Peanut Butter and Jelly Ice Cream

Always a little rusty and out of practice at the beginning of ice cream season, the first batch out of the ice cream machine always seems to be a dud in my kitchen. Nothing changed with the kickoff of this year's ice cream adventures, either. I'll spare you the details.

But the second batch? That's when things start to flow... or chill.

I was quite smitten with peanut butter and jelly ice cream made from a coconut milk and peanut butter base layered with jelly, because it tasted just as I had planned — like peanut butter and jelly. Success, I thought! But the boy said no thank you, because it tasted like peanut butter and jelly. Hmm...may I suggest only lovers of peanut butter and jelly partake.The coconut milk ice cream base I stumbled upon with coconut chocolate ice cream, and have used since in Chick-O-Stick ice cream, has quickly become my favorite ice cream base for a few reasons: (1) there are no eggs and milk involved, two ingredients I don't like to keep in the house, and (2) there is no cooking of custard involved, making the base pretty foolproof, and (3) whether you use whole fat or low fat coconut milk, the results are always rich and creamy.

Yes, there is a slight coconut flavor in coconut milk based ice creams, but the main ice cream flavor — in this case peanut butter — will always be the main player. Peanut Butter and Jelly Ice Cream
makes about 1 quart

1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter (crunchy or smooth)
2 cups coconut milk (regular or low fat)
10 ounces jam (I used raspberry)

• Heat water and sugar in a medium saucepan until sugar is dissolved.
• Add peanut butter to the syrup and stir until peanut butter is completely melted.
  
• Remove from heat, and stir in coconut milk. Chill for a couple hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
  
• Freeze in ice cream machine.
• Working fast since the ice cream is soft, layer half of the ice cream in a container. Then add the jam on top of the ice cream, spreading as best you can (fingers worked best for me). Add the remaining ice cream as the final layer.
• Freeze 12-24 hours, or until ice cream is firm.
  

Too Haute Cowgirls Gourmet Popcorn

Recently, I had a blogging milestone - my first company samples. Up to this point, everything I've reviewed was either purchased by me or received as gift from a friend or family member. To be clear, these samples were sent from Too Haute Cowgirls (which was very exciting for me), but no one's paying me to review these, or any snack on this blog.

On to the popcorn! Too Haute Cowgirls is a Colorado-based gourmet popcorn company, started by a wedding cake designer and a pastry school graduate. Currently, they offer seven flavors, and all of them were included in the package. Rather than simple coated popcorn, however, each kind has some sort of chocolate coating, nuts, or other special touches. Here is my take on each of the flavors.


Among the small bags, there was one larger bag of Fistful of Fleur de Sel, so it was first. This flavor was caramel corn coated with dark chocolate, toffee bits, and French salt. The toffee bits were delicious and went very well with the chocolate and popcorn, and though it was almost too sweet for me, the salt provided an interesting balance. It was great for a quick indulgence, but I couldn't eat a lot at once. B+


At first, Blisters on my Buttercrunch had a salty smell and tasted like buttery caramel. The flavors blended together very smoothly, with the saltiness keeping the sweetness at a perfect level. The coated nuts (almonds, cashews, and peanuts) were delicious and matched the popcorn texture very well. It was an addictive combination and a very strong original flavor for Too Haute Cowgirls! A+


The Good the Bad and the Peanut Butter had a cool, savory, and sweet feel on the tongue. The sweetness of the peanut butter was very good with the salty, crunchy nuts. It was one of the saltier mixes of the bunch, probably because of the pretzels. It made me thirsty! The white chocolate was almost too sweet, and again, the salt provided a good balance. A-


Spicier is always better for me, so I was looking forward to Chili Con Chocolate. It smelled delicious, and reminded my husband of beef jerky. The spice mixture was peppery and had a mesquite, woodsy feel. The smoky flavor went well with the sweet dark chocolate, and there was a great spicy kick on the finish. It was hot, but painfully so, and I think it would appeal to a wide audience. The pecans added a good, tender texture. A


Mutton Bustin Milk Chocolate was similar to the Buttercrunch, with the addition of milk chocolate. It was very pleasant, subtly sweet, and addictive. The large assortment of nuts and peanut brittle made for a very special mix, and I enjoyed this almost as much as the Buttercrunch. A


