Sunday, August 12, 2012

A new take on PB&J

Peanut butter & jelly bar
Yesterday I made these peanut butter & jelly bars, a Barefoot Contessa recipe. (Ina Garten is my go-to source for most recipes. She never lets me down!) My husband can't stop eating them, has requested I make another batch for his office and a friend requested the recipe so I thought I'd share.

1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs at room temperature (I used 2 large because that's all I had)
2 cups creamy peanut butter
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups raspberry jam (18 ounces)
2/3 cup salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking pan.

With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light yellow for about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the vanilla, eggs and peanut butter and mix until well combined.

In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture. Mix just until combined.

Spread two thirds of the dough in the prepared pan. Spread the jam evenly over the dough. Drop small globs of the remaining dough evely over the jam. Don't worry if all the jam isn't covered; the dough will spread when it bakes. Sprinkle with the chopped peanuts and bake for 45 minutes until golden brown. Cool and cut into small squares.

The Merchant of Venice

Joe and I spent our Saturday night at a nearby theatre. We have enjoyed several performances by this same theatre company in the past, always indoors, but this was our first time at the outdoor venue. And the weather here has finally cooled down enough to make it an enjoyable experience!
We saw, "The Merchant of Venice." Just waiting for it to get completely dark before the actors take the stage.

Our pre-show picnic - french bread, four different kinds of cheese, salami, figs, chocolate and drinks!

Sunday, August 05, 2012

Celebration

My parents were here over the weekend as my second cousin got married in Colorado recently and his family hosted a reception locally to celebrate. We had a great time at the reception and also fit in a little shopping and eating while mom and dad were here.

My parents, Joe and me.

My mom with her first cousin, Terrie - also the mother of the groom and party hostess.

 
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