Vegan Peanut Butter Filled Chocolate Cookies

I have been oogling these cookies for months online, (actually, it's been a year) just waiting for the perfect time to make them when I'd be craving a combination of chocolate and peanut butter. But, then again, when am I not craving either one of those things at any moment in time? Anyhow, these are pretty much the perfect cookie, in my opinion. Probably the best home made cookies I have ever made personally, although I don't make many cookies so there you have it. Best chocolate peanut butter cookies EVER. MAKE THESE!

Recipe found here and here. 

Vegan Peanut Butter Filled Chocolate Cookies

Makes a variable amount of cookies. I came out with about 14-16 or so...

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup margarine

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup soy milk

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup peanut butter (chunky!)

1/3 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 °F. Mix flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda in a bowl. 

In a separate bowl, cream together the margarine, sugar, and brown sugar. When combined, mix in the soy milk. 

Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix.

In a separate bowl, mix the powdered sugar and peanut butter with a spoon or with your hands. When ingredients are incorporated, add the chocolate chips and knead further with your hands to incorporate the chocolate chips. 

Line a baking sheet (or 2) with parchment paper. Take about a tablespoon of chocolate dough (this takes some experimenting... after a little while you'll get the hang of it -- and both my chocolate and peanut butter mixtures, by the way, came out a little bit dry so I added a splash of water to each and the consistency was a lot easier to work with) in your hand and roll into a ball. Flatten the ball on the parchment paper to form a disk. Take a pinch or about 1 teaspoon of the peanut butter mixture and place in the center of the disk. Fold the edges of the disk up and over the peanut butter, pressing the seams together. Place the cookie seam-side down on the parchment paper to bake.
Bake for about 12-15 minutes or until not super soft in the middle.

Blueberry Buttermilk Cake

Since I've had a pile of lemons lying around on the kitchen counter the past few days, I figured it was time to put them to good use. Even if it was just with one of them. I had some extra precious blueberries in the fridge that were going to go bad if I didn't do something quick with them. So this afternoon I was on a quest to find a great recipe incorporating both, and man once you're really looking for something is it easy to find! Especially since both are in season. Recipes were popping up everywhere. I had more than enough to choose from, which made my decision harder. I ended up, though, just referring to a great "colorful" cookbook called Apples For Jam which I am sure most of you have heard of. I bought the cookbook months ago and this is the first recipe I actually made! Hurray! The photography is amazing and inspiring and makes me want to bake and cook and create a book of my own! Maybe someday. The author makes nice and simple home style comfort foods and lots of Italian and pasta dishes, such as Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni, Penne with Shrimp, Cream, and Tomato, Baked Butternut Squash with Butter and Sugar, Orange Juice and Olive Oil Cake with Pine Nuts. I could go on and on. Entrees, homemade ice creams and desserts, drinks and more, this cookbook has everything with extra cuteness and added cherries on top. Every now and then there is child photography and scribbled crayon art sprinkled throughout the pages. There are even color themed chapters that match the color of the food as well! Enough said. 

So I decided to make the Blueberry Buttermilk Cake, since I had some extra blueberries to spare and had some leftover buttermilk, of all things. So yeah, finally something that isn't vegan! It's quite nice, topped with blueberries and raw sugar. The only thing I'd do different next time is incorporate berries into the actual batter, not just sprinkle on top. Otherwise you're just left with plain old cake (not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just I like actually biting into something if that makes any sense). And I'd add some lemon extract along with the lemon zest. Overall, a great summer dessert that pairs well with vanilla bean ice cream. 

Yes, I know I just posted a billion pictures of the same thing, it was just too hard to choose a few. They all turned out surprisingly so nice!

Blueberry and Buttermilk Cake

From Apples For Jam by Tessa Kiros

The recipe also suggests that you can substitute hulled and halved strawberries for the blueberries if you'd prefer. Be sure to use fresh fruit also.

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I used half white, half whole wheat pastry)

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/2 cup superfine sugar

freshly grated nutmeg

2 eggs

1 cup buttermilk

4 Tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1 cup fresh blueberries

2 1/2 Tablespoons raw sugar

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Grease and flour a 12 by 8-inch pan (probably not necessary--I used a round pottery baking dish) with sides at least 2 inches high. Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl and add the sugar and a few good grinds of nutmeg. Put the eggs in another bowl and whisk until light and fluffy. Add the buttermilk, butter, and lemon zest, and beat together well. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix gently with a wooden spoon just until everything is combined. If you beat too hard, the cake will be tough.

Spoon the mixture into the pan, spreading it thinly to reach all sides. Scatter the blueberries over the top and sprinkle with raw sugar. Put in the oven and bake for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick poked into the center of the cake comes out clean (took me 30 minutes). Leave to cool in the pan before cutting. Can keep well in a sealed container for up to a week.

