Bread

From America’s Test Kitchen

2 
cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour

1/2 cup toasted wheat germ

3 Tbsp. sugar

1 1/2 
tsp. salt

1 
tsp. baking powder

1 
tsp. baking soda

1 3/4 
cups buttermilk

3 Tbsp. butter, melted (divided)

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees.

Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Whisk all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, wheat germ, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together in large bowl. Combine buttermilk and 2 tablespoons melted butter in 2-cup liquid measuring cup.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir with rubber spatula until dough just comes together.

Turn out dough onto lightly floured counter and knead until cohesive mass forms, about 8 turns. Pat dough into 7-inch round and transfer to prepared sheet. Using sharp serrated knife, make ¼-inch-deep cross about 5 inches long on top of loaf.

Bake until skewer inserted in center comes out clean and loaf registers 195 degrees, 40 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. (I had never used a thermometer to determine the doneness of bread, but it was such a help).

 

Remove bread from oven. Brush with remaining 1 Tbsp. melted butter. Transfer loaf to wire rack and let cool for at least 1 hour. Serve.

It's important to keep in mind that you have to eat it (or freeze it) in about 24 hours, as it hardens more quickly than some bread.  It is good toasted on day #2.

Happy March, and all that it holds, and happy bread-baking!