Peanut Butter Chocolate Pillows

May 13, 2013 By Love & Flour in Cookies 1 Comment Tags: chocolate, peanut butter, stuffed, vegan

All I could think about when I walked through the door this afternoon was my head hitting the pillow. I really wanted to take a nap, but instead I baked peanut butter chocolate pillows. Fair trade, I suppose.

When I think of peanut butter and chocolate, buckeyes naturally come to mind. However, unless it is a Saturday in November or the week before Christmas, I will never be found making buckeyes to satisfy a peanut butter and chocolate craving.

I would like to claim I simply eat a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup when the mood strikes. Instead, I stick a few chocolate chips on top of a spoonful of peanut butter. Never a proud moment.

Fortunately, for the sake of my pride, I discovered this recipe over the weekend. At first glance, these cookies may sound complicated. They involve mixing dough and beating filling and wrapping them both together into a cookie.

In reality, the cookies really take very little time to prepare. I made these cookies, snapped their photos and washed the dishes in just one hour’s time. Which left plenty of time for a nap.

Chocolate and peanut butter not your favorite? Try stuffing chocolate cherry cookies with sweet cream cheese or snickerdoodles with dulce de coco instead. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Pillows

Author: Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero

Ingredients

For the Dough
½ cup canola oil
1 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup agave nectar (or maple syrup)
3 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1½ cups all purpose flour
⅓ cup plus 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
For the Filling
¾ cup peanut butter
⅔ cup powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons milk
¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

Mix the canola oil, sugar, agave nectar (or maple syrup), milk and vanilla extract together in a large bowl until well combined.
Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt and stir again until combined to form a moist dough.
Pop the dough into the refrigerator to chill while you prepare the peanut butter filling.
Prepare the filling by beating the peanut butter, powdered sugar, two tablespoons of the milk and the vanilla extract together until smooth. If the filling remains crumbly and will not come together, add the additional tablespoon of milk one teaspoon at a time until it holds its shape. Likewise, if the filling gets too runny, bring it back together with additional powdered sugar. The filling should be soft and moist but firm enough to hold together.
Roll the filling into 24 small balls. Divide the dough in half, then divide those halves in half so you have four pieces of filling. Roll six balls from each filling quarter. I found this amounted to a heaping two tablespoons of filling per ball.
Assemble to cookies by flattening about a tablespoon (maybe a little more) of chilled dough into the palm of your hand.
Place a peanut butter ball on top of that disc of dough and wrap the dough up around it.
Make sure the chocolate dough ball is well sealed around the peanut butter ball, then place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Repeat until all of the dough and balls of filling are formed into cookies. I suggest working in batches and refrigerating both the chocolate cookie dough and the peanut butter balls during any down time (see note).
Bake the cookies in a 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes.
Enjoy fresh out of the oven or warm cooled cookies in a microwave for 10-12 seconds for a warm treat.

Notes

The original recipe did not call for chilling the dough or the filling, but I find this helps stuffed cookies hold their shape much better than baking room temperature dough and filling. The original recipe also called for maple syrup, but I used agave nectar instead.

Swedish Chocolate Balls

Apr 22, 2013 By Love & Flour in Other No Comments Tags: chocolate, no-bake, oatmeal

The situation looked something like this. It was 3:30 on Saturday afternoon, and I had to leave the house to enjoy a casual dinner with friends by 6:00. I felt as though it was up to me to bring a dessert long before I confirmed the appetizer, a side dish and the entrée were covered. I had nothing.

On the list of things I do not particularly like to do, “shop at the grocery store” hovers near the top. It is right up there with other non-fun things like “take out the trash.” And a trip to the grocery store in the middle of weekend afternoon madness… In my privileged little corner of world, that is something I do my best to avoid.

This is why – my desire to share a dessert with friends that met head on with my desire to put as little as effort as possible into the process (i.e. avoid the store) – I did not anticipate a positive outcome. Add to that the fact that I have not felt much like baking lately, and things were not looking good on the dessert front.

So, there I was. Lounging on the floor on Saturday afternoon, flipping through a binder of recipes, looking like I had not a care in the world and nothing but time on my hands. But on the inside, I was desperate for a solution. The answer soon appeared, as answers always seem to do.

The form my answer took was Swedish Chocolate Balls. I had everything I needed on hand, and since my elusive desire to bake had not yet escaped with my willingness to stir things together and form them into balls, I was all set. Except I wondered…are these babies really Swedish?

I am fairly certain I enjoyed these lovely treats at Scan(dinavian) Fest a few years ago. I remember eating and loving a small chocolate dessert very similar to this one. And according to the cookbook where I found the recipe, “these treats are enjoyed with a cup of coffee in their namesake Sweden.” Still, I remained skeptical.

I have not yet been to Sweden, and I do not know anyone in Sweden. I do, however, have a favorite Swedish food blogger. Sure enough, according to Anne’s Food Swedish chocolate balls are legit.