End of the Trail Mix smelled sweet and yogurty, with a hint of cinnamon. The granola was chewy and carried orange and cinnamon flavors. The banana chips weren't really my thing, but my husband enjjoyed them a lot. I liked the subtle white chocolate on the popcorn, and the orange and ginger notes were stronger in some bites than others. Each bite was a little different, actually, and I do like the company's suggestion to have it for breakfast. B


I didn't love the smell of Cowgirl Coffee, as it smelled a little like Maxwell House coffee. The chocolate was good, but I wasn't sure about the coffee flavor or the white chocolate flakes. There was only one chocolate covered coffee bean in my bag, but that was good. The mix was decent, but it was my least favorite of the bunch, and the only flavor I couldn't see myself eating again. It might just be because I've never been keen on coffee flavored items, despite my love of actual coffee. B-

Overall, Too Haute Cowgirls offers a great variety of truly unique popcorn products. I'm not a popcorn connoisseur, but I had never tried anything like this before. Blisters on my Buttercrunch was my favorite; I finished my samples a week ago and I'm still thinking about it. The other stand out flavors were Mutton Bustin Milk Chocolate and the Chili Con Chocolate. Normally I don't go for cutesy names, but they definitely goes with the image, and don't detract from the delicious products.

Too Haute Cowgirls website

Reese's Dark Peanut Butter Cups

From time to time, Reese's Dark pops up in stores. I'm thankful for that, because I had already reviewed them and misplaced my tasting notes. I have small notebooks for candy tasting on the go, but I think I wrote this one on the back of a (solved) sudoku puzzle.

It says something right away that I was willing to buy Reese's Dark again. As a lover of dark chocolate and peanut butter, it's hard for me to dislike them. These have been reviewed at Gigi-Reviews, Candy Blog, and Chocablog, just to hit a few highlights.


The dark chocolate completely changes the Reese's cup. The coating is harder (as expected with dark chocolate), less sweet, and has an actual snap. It makes for a very different, more indulgent treat. The chocolate melted smooth and cool on the tongue, but the harder chocolate wasn't great with the grainy, sugary Reese's peanut butter.

In fact, the dark chocolate made the peanut butter harder to taste, especially on bites including the thick rim of the cup. I liked these, but didn't love them. In the end, the texture marriage of milk chocolate and peanut butter of the original Reese's cups is just better. Still, these were a fun distraction.

B

Reese's website

Nestle Peanut Butter KitKat Chunky

Just under a year ago, I reviewed a Canadian peanut butter KitKat bar, and it may have been a bit stale. In the interest of fairness, I jumped at the chance to review this fresh peanut butter KitKat (from the UK).

When I first saw this bar at an import food store, I thought it was a peanut KitKat bar, as the word peanut is so much bigger than the word butter on the package. For this reason, it sat in storage for a few weeks until I pulled it out again and noticed the true flavor. I am a big fan of peanut butter chocolate.


This bar smelled really good, like sweet chocolate and roasted nuts. The peanut butter layer was very thick (about half of the height), and when I bit into it, the peanut butter stuck to the roof of my mouth. Despite the nostalgia brought on by this situation, it's not something I'm used to with peanut butter candy. The peanut butter in this bar was thick, gooey, and sticky.

One difference I did like about the peanut butter was that it was less sweet than a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup (for example), but this may go hand-in-hand with the texture. It was much more like peanut butter from a jar than from a candy bar, but I could have done with a bit more creaminess.

The wafers seemed especially crispy, but that could just be the bigger size. The chocolate was mild and the whole bar was a very good combination of textures and flavors. It was quite filling! The only thing that I didn't love was the peanut butter consistency, but the flavors were great, so I think I can let it go.

B+

Nestle website

Chick-O-Stick Ice Cream

Don't ask why, but vegans love Chick-O-Sticks -- that bright orange, round stick of crunchy peanut butter and toasted coconut candy that, if you've never had one, is somewhat similar to the center of a Butterfinger Bar.

