Posts Tagged ‘peanut butter’

This should really be called “Pantry Chili with Peanut Butter” since that’s where it all started. Since payday fell on a Monday this past week and I had already exhausted my food budget, I had to be clever when it came to cooking over the weekend. I opened up my pantry and stood there, for a solid 10 minutes, trying to figure out what I could make. And then it all just came together: lots of half-opened bags of dried beans, canned tomatoes, broth, onion and garlic under the sink, and a jar of peanut butter on my counter (maybe open… with a spoon sticking out of it…).

I’ve heard of people using peanut butter in their chili before to give it a special aromatic, underlying flavor and I was always intrigued since peanut butter is my personal drug of choice. So I found a peanut butter chili recipe and converted it to be slow-cooker friendly and changed things up to use dried beans and work around the types of tomatoes and other ingredients I had on hand. I specifically added the peanut butter at the very end so the flavor would really pop and man does it ever. It’s reminiscent of African peanut stew almost. This is a really hearty chili, perfect for a Superbowl party since it fills you up but is also vegetarian-friendly (and vegan friendly if you don’t use the dairy and consider PB vegan) so you can feed the whole crowd with no worries.

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Some may call this lazy, others (like myself) call it genius.

I saw this on The Kitchn a few days ago, and could not wait to try it. 2-ingredient ice cream you could make and eat within a few hours? Sign me up! All you have to do is chop, freeze, and blend a banana. The natural texture and fat within the fruit lets it blend into a thick, smooth consistency instead of getting crumbly. Stir in some honey roasted peanut butter (ohh, my dearest friend) and you’ve got 2-ingredient ‘ice cream.’

The consistency straight from the blending is like thick soft serve, but you can also freeze it and eat it like normal ice cream too. You can really go nuts with accompaniments (Nutella, chocolate chips, walnuts, etc, spring to mind) so just have fun with it. Plus it can be allergy/lactose/vegan friendly!

Icy bananas.

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Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me.

Before you read any further, put your scale in the closet. Get out some elastic-waist pants.  And get ready to indulge.  Because my favorite indulgent treat is exactly that — indulgent.  And you can’t enjoy it if you’re thinking about the calories, fat, and amazingness contained within.

Back? Alright then!

Peanut butter is truly my biggest indulgence.  I allow myself a tablespoon a day to satiate my love of it, so naturally, my favorite treat has peanut butter. And chocolate.  Of course.

And when those two things come in cupcake form… well… does it get better?  My birthday is today but I made these Thursday evening to bring in Friday for work.  I know it sounds ridiculous and elementary school class-like to bring in treats on your own birthday, but luckily I share my birthday with my co-worker Dave, so it didn’t look too odd.  Not that anyone even noticed because, well, did I mention they’re chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting? And I even brought milk in for everyone to enjoy them with?  It’s the only way to do it.

So please excuse myself while I go celebrate my 24th year with more chocolate and peanut butter than I normally eat in a 3 month span.  Happy Birthday to me, indeed!