Peanut Butter Caramel Brownies

You finish dinner one night and you begin to crave something sweet. A dessert of some sort. Sure, you’ve just finished a nice supper. One that would make even Julia Child proud. But you need something small and chocolatey to finish it off right. As you search your pantry you look around and see nothing that piques your interest. No goodies hiding away. Nothing that is ready. No treats calling out your name. No cookies, cakes, or pie. How do you even continue? Where do you go from here? You grab a few ingredients here and there. All the usual suspects are gathered around in the matter of minutes; flour, sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla. Some not so usual guests are also invited to the party. Peanut butter and bittersweet  and unsweetened chocolate are thrown into the mix. In staring at all your ingredients, intently and without blinking, the idea comes to you like a speeding bullet. Why hadn’t you thought of making this before? It’s so easy.

There’s a popular saying out there that instructs us to make brownies when life hands us chocolate. Did I get that right? I’m sure I’ve read that countless of times on mugs, t-shirts and aprons. Someone once told me something around those lines however-If I recall correctly-it was something about lemons and lemonade. I don’t know. I wasn’t really paying attention or listening. I dozed off, but I know I must’ve heard them wrong. I’m sure they meant chocolate. When I don’t like or agree with something that someone has said to me, I find it rather therapeutic to replace it with chocolate. Try it, it works every time. But that’s beside the point. I digress. The truth of the matter is when life does hand you chocolate, there is only one option-well maybe a few in the form of cakes and cookies-but for the sake of this post, let’s just say there is only one option. That option is to make brownies. Everyone likes brownies. They make people happy. Have you ever given  anyone a box of brownies and seen them react so incredibly insane over them? Has your little box of chocolate treats ever affected someone so much, they had to stop everything and do a happy dance and sing? No? Well, I have. It’s a weekly occurrence with me. “Thank you for my delicious brownies. They made my day,” people tell me. “They were so tasty that I’m going to name my next child after you! If I have one. If I don’t, then I’ll change the name of the one I already have,” I’m always told. If you see any little tots named Jonathan or Jon out there, now you know why.

What can I say? These peanut butter caramel brownies have that affect on people. I guess, it is my responsibility to state that disclaimer. To inform people of their magical powers. To warn future makers and eaters: Devouring these brownies will make you have babies and name them after me. Don’t say you’ve never been warned.

We start by making the caramel. Which happens to be a peanut butter caramel.

Orange Cherry Chocolate Chip Scones

Flour, sugar, a leavening agent, a hint of salt, and butter dance around in a stainless steel bowl. A waltz begins to play as a white paddle conducts a symphony of taste and flavor that is known only to certain breads. The rhythmic swaying of the steady movements, are all planned out. Each beat is the same and with every passing second the sound intensifies. The cold unsalted butter breaks down to small, pea-sized clumps creating a coarse, crumbly mixture. The smell of citrus bounces through the air, as orange zest falls through a grater and into the cacophony of sweetened flour and butter. Flavorings that seem like they were made for each other are added in unison. All part of a greater plan for a treat that melts in your mouth. One you can’t help but love and savor to the bitter end.

Tart and chewy dried cherries are added to the mix, not only to bring in another layer of unprecedented flavor, but also to counter balance the citrusy orange and the sweetness from the chocolate. Semi-sweet chocolate chips, in all their glory, cascade down into the crumb mixture, and douses it with jewels of sweetness. The harmony emitting from the mixer makes you smile and your heart jump with joy. Just before the aroma becomes too much to bear, the slow and steady downrush of chilled heavy cream brings the symphony to a crescendo as the dry mixture becomes a sticky dough right before your eyes. A quick mix, and a sudden halt, you form the dough into a shape resembling a square and you make precise even cuts. With each gliding movement of the blade a scone takes shape.

A skating brush paints on a thin layer of cream over each triangle of dough. Quickly they are placed in a hot oven. With the door closed, heat flies around, rotating through the confined, closed space. Baking, the scones go from pale white to golden brown, flaky and delicate. And in no time the pan is removed from the hot box and placed on a rack to cool. This precious time, allowing the wonderment to cool and come to an end in a decrescendo, the soft music starts to slowly fade. Now a faint whisper, you pick up a scone and break off a piece. As it enters your mouth and you begin to chew, you taste the layers upon layers of flavor. You’re first hit with that familiar twang of orange, and as your taste buds familiarize themselves with the citrus, suddenly a tartness enters the picture. The sharp poignant sweetness of the dried cherries, now takes center stage, and last but not least, in a final bow, the warm sweet chocolate melts into the perfectly balanced bread. The curtains fall and all around, you hear applause. Suddenly you open your eyes, as you’ve now realized they were tightly shut this entire time. The clapping, which you attributed to hundreds of fans, was really just coming from your own two hands. Slightly embarrassed, you turn to see if anyone has witnessed your display of emotion, relieved you pick up another scone and enjoy it even more so than the first time. Content with your orchestral abilities, you enter an euphoric state of bliss with nothing but orange cherry chocolate chip scones on your mind.