Okay, I'll tell you why vegans love Chick-O-Sticks. When you're a starving vegan on a road trip in the middle of no where, the Chick-O-Stick is your best bud, as it's one of only a few vegan candies in the aisles of a 7-11. And Chick-O-Stick is quite good. Who doesn't like crunchy peanut butter and coconut candy that sticks in your teeth!

I had this fabulous idea of making vegan Chick-O-Stick ice cream, but, dang it, someone beat me to it. To quote a Chumbawamba lyric (yeah, I like them, despite that one hit in the late 90's), "you can't write a song that's never been sung," and, similarly, you can't create a dish that's never been made.

Ah, well, I made the ice cream anyway, but with my own recipe. Since the vegan chocolate coconute ice cream I made last year turned out so well, I used the base from that recipe with added peanut butter, and Chick-O-Stick bits thrown in toward the end of the churning process.

And it was AWESOME! So awesome, I made a second batch almost immediately. Slightly peanuty, slightly coconuty, with lots of fun crunchy candy bits.

Get on it, vegans (and non-vegans), you know you love Chick-O-Sticks!Chick-O-Stick Ice Cream
makes about 1 quart

1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup peanut butter
2 cups canned coconut milk
3 (2 oz) Chick-O-Sticks, crushed

• Heat water and sugar in a medium saucepan until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat.
• Add syrup, peanut butter, and coconut milk to a blender, and blend until peanut butter is thoroughly incorporated.
• Chill ice cream base for a couple of hours or overnight.
• Freeze in ice cream machine. During the last minutes of churning add crushed Chick-O-Sticks and churn for a few more minutes until candy bits are evenly distributed. (I experimented with crushing the Chick-O-Sticks, and found pulsing with a food processor produced too much powder. Smashing the sticks while still in their wrappers with a cast iron skillet, just a couple of bonks, gave the results I desired -- large to small chunks with minimal powder.
  

PB&P Sandwich

Is there a "gross" sandwich that you enjoy? You know, one that cannot be found on menus, so has to be made at home. And when I say home, I mean alone so as not to be mocked.

Mine is a peanut butter and pickle sandwich, and I am far from alone (just google it!) in craving this particularly glorious and satisfying juxtaposition of creamy and sweet peanut butter with crunchy and salty dill pickles. Some prefer the sandwich with sweet pickles, but I prefer dill.

I was introduced to this sandwich by a friend in high school (no, we weren't stoned), and instantly thought my friend was bonkers, but, being open minded, made myself one as well. Fabulous!

A little different than most peanut butter and pickle sandwiches, I make mine on a hot dog bun. Hot dog buns seem perfectly made for pickle spears, and five or so bites is all I really need to satisfy the occasional craving for this sandwich.

So, what absolutely fabulous "gross" sandwich do you make for yourself when no one is watching?

Mars Strawberried Peanut Butter M&Ms

While grocery shopping, I was on the lookout for these M&Ms. The Mint Crispy M&Ms that came out with the most recent Indiana Jones movie were quite tasty, and I looked forward to trying another limited edition movie tie-in (the new Transformers movie) M&M.

I love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, despite having them every day at school pretty much until college. I wanted to get a small bag, but the only size my grocery store had was the medium bag. Thanks to a review from Candy Blog, I knew that M&Ms were similar to regular peanut butter M&Ms, only with strawberry flavored chocolate.


The little speckles on the pieces were really cute, and the pieces smelled like berries. The fruity chocolate was a much better match for the peanut butter than I thought it would be, and with the peanut butter, it reminded me of strawberry cake or cookies. The saltiness goes well with the berry taste.

I can't say I liked them better than regular peanut butter M&Ms, but Mars has made a combination that I never would have imagined working here into a pretty good candy. The novelty factor is high, but the taste isn't so bad, either.

B+

Mars Website

Nestle Peanut Butter KitKat

This is actually something I had months ago, when I was in Toronto, but I remembered that I hadn't reviewed it yet. I found my tasting notes (recorded on my cell phone, of all places), so I thought I'd post it!

I love peanut butter. It's definitely one of my favorite foods, so I was really excited to see this KitKat in Toronto, even though it wasn't the freshest. We found it at a gas station, and they only had the one left because it was limited edition (I think). Therefore, it was a little stale.