A few other things:

-This is really rad and amusing. Especially Jack Black's interview. He's so into it, I love it. I love Jack Black. Period. Yes, I have a ridiculous crush on Jack Black. School of Rock is on my top five favorite movies list. Anyway, watch the interview, it's great. He's kind of particular about texture like I am too. I love the way he describes it. Anyway, this is such a great idea. How lucky this lady is to be able to do this and meet some great people and find out "their" food. The hip hipster indie bands seem to be mainly vegetarians and vegans. Go figure. Chris Walla's Peanut Butter Veggie Sausage Toast actually sounds quite good, too. I think I might have to experiment...

-This which is kind of like a temporary substitution for Tastespotting. It's supposed to come back soon! 

-Homemade Naan which I promise I will make some day in the near future. 

-This T-shirt and bag from Black Sheep Heap on Etsy. So clever! I want one!

I won these Fireking Bird Mugs on eBay today! 

The Best Damn Vegan Chocolate Cake You'll Ever Eat In Your Life (Plus More Concoctions...)

I have been quite the cook in the kitchen the past 24 hours in this household of mine. Last night I made the Georgia Peach Chicken Sandwiches for my dad and I and they turned out quite good. Simple and (relatively) easy to prepare. I don't cook with meat that often so I had to be more aware of the cross-contamination issue with the chicken. Basically it was just coating the chicken in buttermilk, chopped pecans (thank goodness I finally got a food processor!) and bread crumbs and frying it and slapping it on a burger bun with mayo, sweet relish, a few slices of peaches, and some lettuce. Delicious.


Since it's been super freaking abnormally hot the past few days here and I was up hot all night tossing in turning, I definitely needed something other than a cold shower to start my day off right today. An acai bowl was the only cold and yummy breakfast-like thing that I could think of. Blended some plain yogurt with half a packet of acai and sliced some strawberries, banana, and topped it with my homemade peanut butter granola and some blueberries. It hit the spot.


Once it cooled down a little this afternoon I wanted to bake. Something chocolatey. So I thought why not try making another cake (the one that turned out before) and seeing how that goes. So I made "Wolffie's Cocoa Cake with Chocolate Fudgey Frosting" from La Dolce Vegan! and added a little peanut butter into the mix.







Wolffie's Cocoa Cake with Chocolate Fudgey (Peanut Butter) Frosting from La Dolce Vegan!

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 1/2 cups flour

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup soft or silken tofu

1 cup soymilk

1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly oil two 8-inch round cake pans and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a food processor, blend the tofu, soymilk, vinegar, vanilla, and oil until smooth. Pour into bowl along with the water and stir together well. Spread evenly between the two cake pans and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick or knife comes out clean. Let cool for 10-15 minutes before removing from pan. Cool completely before frosting. Makes 1 cake.

In the meantime, you make the frosting:

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups sugar (I only used 1 cup)

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup vegan margarine (I used less)

a spoonful of peanut butter

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the water, cocoa powder, sugar, salt, and cornstarch. Slowly bring to a boil, whisking constantly for 3-4 minutes to avoid sticking. Once it starts to thicken, remove from heat and stir in margarine, peanut butter, and vanilla. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before frosting cake, blend frosting in food processor to make it smoother if you need to. Makes approx. 2 cups.

And as for my dinner, I whipped up a simple veggie spaghetti dinner. I bought some frozen vegetarian meatballs at Trader Joe's recently (which are great) and have been using them for meatball sandwiches. Tonight I sauteed some eggplant, zucchini, and a portobello mushroom in a pan, cooked some Ezekiel whole grain pasta, baked the meatballs for a little bit, and dumped it all together with some marinara sauce and some petit basque cheese and some parmesean. Super good!






Phew! I think I've had my fill of cooking and baking this weekend. I think I'll be set for a little while. It always feels so nice to bake, especially when it turns out alright! Bake the cake if you have a chance. You won't regret it.

Some Good Things...

I can't help but want to share some inspiration and beautiful things I've found today that I hope you'll enjoy, too!

-This wonderful artist--her art is right up my alley. Nature, birds, trees, deer, mushrooms, oh goodness gracious. Absolutely lovely. I actually just saw her work at Rare Device when I was in San Francisco last weekend!

-Epicurious' Blog on How To Make The Perfect Meatballs. Something I've been trying to do myself! All I can do is experiment, I guess.

-Some fantastic recipes from Rachael Ray. I want to use more of her recipes! They're so simple and fantastic... plus the food photography is marvelous.


Ruby Plum Upside-Down Cake.


Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sandwiches.


Georgia Peach Chicken Sandwiches.


Penne-Wise Pumpkin Pasta.


Grilled Vegetable Chili.

-A No-Bake Strawberry Cream Pie from Domino Magazine.



Blueprint Pudding. This stuff is great on Manna Bread!

-Figs are back in season! Hurray!

-Weeds Season 4 has started! Thank goodness for online episodes otherwise I would be out of luck. Holy moley I love that show. It's my only real television entertainment vice. Total addiction.

