peanut butter pretzel bites

Peanut butter: Check

Chocolate: Check

Soft pretzel goodness: Check

Yield: 60 pretzel bites
60 calories per pretzel bite
Active time: 15 minutes
Total time: 150 minutes

ingredients

3/4 cup lukewarm water

1 cup unfed sourdough starter, straight from the fridge

3 cups high gluten flour

1/4 cup nonfat dry milk

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons yeast

1 bag of Reese’s Mini’s

preparation

1. In a 2 cup Pyrex measuring cup, combine the lukewarm water, yeast, and a pinch of sugar. Set aside for 10 minutes.

2. In your stand mixer bowl, combine the flour, dry milk, sugar, vegetable oil, and salt.

3. With the dough hook attached, “stir” to blend.

4. Add the yeast mixture and “stir” until a shaggy dough forms.

5. Increase the stand mixer speed to 2 and knead until a smooth and cohesive dough forms, about 5 minutes.

6. Turn the dough out onto your counter top, knead by had a few turns, form a ball, and place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl.

7. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside to double in bulk, about 90 minutes.

8. Turn the dough out onto your counter top and divide in half. Place one half of the dough back in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap.

9. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

10. Divide the dough by:

     a) Cutting the half into fourths, rolling each fourth into a rope, and cutting each rope five equal

pieces.

     b) Cutting the dough into a series of halves until you get 30 roughly equal pieces.

11. One by one, fill each piece of dough by gently flattening the dough with the palm of your hand, placing the Reese’s Mini on one side of the flattened dough, and folding over the dough to form an envelope.

12. Tightly pinch the seams closed.

13. Place the dough rectangle on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet.

14. Repeat with the remaining dough portions and the other half of the dough.

15. Lightly brush with an egg wash and sprinkle on nonpareils, salt, or candy sugar, if desired.

16. Bake until light brown, about 20 minutes. 

Original recipes found here and here.

vegan chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting

Last weekend when my parents were in town, we stopped by my favorite cupcake shop. My dad ordered the vegan cupcake. I love a vegan cupcake as much as the next girl, but because my parents are a little more meat and potatoes, I asked him why. My dad said he went for the vegan cupcake because the ingredients, chocolate and peanut butter, sounded delicious. For the record, he was surprised to know it didn't contain any dairy :) This cake is my take on last weekend's cupcake.

The frosting I made isn't vegan, as it contains butter.  You could easily make a fruit or paleo frosting to give the cake a vegan stamp of approval.

Yield: 1 layered cake of two 8-inch rounds

385 calories, if cut into 12 slices

Active time: 10 minutes

Total time: 50 minutes

ingredients

the cake

3 cups all-purpose flour

6 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 cups granulated sugar

1/4 cup coconut oil (vegetable is fine)

1 medium avocado

2 cups water

2 Tablespoons white vinegar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

the frosting

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

milk, as needed

  

preparation

the cake

1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  

2. Lightly oil or grease the 8 inch rounds and set aside.

3. Combine the avocado, coconut oil, vanilla extract, and vinegar in a large bowl. Using your hand mixer, blend until smooth, about 2 minutes.

4. Add the water, flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder to the bowl. Mix on a medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes.  You may have to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure all the ingredients are incorporated.  The batter will be very thick.

5. Add the sugar about half a cup at a time, mixing on a high speed until well-blended, about 2 minutes.

6. Pour batter into your greased cake tins and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. (See step 7 of “lavender greek yogurt cupcakes” for additional resources on testing for doneness.) 

the frosting

7. Cream the butter and peanut butter until smooth. (See step 9 “oreo cupcakes” for more on creaming butter.)

8. Add the confectioners’ sugar a little bit at a time, and beat until smooth, about 3 minutes. You’ll need to add the milk, about 1 tablespoon at a time get it nice and fluffy. (I used water, instead of milk, because my fridge was full and I didn't have the space to refrigerate the cake. So, my frosting isn't nearly as fluffy as it should be. The frosting in "oreo cupcakes" is more what you're going for here.)

9. After they've cooled, frost cakes. 

Other modifications:

• Don't like sandwich style frosting? Make a lighter frosting, like meringue, and frost the entire cake.
• Change the frosting.  See lavender greek yogurt cupcakes and pineapple chocolate chip coconut cake for ideas.

 Original recipes here and here.

banana and peanut butter frozen yogurt

Henry and I weren't ready for this freakishly early heat wave pushing temperatures to near 90 degrees. To help my furry little amigo cool down after our walks, I broke out the food processor and made frozen yogurt.  While some dogs may struggle with digesting dairy, yogurt is a good source of calcium, protein, potassium and magnesium and can supply beneficial bacteria. Yogurt may also help soothe an upset stomach. You can purchase frozen treats like Frosty Paws and Yoghund, but because I keep Greek yogurt and fruit on hand, I've found it to be easier and more cost effective to make my own small batches.  

Before you get too innovative with your pooch's frozen treat, make sure you have a good handle on what foods can be poisonous to your dog. The ASPCA has put together a comprehensive list of what foods shouldn't be fed to dogs. I've also included an infographic at the bottom of this post. 

And hey, all the ingredients are human grade so you could enjoy this as a flavored yogurt or frozen treat too! Chobani has a lot of crazy flavors, so consider yourself a market researcher. :)

ingredients
1 1/2 cups plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1 banana (or about 1/2 cup of fruit of your choosing)

preparation
1. Using your food processor, puree the banana, yogurt, agave nectar, and peanut butter until smooth, about 1 minute.  You may need to scrape the yogurt from the sides and the peanut butter from the bottom of the bowl halfway through.

1b. If you don't have a food processor, you can mix the ingredients by hand in a small bowl until well blended. I recommend warming the peanut butter in the microwave for about 30-45 seconds to ensure it will incorporate with the other ingredients. 

2. Pour into small containers, cover with the lids, freeze.

 

If you're looking for a biscuit, check out "dog treats".

Original recipes found here and here.

sourdough peanut butter cookies

This recipe is a great alternative to the standard peanut butter cookie and provides another easy way to use sourdough starter.

Yield: 24 cookies, using 1 tablespoon of batter per cookie
120 calories per cookie
Active time: 5 minutes
Total time: 35 minutes

ingredients

1/2 cup unfed sourdough starter, straight from the fridge is fine as long as it has been stirred down

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup butter, melted at room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg

preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix together the peanut butter, sourdough starter, egg, brown sugar, and butter.  Blend, with a hand mixer, until a smooth batter forms.

I've been maintaining a sourdough starter for 3 weeks.  (See step 3 of "semolina bread" for more information on starter maintenance and additional recipes.) The photo on the left is unstirred and the photo on the right is the sourdough starter after stirring it down.

3. Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and blend with the hand mixer. You may have to use a spatula for straggling batter that's sticking to the side of the bowl. The batter will be thick. Refrigerate the batter for 10 minutes.

4. Using a tablespoon, take a scoop of the batter. Use a second metal kitchen spoon to drop the batter portion from the tablespoon onto a parchment or silpat lined cookie sheet. The cookies will spread out a little during the make, so leave about 1 inch between them. Cover lightly with sprinkles, if desired.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for 20, until the cookies are golden brown around the edges.

Original recipe found here.