Peanut Butter Cookies

So I came home today and decided I wanted cookies after a long day of work. Though really, I think its an after thought from yesterday. I was going non-stop yesterday! I woke up went to work, taught for two periods then went and did a cycling class then ran to the temple then did genealogy for an hour or so then went and tutored for two hours and then showered went to dinner, had a book club meeting then came home to prepare a test for the next day then went to sleep and woke up and went to work, then did some genealogy, then came home and made cookies. Wow... what a past two days. But I feel like right now is such a nice time to just sit and eat a delicious peanut butter cookie.

Soft and Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies
Source: http://www.everydayhomecook.com/2011/08/soft-chewy-peanut-butter-cookies/
Makes: 4 to 4 1/2 dozen

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Beat together butter and peanut butter until well combined.  
3. Add sugar and brown sugar, beat until fluffy.  
4. Mix in egg, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth.  
5. Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and mix just until blended.  
6. Roll balls of dough about the size of walnuts then roll in white sugar before placing on a baking sheet.  
7. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 to 12 minutes.  Do not over bake.  Cookies will be puffy, soft and slightly brown on the edges. Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least 3 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely (here is where they will continue cooking).  Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Mashed Potatoes

 Here is the recipe of mashed potatoes I used to go along with the sugar snap peas. They were delicious. Simple but good.

Mashed Potatoes
Source: http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/traditional-mashed-potatoes/Detail.aspx
Serves: 6

6 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup warm milk
1/4 cup butter or margarine
3/4 teaspoon salt
Dash pepper

1. Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. 
2. Cover and bring to a boil; cook for 20-25 minutes or until very tender. 
3. Drain well. 
4. Add milk, butter, salt and pepper; mash until light and fluffy. 

Chicken with Sugar Snap Peas

So this is a recipe I actually made a little while ago for dinner group - but it is delicious. I looked at a website that my mom suggested to me a while ago, www.eatingwell.com, and I found this recipe. Mmm... I wish I had written more about it right after I finished making it though because my memory is not that great. But I do remember that the sauce was delicious.. the chicken was moist. It tasted great with mashed potatoes. I didn't use the sprouted beans just lots of sugar snap peas and chives for my fresh herb. Very simple but oh so very yummy. (so as a little side note - since I don't remember a lot of the specifics of this meal, I left a lot of the instructions the same as they are originally - so I give all credit of writing this to eatingwell.com :) )

Chicken with Sugar Snap Peas

Source: Eatingwell.com (http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/chicken_with_sugar_snap_peas_spring_herbs.html) 

Serves: 4

1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 teaspoons plus 1 tablespoon flour, divided
1 pound thin-sliced chicken breast cutlets
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
8 ounces sugar snap peas, cut in half (2 cups)
1 14-ounce can quartered artichoke hearts, rinsed
1/4 cup sprouted beans, (see Note), optional
3 tablespoons minced fresh herbs, such as chives, tarragon or dill
2 teaspoons champagne vinegar, or white-wine vinegar

1. Whisk broth, mustard, salt, pepper and 2 teaspoons flour in a small bowl until smooth.
2. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken with the remaining 1 tablespoon flour. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken in two batches, adjusting heat as necessary to prevent burning, until golden, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate; cover with foil to keep warm.
3. Stir the broth mixture and add to the pan along with snap peas, artichoke hearts and sprouted beans (if using). Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until the snap peas are tender-crisp, 3 to 5 minutes.
4. Return the chicken to the pan, nestling it into the vegetables, and simmer until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in herbs and vinegar.

• Note: Sprouted beans, not to be confused with bean sprouts, are beans that have just barely sprouted—they look like a bean with a tiny fiber attached (rather than the more fleshy-looking sprouts commonly used in Asian cooking). Eat raw in salads or add to cooked dishes; they're an excellent source of fiber and protein. Look for them in the produce section near other sprouts.