-This new discovery.

-Food Gawker since Tastespotting is no longer. So sad. It's amazing how many people really got into it and participated. At least this is basically the same exact thing.

-And this is pretty creative. Thought it was appropriate since I'm taking chemistry and all. It IS possible to mix chemistry and sweets!

A Big Catch-Up Post

Wow, has it been a while. I've been quite busy the past two weeks, finishing up with school and finals and busy running here and there. Last weekend I embarked on a 3 day 33 mile backpacking excursion and that was challenging but rewarding. I did pretty well and am proud of myself for making it through because it wasn't easy, I'll tell ya. Backpacking isn't for wimps. Most of the time I was fighting my mind telling me to "Stop! Give up! This is ridiculous! Call someone to give you a ride home!" half way through the ordeal, but I pushed through. It was nice to live and sleep in the woods for a few days. The "backpacking food" isn't really that bad if you plan it all well. It forces you to be very creative. Weight and size and perishables are the main issues. Luckily we did pretty good. Here are a few pictures to share with you:












Other than that, I've started summer school (organic chemistry) and that plus work will be taking up the bulk of my time for the next few weeks. I've finally gotten into an eBay addition--CathrineHolm enamel kitchen wear and Franciscan Starburst dining ware. It had to happen at some point, right? I guess the whole eBay obsession has to be inevitable for everyone at some point in their lives. So far I've scored these great beauties:

Plus an olive green CathrineHolm baking pan. I'm super excited about starting my collection of vintage kitchen wear for my future home. Might as well start collecting it all now!



And most importantly, as far as baking goes, I've come out with some pretty interesting products the past few weeks. I finally had my first disaster cake fall to pieces:

It was supposed to be a Vegan Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting, inspired by Kristin's post a few weeks ago. Yeah, didn't really turn out that great. I was all ready to get baking (on a hot, hot 90 degree day, mind you) when I hesitated and considered making the great vegan chocolate cake that I had made previously from La Dolce Vegan!, aka. Wolffie's Cocoa Cake with Chocolate Fudgey Frosting. Now THAT is the kind of vegan chocolate cake I'm talkin' about. Seriously, THE BEST. It calls for tofu in the recipe which I'm sure makes a huge difference. So anyways, the point I'm trying to make is that I didn't listen to my baking intuition and it all went wrong. I was trying to branch out and give something else a try but no, it bit me in the ass. Guess I learned my lesson. As for the peanut butter frosting, that was pretty good, really on the sugary side. I honestly didn't even eat the cake though, I was so disappointed. I have yet to find the perfect vegan peanut butter frosting recipe (something REALLY peanut butter-y) so if anyone could help me out that would be awesome!

That day I also made Vegan Peanut Butter Banana Cookies with chopped up Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and a little Kahlua. Those turned out dry and disappointing too.


I'm telling ya, the stars just weren't aligned for my baking extravaganza that day. To top it all off, as I was taking the cookies out of the oven, the cookie sheet burned through the oven mitt and gave me a little blister on my thumb. The good news is is that I have a new cutesy apron to bake (and cook) in now thanks to my stepmom!

Ever since this was posted the other day, I was inspired to come up with a new, more weighted version of the Vegan Peanut Butter Oreo Cupcakes. Since the criteria is based on how much peanut butter is actually in the recipe, I needed to up the ante a little bit with a peanut butter frosting instead of a chocolate frosting. Therefore, I tried it out:




The cupcake portion turned out even better than usual (I think it was my friends' oven) but the peanut butter frosting would have been so much better if we had used a different peanut butter! To me, personally, since I am a peanut butter enthusiast and love the Hello! Peanut butter! taste, it was a bit disappointing. The frosting didn't taste like anything to me. All I could taste was oil and fat. So anyways, the idea was great, and I'll try making them again, the only problem was the peanut butter.

I'll leave you with a recipe from How It All Vegan! that I made the other night: Sweet Potato Corn Bread. Cornbread has to be one of my favorite foods of all time. I've loved it all my life. I could live off of it if I had to. On my list of future things to bake is peanut butter cornbread at some point. Anyways, I had it with refried beans, avocado, and a kale mushroom stir fry with gomasio seasoning. Super yummy, quick and easy meal.




Sweet Potato Corn Bread

1 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp allspice

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 cup sweet potato, cooked and mashed (I used canned, pureed sweet potato)

4 Tbsp oil

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp ground flax seed mixed in 6 Tbsp water

1/2 cup sour soy milk (soy milk + 1/2 Tbsp vinegar)

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and allspice. Stir in the cornmeal. Add the mashed sweet potatoes, oil, sweetener, egg replacer, and sour milk. Mix together gently until just mixed. Spoon into a lightly oiled square or round loaf pan and bake for 30 minutes. Test with a knife to see if done. Makes 1 loaf.