Peanut Butter 'Fudge'

Peanut Butter 'Fudge'
Originally found at LJ Cookie Exchange

1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3-4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips (optional)

Combine butter and peanut butter in a large microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 2 minutes on high; stir. Microwave for another 2 minutes. Add vanilla and powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, and stir to combine. The fudge should be stiff, but not crumbly, and will lose its sheen. Spread into a buttered 8 by 8-inch pan. Melt the chocolate chips (in the microwave, 30 seconds at a time), and pour over the peanut butter mixture. Smooth out.

Cover and refrigerate until cool, about 2 hours. Cut into 1-inch pieces and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.

My Notes:
I had a hard time getting the powdered sugar lumps out of the fudge, but overall, it wasn't bad. It's not something that I'd really consider 'fudge', and probably something that I'm more likely to bring somewhere than make for myself, but it's good.

One of these days I'll master making actual fudge, complete with the melting sugar and everything. One day.

Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes

Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes
Originally found in Season's Best Recipe Collection (Spring/Summer 2011)

Zest of 1 lemon
3/4 cup sugar
3 Tbsp canola oil
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1/3 cup vanilla soymilk
1 Tbsp lemon extract
1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 egg whites
1/4 cup raspberry preserves

3 squares white chocolate for baking
2 tbsp plain yogurt
1 1/2 tsp lemon extract
Fresh raspberries

Preheat oven to 350. Line a muffin tin with liners and set aside. Mix together sugar and oil; add zest, yogurt, soymilk, and lemon extract. Mix well. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Sift into wet ingredients and mix until well blended. Whisk egg whites vigorously until very foamy; fold into batter.

Scoop batter into liners, about 2/3rds of the way full. Drop 1 tsp of preserves into the center of each cupcake and press down lightly. Bake 15-17 minutes, until tops spring back when lightly pressed. Cool for 5 minutes, remove from pan, and allow to cool completely.

Microwave chocolate 45-60 seconds, until almost melted. Stir until smooth. Add yogurt and extract. Dip cupcakes into ganache, coating the tops evenly. Garnish with raspberries.

My Notes:

These cupcakes are very moist and dense. And while I don't typically like white chocolate, the ganache is mixed with enough flavor that it doesn't quite taste like white chocolate. They were a hit among my friends, as usual.

The raspberry preserves will sink to the bottom, so if you want to keep them in the center of the cupcake, I've heard adding some cornstarch to the mix will do the trick.

Artichoke Chicken Hodgepodge

No image.... yet.

Artichoke Chicken Hodgepodge
From Naomi's Kitchen

1 small onion
2-3 garlic cloves
1 lb chicken breast, cut into cubes
1-2 cans artichoke hearts, chopped
1 small can black olives
Several cherry tomatoes, quartered
Olive Oil

Heat a small amount of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft. Add chicken and cook until no longer pink. Add tomatoes and cook until slightly soft. Add artichoke hearts and olives and heat through.

Serve over rice or noodles.

My Notes:
This is one of those dishes that my friend made by just tossing together a few things that she had in her cabinet. It has since become one of her and her husband's favorite dishes. I've had it twice, and I've liked it both times. And it's my sort of dish... it has all the major food groups and only requires two pans (one for the dish, one for the rice/noodles) and about a half hour of preparation.

I recommend rinsing the artichoke hearts and olives, as both are rather salty, so this dish can get very salty very fast. I'm also the type of person who doesn't add salt to anything, so keep that in mind.

If you want more sauce, add 1/2 cup or a cup of chicken broth. Enjoy :)

Moroccan Chickpeas

They disappeared before I could take a picture. Sorry.

Moroccan Chickpeas
Originally found at Dinner with Julie

canola oil, for cooking
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 small can tomato paste
3 cans chickpeas
1 roasted red pepper, chopped
Water, as needed

In a large skillet, saute the onion in a bit canola oil over medium-high heat, until soft. Add the cumin, coriander, turmeric, cardamom, nutmeg and cayenne and cook for a minute. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and a splash of water. Bring to a simmer. Add the chickpeas to the pan and stir to coat. Cook for a bit to cook off any excess liquid if need be. Serve warm or refrigerate until chilled. Add the red pepper as desired.

My Notes:
First off, I just want to state that you should definitely check out the original recipe. I left a bunch of stuff out of mine (some of it by accident, some by design). It was still really good, and I wish I would've had some sort of flatbread to go with it, but it might be better if you follow the original recipe.

I didn't add the red pepper and it was plenty spicy. I think it would've made a good addition, but because I was bringing it to a potluck, I didn't want it to be too spicy for anyone. So I left it out.

Tropical Salsa

Tropical Salsa
From Bingjie's Kitchen

2 bell peppers (any color)
2-3 avocados
2 mangos
1 small red onion
2 cans black beans
2 pints cherry tomatoes
1 bunch of cilantro
4-5 cloves garlic
Salt & pepper, to taste
Red pepper flakes, to taste
lime and lemon juice, to taste

Dice all ingredients (finely for the garlic). Add salt and pepper and red pepper flakes as desired. Add equal amounts of lime and lemon juice, to taste. Serve with chips.

My Notes:
This is a recipe that I got from one of my friends. It's amazing, at least when she makes it. When I make it, my mangoes aren't ripe enough and I leave out things like avocado. But it's still good.