peanut butter | Food Loves Writing

cookie dough

I’ve been having a lot of bad luck in the kitchen lately.

I mean, not that anyone’s keeping track, but, in the last few weeks, the handful of times I’ve found to try a new recipe or carve out an hour to cook, the results were unimpressive (OK, with at least one exception). I made a squash and apple soup that had little flavor. I pureed pumpkin from a little $1.50 pie pumpkin at Meijer, and the three loaves of bread I made with it were barely edible—the one with pecans on top was the best, but even it found an eventual demise in the trash can. My version of candied sweet potatoes wasn’t awful, but that’s really the best endorsement of it I can give and, since when did making something not awful inspire anyone toward the stove?

I decided, sometime this past weekend, that there were a few different conclusions I could draw from this: 1) I’ve been picking bad recipes (over and over again); 2) I’ve been eating so well everywhere else that my standards have risen and maybe these OK things are what I would have once thought good? or 3), most troubling, I cannot cook.

Now, if the problem lies in either the first or second reasons, I can wait this out. But if it’s the third? What do I do—give up? It was starting to feel hypocritical even posting here—who am I to be telling you about recipes to try? I should be begging you for help.

But then I saw some peanut butter sandwich cookies and was inspired to give this kitchen thing one last chance. I can’t say if it’s because I was hungry when I saw them or because they are cookies, the first type of recipe I ever made and the kind that has yet to fail me, but I lost sight of every culinary disappointment and knew only one thing: I was making these cookies, and I was making them that night. Read more…

Autumn is the kind of season that needs to be savored. I feel like I should apologize to anyone who doesn’t live somewhere with a pronounced seasonal change, who doesn’t get to watch the greens turn to yellows and crimsons, doesn’t feel the crisp October air. It’s probably one my favorite things about the world. And every year, I think how much shorter fall has become, how quickly it’s flown by. So every year after that, I try to make it last longer, try to enjoy every bit of it to the fullest. How do I do that? Partially, it’s talking: telling everyone who will listen that fall is the most beautiful season and—Did you know when leaves turn colors, they’re just shedding their outer layer and revealing what was underneath all along? (It’s true!) Partially, it’s slowing down: walking outside, breathing in the fresh air, opening the windows. And partially, maybe mostly, it’s eating: pumpkin-flavored desserts, rich stews, hot apple cider. You can eat these things any time of year, of course, but they’re best when the days darken and you pull out jackets again.

popcorn

Friday night, while watching the first presidential debate, I mulled apple cider and popped popcorn kernels, because it’s fall. Here is what happened: In a very large pot on the stove, I poured two quarts of apple cider. Setting it on heat, I added cinnamon sticks (which are expensive but so pretty), cloves and brown sugar. I would’ve added a slice of orange, but I forgot to pick one up from the store. (I would add a lemon slice later instead, for appearance’s sake, and immediately regret it.) I covered the pot.

Meanwhile, in another very large pot, I tossed in enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom. Then I threw in popcorn kernels and added a lid, careful to angle it so steam could escape. Having never made my own popcorn, save for the kind you microwave in a paper bag, I doubted this would work. Yet in minutes, the pot’s glass lid was steamy and I heard the gentle Pop, Pop, Pop! the recipe promised. This rhythm continued for a bit, then it stopped. This was my cue. Off the heat came the pan, all the white kernels tossing into my greased bowl. I poured a heated peanut butter & honey mixture on top, mixed it all with a wooden spoon and Voila!

cider and popcorn

The popcorn, all gooey and crispy, reminds me of that party mix people make, with rice cereal maybe? It’s coated and creamy yet salty and savory. It’s tasty with the first bite but, I’d swear, better with each additional handful. And, if I do say so myself, it goes wonderfully with a fresh, steaming hot cup of mulled cider. Try it, presidential debate or not, and see if you don’t feel more seasonally festive.

popcorn

Would it hurt your impression of me too much if I told you I had some for breakfast the next morning? Or that I brought some more to a friend’s house Saturday night? What if I told you I have such little self-control that I easily ate 70% of the entire batch, which, honestly, was completely unnecessary, what with the other good snacks all around me?

I think once you make it, you’ll understand. When the peanut butter and honey meld together into a hot, bubbling mixture, when they make an almost caramel glaze all over the popped kernels, it’s just… well, really fall.

Peanut Butter Popcorn
from The Kitchn at Apartment Therapy

Ingredients:
1/4 cup popcorn kernels
Vegetable oil
Salt
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
Prepare a clean paper shopping bag or an oversized mixing bowl. Heat a large heavy pan over medium heat and film the bottom with vegetable oil. Add the popcorn, shake to distribute and then put a lid on the pan. Leave a small crack for steam to escape. When the popcorn starts popping, shake vigorously to make sure the kernels pop evenly. When the popping slows, take the pan off the heat.

Pour the popcorn into the paper bag or bowl to cool, being careful to leave any unpopped kernels in the pan. {Coated with peanut butter caramel, the unpopped kernels are a serious tooth hazard.} Lightly salt the popcorn to taste.

Mix the honey and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Let it simmer for a couple minutes, and then remove from the heat and add the peanut butter. Stir vigorously until all the peanut butter is melted; then mix in the vanilla.

Immediately pour the peanut butter caramel over the popcorn and stir with a long-handled wooden spoon until it’s all coated. Once it’s mixed, you can put it in a serving bowl. Cover tightly after it’s cooled.