Friday Things | April 19, 2013

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Time for an installment of Friday Things:

1. Nearly a year ago, the National Peanut Board approached me and wanted to know if I could submit some peanut butter recipes for an upcoming cookbook they were publishing.

24 Hours of Peanuts averiecooks.com

I’m the peanut butter queen and this was no problem for me.

35+ National Peanut Day Recipes

75+ Peanut Butter Recipes

Peanut Butter and Jelly Recipes

Independently, I was writing my own cookbookPeanut Butter Comfort, which is being released in 6 weeks and is available now on Amazon for preorder.

Peanut Butter Comfort: Recipes for Breakfasts, Brownies, Cakes, Cookies, Candies, and Frozen Treats Featuring America's Favorite Spread

For the 24 Hours of Peanuts cookbook, I submitted Peanut Noodles with Mixed Vegetables and Peanut Sauce (vegan, GF)

24 Hours of Peanuts averiecooks.com

And Peanut Butter and Jelly Blondies

24 Hours of Peanuts averiecooks.com

Stay tuned this weekend. I have a giveaway coming up that may interest you.

2. Set of 4 Slate Placecard Holders with Soapstone Chalk, $12.95 Crate and Barrel. How fun would these be for a party or for labeling different items on a big buffet spread.Set of 4 Slate Placecard Holders with Soapstone Chalk3. Seven Recipe-Saving Sites to make your recipe-saving life easier. I’ve blogged many times about how I have recipes on paper note cards, scratched on napkins, and my online recipes were a hodgepodge of emails I sent to myself, bookmarks, Pins, and nothing was well-organized until I started using ZipList.

It only works if the blog I visit has signed up to use it, but if they have it’s wonderful and more and more bloggers seem to be getting on board.

I can save any recipe I see online in a handy virtual recipe box that I can access and then scroll through for rainy day inspiration. Sign up for free if you haven’t already.

zippiest

4. The weather is getting nicer here and it puts me in the mood for something lighter like easy, no-mixer, whisk together Banana Yogurt Muffins

Banana Yogurt Muffins with sprinkles

5. Secrets to the perfect cheese danish using puff pastry as a handy shortcut from America’s Test Kitchen.

“…Important to score a 1/2-inch border in the individual pastry rectangles and prick the centers with a fork. Doing so prevented the pastry from rising too much in the center—making room for the cream cheese filling—and helped to form a pretty edge.” source

Fork poking puff pastry

This recipe for Avocado Cream Cheese and Salsa-Stuffed Puff Pastry (vegan) is one of the most popular on my site. From sweet to savory, puff pastry is such a versatile workhorse.

Avocado Cream Cheese and Salsa-Stuffed Puff Pastry with one split in half

6. Dream hotel minibar inventory from New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd. I concur that Pringles, Kit Kats, White Cheddar Pirate’s Booty, and gummy bears taste pretty dandy at 2am after a night out. Don’t forget the peanut butter or cheese mini Ritz sandwich crackers, maybe a few Tootsie Pops, and a Little Debbie Oatmeal Cream Pie wouldn’t hurt.

And eating Pringles in hotel beds is totally okay because even if crumbs get in the bed, it doesn’t matter because the maids are changing the sheets in the morning.

Dream hotel minibar inventory

7. I want this look from Anthro, especially the blouse. Love the color and the print. And the purse. And the shoes. And the white capris. Yeah, the whole look.

Woman in white pants and yellow and red shirt

8. Wall-Mounted Cabinet Bar that exists to put your home bar to shame. Stunning.

Wall-Mounted Cabinet Bar

9. Jars Cantine 16-piece Dinnerware Set, $366.95 at Williams-Sonoma. Crafted in the south of France at the award-winning Jars pottery, I love the look. Simple yet vibrant, fun, unfussy enough to be practical.

Overhead of Jars Cantine 16-piece Dinnerware Set

10. It’s been quite a week and my heart goes out to everyone effected by the Boston tragedy. I plan to eat chocolate with a spoon as I continue to reflect.

10-Minute Homemade Hot Fudge

10-Minute Homemade Hot Fudge in jar with spoon

And I wish I was eating one of these Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars. I’ve been thinking about them ever since I made them.

Two stacked Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars

What are your Friday Things?

If you’ve made anything, done, seen, or bought anything fabulous recently, feel free to link it up in the comments.

Cookbooks you’re loving lately? Weekend plans?

Dream mini-bar list? Dream outfits or cute dishes you’ve seen?

Have a great weekend and check back for two giveaways!