With that, wherever you find yourself this week, enjoy!

Swedish Chocolate Balls

Author: Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar by Isa Moskowitz and Terry Romero

Serves: just shy of 24

Ingredients

3¼ cups oats
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, sifted
⅓ cup cocoa powder
⅛ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) butter
½ cup milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1½ cups shredded of flaked coconut or chocolate cookie crumbs

Instructions

In a large bowl, stir together the oats, sifted powdered sugar, cocoa powder and salt.
Cut the butter into small pieces and add it to the oat mixture. Use a pastry cutter or fork to incorporate the butter into the mixture. Using your hands to achieve a crumbly mixture is perfectly acceptable.
Stir in the milk and vanilla extract until well combined. Using a rubber spatula works great here.
Form the mixture into balls. I used a two tablespoon scoop, but you can make them smaller.
If you have a food processor, give the coconut a few spins through to make coating the balls a bit easier.
Roll each chocolate ball in the coconut or cookie crumbs until well coated.

Notes

A ½ cup chilled brewed coffee can be used in place of milk. I used vanilla coconut milk, but you could also use any chocolate milk of your choice. As for the coatings, finely chopped nuts or a sugar of your choice would also work. I also tried coating the balls with turbinado sugar, but it did not quite provide the look I had hoped for. Instead of sparkling like rock candy, it just sunk into the candy.

Not Quite a Cookie: Samoa Tart

Mar 18, 2013 By Love & Flour in Tarts 3 Comments Tags: chocolate, coconut, girl scout cookie recipe

Do you have a favorite Girl Scout Cookie? If I were stranded on a deserted island, I would want a case of Samoas to wash up on shore. Thin Mints and Tag-A-Longs would put a smile on my face, but Samoas would temporarily make me forget my dire circumstances alone on that island.

Samoas have not always been my favorite. As a little girl, I loved Do-Si-Dos simply because the little dot of peanut butter on the top sandwich cookie reminded me of a tiny belly button. The resemblance made me giggle. And whenever I laugh, I tend to really like something.

What are these cookies I just mentioned called in your area? South Carolina cookies are called Caramel deLites (Samoas), Peanut Butter Patties (Tag-A-Longs) and Peanut Butter Sandwich (Tag-A-Longs). Those names may seem like little more than trivia until you ask a South Carolina girl scout for a box of Samoas. The response you receive will be one of puzzlement, not a box of cookies. I recommend forgetting the names altogether and asking for the cookies in the purple box.

This Samoa Tart does not have quite the same taste as a traditional Samoa cookie, but it is delicious nonetheless. Coconut haters can still find some usefulness from this recipe as the crust is easy to make and tastes quite good (as far as crusts are concerned). For another idea on what to do with Dulce de Coco, try these Snickerdoodles.

In addition to this tart, I have another special treat for you. As I was writing this post, I thought up the second joke I have ever come up with on my own. Those people who know me personally just closed their browser windows. But for the rest of you unknowing souls, I leave you with this:

What do you call an island when a case of cookies washes up on shore? A desserted island!

Now, please do not desert my blog because I have a corny sense of humor. Enjoy!

Samoa Tart

Author: Vegan Desserts by Hannah Kaminsky

Ingredients

For the Crust
1 cup all-purpose flour
⅓ cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup canola oil
¼ milk
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the Dulce de Coco
1 – 13.5 ounce can coconut milk
1 cup brown sugar, packed
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
To Complete the Filling
1¾ cups unsweetened shredded coconut
1 tablespoon milk
¼ teaspoon salt
For the Ganache
⅓ cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon canola oil

Instructions

Whisk together the flours, sugar and salt in a medium bowl.
Next whisk together canola oil, milk and vanilla extract in a separate bowl.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix a few strokes until the dough comes together into a ball.
Press the crust into a lightly greased tart pan with a removable bottom. It may seem as though there is not enough to go around, but it will fit if you keep working at it.
Use a fork to poke holes across the bottom of the crust.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
While the crust bakes, start the dulce de coco. (This step can also be completed in advance).
Combine the coconut milk, brown sugar and salt in a saucepan over medium-high heat.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium.
Cover the saucepan and allow the mixture to continue to simmer for 20 minutes.
Reduce the heat to low, uncover and allow to continue to simmer for 35-40 additional minutes, stirring occasionally.
When the mixture is thickened, remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
Once the dulce de coco has cooled so it is merely warm to the touch, stir in the coconut, milk and salt.
Pour the incorporated mixture into the cooled crust and spread until even distributed.
To finish the tart, melt the chocolate chips and oil over low heat, stirring until smooth.
Drizzle the chocolate and enjoy.

Notes

If you make the dulce de coco in advance, store it in the refrigerator. Then heat it in the microwave for 15-30 seconds just to soften it a bit.