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Now that school is back in full swing, and three weeks into it at that, each week seems never ending. Monday drags through Friday at an alarmingly slow pace. Day’s filled with school haunt my every waking hour. Breaks between classes seem like ten hours, when in reality it’s only six, and I’m left to find things to occupy myself with until my next class starts in the evening. The prospect of spending all day in school during the week scares me every morning, as I get ready for the day that lies ahead. I fear Tuesdays and Thursdays. I’ve grown to despise them, knowing that I’ll be stuck in school from eleven to nine, with a gaping six hour gap in the middle and nothing to do in between classes. My first class ends just as the afternoon becomes prevalent, and I’m left to wonder, “Why was the class that I wanted so badly, only offered in the evening?” My afternoons are flooded with laughter from a few friends, comfort from the warmth of the library, random trips to Trader Joe’s, and constant phone vibrations throughout the day that make it easier  to go on once I see that familiar name scroll across the small digital screen. Who would have thought that seven simple letters could make a world of difference, and the unbearable bearable? A friendly comfort and warmth that is unattained by any amount of heat, sweaters, coats or scarves.

Miraculously I make it through each day alive. Unscathed and only somewhat jolted. As I walk out of class at night, zombie-like with only the comfort of my bed in mind, I look back on the things I’ve learned. After all, it is a class that I enjoy, even more so as new friends, and a hilarious well-informed teacher, enter my circle and break through the wall that my introverted self puts up. I reflect on the content of each lecture and demonstration as I leave the campus and head for my car. Strobes, flashes, C-stands, grips, reflectors, grids and umbrellas are the words floating in my mind as I drive home. Memorizing and visually recounting each direction step by step, knowing that eventually I’ll have to work with a fellow student to step it all up correctly. Suddenly I’m delighted with the prospect of having to partner up for our projects relieved that anything I didn’t catch, or quite understand my friend must know. I continue my long trek home, the day’s scenarios replaying back in my head and content that I was able to pair up with someone I actually will enjoy to work with and get to know, as we’re in three classes together. I look forward to whatever the semester has in store for me.

I embrace each weekend with all the joy in my heart, and the happiness I can’t seem to grasp during the week. Cooking and eating become fun again. Holding up a camera to each step of a recipe seems comforting and even relaxing. Shooting, editing photos, and writing each post is now my only form of escape from the things I have to do on a daily basis; aside from spending time with my family of course. The things I don’t have time for during the week are now the most important on the weekend’s to-do list, such as breakfast. A quick bowl of cereal and an extra toasted english muffin, as I rush out the door, running late for school, isn’t a situation I find myself reliving during the weekend. No. Saturday and Sunday I take my time. I prepare a hot breakfast and enjoy it with those I love all around me. Weekend traditions of family meals gathered around the dining table are the memories that I can’t seem to let go. A sister telling jokes, while another reads our Sunday paper horoscopes, a brother-in-law waiting for the food to arrive observing the crazy family he got himself into, a mother enjoying seeing her three children back home, and a son bringing a feast to the table for all to enjoy. Even simple recipes as jazzed up pancakes, are devoured within a matter of minutes, and referred to as the perfect breakfast. Saturday and Sunday fade faster than a Southern California “winter” and I’m left to face another week of school, projects, homework, reading, and shooting. But I look onto it with a smile on my face knowing that a weekend is always at the end of all the hard work and long hours. A weekend filled with pancakes, peanut butter, banana and chocolate chips.

S’MORES Cupcakes

You stick a jumbo marshmallow, perhaps even two, onto a wooden stick. Sit by a campfire and roast it to your heart’s content. The marshmallows get a little burnt and gooey. You stick them in between two graham crackers, and some Hershey’s chocolate. The hot marshmallow melts the thin chocolate perfectly. You squeeze your sandwich so that the marshmallow and melted chocolate ooze out on all sides. Quickly, you lick the delicious runny confection. Why? Because you don’t think anyone is looking, but more importantly, perhaps because you don’t care. That’s the effect this creation has on people. Sitting around the blazing fire, surrounded by the people you love, all is forgotten, all expect this heavenly treat at the moment. You devour your first one, quickly realizing that you’ve gotten sad for no immediate reason you can comprehend, other than the fact that it hits you, you’ve eaten it too fast. Your mind is made up. You’ll need another, this time to savor it slowly. To eat it slower and enjoy each of these simple yet complex flavors. Individually you wouldn’t think much of these ingredients, but together they work in unison. As if the world is saying, “These three products” just go hand in hand. They were meant to be together. Like some sort of “Big Love” creation. A threesome that the world accepts, without a doubt or criticism.

What am I talking about? S’mores of course. That childhood classic that makes the summer and the unbearable heat enjoyable. Those trips to the beach, when the sun sets, are worth every golden ray of heat, because you know at the end there is a chance, a high possibility, that there will be s’mores to enjoy. As an adult, I’m not afraid to admit that I’m still addicted to these. Something so deliciously simple, gets me every time. I can’t resist them; I’ll never turn one down. What can be better than a simple S’more on a cool evening? Well how about a S’mores cupcake? Yes, I think that is better.

The other day my sisters were over and they wanted something sweet. For one of the few times in history, I didn’t have anything baked and ready for them. I hadn’t had a chance to make anything, what with school, projects, shooting and developing. After hearing a lecture as to why I should always have something on hand. And hearing a spiel that was something along the lines of, “What kind of Bake Monster are you? To not have anything sweet here is ridiculous!” They challenged me to make something for them. The rules: I had to make something delicious, with only ingredients that I had on hand already. I couldn’t go to the market, or look at recipes. I had nothing better to do, and I really did want to bake something, so I accepted. What I came up with: S’mores cupcakes that they devoured in a matter of minutes. At the end of the day the girls walked away with a box full to take home. If  I didn’t love them so much, I would say I was duped into making some desserts for them to take home for later, not really for a fun challenge. They were just looking for something to take with them, and not leave any for me. Their enthusiasm and awesome feedback, made it all okay. I think I’ll keep them…I wont trade them in just yet.