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Comments

  1. I am so excited for you book Averie! Huge congrats. I know it is going to be filled with the most amazing peanut butter recipes around!

  2. Things I’m loving this Friday: I really want to get the new book Replenish by Daphne Oz. I’m hearing great things about it! It incorporates great recipes along with other helpful life tips… Need to get it soon!
    Also, for planning my life (I love agendas and planners) and I found MayBooks! You can create custom planners AND other types of books… I’m putting in my order for one soon!:)
    Also, loved the idea of an online custom cookbook- I definitely need to sign up for that! Thanks for the tip!

  3. Very excited for Peanut Butter Comfort, I’m a peanut butter lover too so can’t wait to get my hands on it!

  4. congrats on this pb cookbook and continued congrats on you own cookbook! I can’t wait for it to come out :)

  5. I love PB, so I’m super excited about your new cookbook! Also, I love that outfit…totally my style!

  6. I’m loving a pot of Korres lip butter in mango that I bought at Sephora this week. It tastes like I’m wearing a smoothie on my lips.

  7. You are The Peanut Queen :) Congrats on a book ond on this approach.

  8. That bar is incredible!!! We have a little vintage gold bar cart that I found for $60… nothing special but I adore it! But that definitely puts my sweet little bar cart to shame haha!

    Finally got around to posting about my cleanse today! It was definitely a great experience and I would do it again… but I’m also happy to be in the land of solid food again :) I’ve had your avocado cream cheese pastries pinned forever to try… they sound SO good!

  9. Congrats on the book!!… will be looking forward to it. Those place cards are awesome!!!

  10. What a tremendous Friday Things list, Averie! Love that you contributed to the National Peanut Board cookbook. Who else could do such a swell job with a sweet and savory recipe featuring PB? Also, cannot wait for your cookbook release, girl. And, I adore the Anthro outfit as well as appreciate the ATK shortcut. But, that bar? Swank City, baby! A most excellent choice to feature here in your list. Sorry about the artist passing on. RIP, dude. Your bar design rocks! ;) Have a great weekend, Averie! xo

  11. HUGE HUGE congrats on the book Averie!!!!! I am so happy for you!!!! I know it will have so much success! You have worked so hard and it has paid off!!!!

    1. Thanks, Katie! Wow, we’ve known each other for what, 4-5 years now…time flies! And thanks for always being such a sweetheart! Hope you and your beautiful family are doing wonderfully! xoxoxo

  12. The wall mounted cabinet bar was love at first sight (I think I’d be afraid to see a quote to have one made) and the outfit from Anthro is definitely cool! I am anxious to get your cookbook and cook/bake my way through it! My husband was offered a full time teaching position at the police academy here (he has been wanting to do that for a while now) so we are going out for a little celebratory dinner tonight.

    1. The guy that made the cabinet apparently died in 2008. RIP. Because what an amazing artist he looks to have been!

      Congrats to your hubby – that’s awesome! And cooking your way thru my cookbook, I am seriously touched and flattered and humbled :) Thanks, Paula! And have a wonderful weekend! Have a fun dinner and celebration!

  13. You are truly The Peanut Queen!

    I have been searching for a peanut recipe, or one to adapt, from my childhood. It was a sort of quick bread or unfrosted cake that they used to serve us in grade school, it was a peanut butter bread baked in a 9 x 13 pan that was delicious! So much so that I remember it to this day and that was many, many moons ago. It was just peanut butter quick bread, nothing more, so simple and perfect.

    I also love King’s Arms Tavern Cream of Peanut Soup from Williamsburg, VA. Peanuts are the perfect legume.

    1. That bread sounds amazing! In my cookbook I have a wonderful peanut butter cake, as well as some other peanut butter breads, muffins, biscuits, banana bread and more. But they’re not on my blog. The recipe you just described sounds like a fun one to recreate, actually!

      1. I can’t wait to get your book. I love peanuts, they are the ultimate comfort food ingredient and are pretty good for you to boot. Congrats on the book!

  14. HOW did I not know you have a book coming out? That’s so exciting! And you are indeed the peanut butter queen :-)

  15. You’re quite the tease, with all the PB pictures, I can’t wait to see the book! My friday thing is a springtime thing-artichokes! All spring produce, actually, is making me happy, but I made fancy stuffed artichokes:

    All Choked Up

    My picture of a plate of arugula is far less exciting;)

    1. love the name – All Choked Up. Good one!
      And I love!!! artichokes. But rarely make them. I seem to suffer more failures than successes with them!