The chocolate coating still tasted good, and was the standard milk chocolate. The wafers were okay as well. The peanut butter seemed to have suffered from sitting on a shelf, though, and was drier than I had hoped. At least, I'm assuming that was why.

Still, despite being past its prime, the peanut butter KitKat was pretty tasty! I hope Nestle makes these again, even though I'll probably never see them in the US. I don't know if it's fair to rate this bar, but I'll revise if I ever get my hands on a fresh one.

B

Nestle Website

Reese's S'mores

So this isn't really a real review, but I just wanted to share some classic summer eating. Before last weekend, I couldn't remember the last time I had s'mores, but it's been a while. I don't like marshmallows much, so I tend to avoid them. But every once in a while during the summer, I get the urge.

It had never occurred to me to put things other than chocolate bars into s'mores, but whoever thought of putting Reese's cups in them is my hero. The pictured s'more was delicious. My craving has been satisfied for this year.

Vegan Peanut Butter Filled Chocolate Cookies

Recipes. Who owns them? Is your family recipe for oatmeal cookies so unique to your family that you can call it an original? Or have you just grown up eating that oatmeal cookie (which probably came from the recipe on the back of an oatmeal box with a few minor tweaks) for so long that, in your mind, it’s your family’s oatmeal cookie?

I see no problem with the latter scenario. Just like you can’t sing a song that’s never been sung, you also can’t bake a cookie that’s never been baked.

When I saw these vegan peanut butter filled chocolate cookies on Vegan Gal’s blog, I immediately bookmarked them. Vegan Gal admittedly confesses to forgetting where she first spotted the recipe. One of her commenters attributes it to My Sweet Vegan.

I googled the cookie and also found the recipe (vegan and non-vegan versions) in many places. Some trace it back to the classic punk vegan cookbook Soy, Not Oi!, a zine published before the ambitious young author of My Sweet Vegan was probably even born. One even attributed the non-vegan recipe (identical, save for an egg) to Better Homes and Gardens.

I'm not sure anyone can take credit for this recipe. Just like the oatmeal cookie, the peanut butter filled chocolate cookie has probably been floating out there for some time.

All I know is that if everyone’s baking these cookies, they must be good! They are.
Vegan Peanut Butter Filled Chocolate Cookies
Makes about 26 cookies

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
1/3 cup chocolate chips

• 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 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 with parchment paper.
• Take about a 2 or 3 tablespoons of the chocolate dough 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 8-12 minutes in a preheated 350° oven.

Chocolate Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes

Need I say more! OK, just a tad more…

I made these for my friend’s birthday. She’s not a sweet person, but when she does indulge she prefers chocolate. So, I indulged her. It was her birthday, after all!

I wanted to make her a special chocolate cupcake. Chocolate and peanut butter (two great tastes that taste great together!) were on my mind. Then I ran into peanut butter and jelly cupcakes made by hollowing out the center of a white cupcake, filling with jelly, and topping with peanut butter frosting. Yum! But let’s make it chocolate. Even better!

I had great success with the chocolate stout cupcakes I made last year for her birthday, but didn’t want beer all up in my cpb&j cupcakes. A little coffee subbed for the beer did the trick!

Grape jelly just wasn’t going to cut it. I used cherry preserves, and, oh my god! If you’re thinking of skipping the jelly part, don’t!

Chocolate Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes
Makes about 22 cupcakes

Cake
1 cup brewed coffee
2 sticks unsalted butter
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

• Bring coffee and butter to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat on the stove. Whisk in cocoa powder until smooth, and let cool.
• Beat eggs and sour cream in a large bowl.
• In another bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.
• Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, and beat to combine.
• Fill individual, lined cupcake molds 3/4 full, and bake for 18-20 minutes in a preheated 350° oven. Let cool.

Frosting
2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups smooth peanut butter
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2-4 teaspoons whipping cream

• Beat sugar, peanut butter, butter, and vanilla extract together. Add whipping cream, if frosting is too thick.

To Assemble
1 jar of cherry preserves
cupcakes
frosting

• Cut a cone shaped hole in the top of the cupcake with a sharp knife. Remove the cupcake plug, cut the tip of the cone off, and set the top aside. Fill the hole with jelly, and place the top of the plug back on the cupcake.
  
• Frost cupcake. (Chocolate shavings optional.)