Nutrition

Per serving: 248 calories; 6 g fat ( 1 g sat , 4 g mono ); 63 mg cholesterol; 19 g carbohydrates; 29 g protein; 7 g fiber; 605 mg sodium; 603 mg potassium.
Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin C (35% daily value), Magnesium (20% dv), Potassium (17% dv), Iron (15% dv).
Carbohydrate Servings: 1
Exchanges: 4 very lean meat, 2 vegetable, 1 fat

Guacamole and Chips

Mmmm.. avocados... after church today I decided to make guacamole! So I decided to try Alton brown's recipe.. it was amazing!

Guacamole
Source: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/guacamole-recipe/index.html

3 avocados halved, seeded and peeled
1 lime, juiced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 clove garlic, minced

1. In a large bowl place the scooped avocado pulp and lime juice, toss to coat. (I used much less lime juice then they asked, but I thought it was good and I didn't need to drain it or add it later - I just used a few drops.)
2. Drain, and reserve the lime juice, after all of the avocados have been coated. 
3. Using a potato masher add the salt, cumin, and cayenne and mash. 
4. Then, fold in the onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and garlic. 
5. Add 1 tablespoon of the reserved lime juice. 
6. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour and then serve. (I ate it right away - it was delicious)

So I talked with my roommies about this lovely dish and one said that they thought it was a 9.9/10 out of the guacamole's she's tried. It was really good. We were critiquing it and decided it was delicious because of the slight chunkiness of the avocado with the creaminess, the cool freshness of the tomatoes, the spices added really good flavor - it was a little spicy but not too much.

But I should warn you that I did cut this recipe by a third. So it was hard to get a 1/6 of a teaspoon.. so my measurements may have been a little less than it was asked for.

not only did I make guacamole but I also made chips! Only.. the tortillas I had were thick.. so when I cooked them they were a little hard. But they were pleasant. The ones I cooked longer were better because they were more crispy they were a hard first crunch but they weren't chewy at the same time.

Corn Tortilla Chips
Source: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/baked-tortilla-chips-recipe/index.html

Corn tortillas
Olive oil
salt

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
2. Brush both sides of the tortillas with oil
3. Stack the tortillas and cut them into 1/6s or 1/4s.
4. Place on cookie sheet in one layer, sprinkle with salt and bake for 15-18 minutes till golden brown and crispy. 

Watermelon Sorbet

One day I was craving a watermelon like nobody's business - so I bought one. It was huge, like twenty pounds and the next thing I new I'd eaten a quarter of it! But sadly even though I'd eaten that much our fridge was too full and I wouldn't be able to store all of it. What a dilemma. Then I realized our freezer wasn't that packed.. so I googled frozen watermelon treats and found this delicious recipe. 

Watermelon Sorbet
Source:  http://www.williammillerhouse.com/blog/2011/07/lactose-intolerant-try-this-watermelon-treat-to-beat-the-heat/
Serves: estimated 10-12 half cup servings

5 cups of cubed and seeded watermelon
1 cup sugar

2 envelope unflavored gelatin
2/3 cup fruit juice

1. Place watermelon cubes in a food processor, or a blender. Cover, process or blend until smooth. You should end up with about 5 cups of pureed watermelon.
2. Stir in sugar.
3. Combine the gelatin and juice in a small saucepan.  Let it stand for 5 minutes. Stir  the cranberry juice and gelatin mixture over low heat until the gelatin is dissolved.
4. Pour dissolved gelatin into the pureed melon and stir.  Then, pour entire mixture into an 9x13-inch baking pan. Cover and freeze two hours until firm.
5. After two hours, break up frozen mixture and place in a chilled mixing bowl. Beat with a mixer on medium to high speed until it is fluffy. Return it to the pan. Cover and freeze about 6 more hours until firm.
6. To serve, let stand at room temperature for 5 - 10 minutes. Its a little nicer to eat when its a little softer. 
 

It was so delicious! I loved just nibbling at it. Not to mention it was so light but had such a yummy sweet flavor. One of my favorite things about making this was probably working with the unflavored gelatin. I had never done that before and it created such an interesting texture before you warmed it up. I would definitely make this again. (Only next time I would get a seedless watermelon, it took a while to pick out all the seeds)