Just J.Faye

Hiking & Other Adventures

Peanut Butter Stuffed Jalapeños

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I’m going to spice things up a bit. It’s Saturday, why not get a little crazy? And what’s crazier than jalapeños?

NOTE: Lots of things are crazier than jalapeños. However, this does not stop me from telling you about these amazing peanut butter stuffed jalapeños. peanut butter stuff jalapeños I went to Butcher and the Boar for dinner a couple of weeks ago. This place is soooo good. If you live near Minneapolis, please go. Make reservations right now. They have an awesome floor made of pennies, a huge selection of good meats and sausages, and a lot of bourbon. Check.It.Out.

Besides bourbon and meat and pennies, they also have these amazing stuffed jalapeños. Initially one would think they are stuffed with cream cheese, which is, you know, cool and all. But noooo. No, these are stuffed with a peanut butter cream cheese mixture. PEANUT BUTTER. Then they are baked and sprinkled with feta and golden raisins.

Delicious. They are unlike anything I have ever tried before.

Peanut butter in jalapeños – weird, right? It works. Those people at Butcher and the Boar know what they are doing.

Anyways, I had to recreate them.

I wish I could say that my version was as delicious as the real thing, but I cannot. I am not a master chef and posses very little skill in the kitchen. I just like to experiment, cook, and eat. However, I will say that these are still pretty delicious.

Not only are they delicious, they are also easy to make. peanut butter stuff jalapeños We take our jalapeños, cut them in half, and then scrape out the seeds. Next we make the filling by mixing together cream cheese and peanut butter with a little bit of lime juice. The filling is stuffed into the jalapeño halves and placed in the oven for 25 minutes.

peanut butter stuff jalapeños Now it’s time to place them on a serving tray, sprinkle them with feta cheese and golden raisins, and then add a drizzle of honey.

peanut butter stuff jalapeños If you think about it, these are kind of like a fancier, less healthy, spicier version of ants on a log. The jalapeño replaces the celery (both green). The peanut butter is still there, but cream cheese is added to it. Raisins are placed on top, but are golden and, therefore, more sophisticated.

Do you see it or am I crazy?

Again, it’s Saturday.

peanut butter stuff jalapeños I think these stuffed jalapeños would be a great little appetizer to serve at a gathering of friends, like Friendsgiving for example. You can prep the jalapeños ahead of time and place them in the oven right before your guests arrive.

You can also wrap them in bacon, because I think that would be awesome and no one would yell at you for doing this. Unless all your friends are vegetarian. Then that’s just completely rude on your part. But then you can eat all the bacon peanut butter jalapeños yourself. So, do what you want.

You can also make them and eat them for dinner with cauliflower mashed potatoes.

But who does that?

No one.

Ok, me. I did last night.

Peanut Butter Stuffed Jalapeños
 
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These are not your typical stuffed jalapeños. The classic cream cheese filling is elevated with the addition of peanut butter and lime juice. They are then baked and topped with feta cheese, golden raisins, and honey. A quick and easy appetizer to pull together for guests!
Serves: 12 servings
Ingredients
  • 4oz cream cheese, softened
  • ½ cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • 6 jalapeños, halved lengthwise, seeded
  • Garnishes: feta cheese, golden raisins, honey
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheet with foil.
  2. In small bowl, mix cream cheese, peanut butter, and lime juice.
  3. Place the jalapeño halves on the cookie sheet and fill with the peanut butter mixture.
  4. Bake 25 minutes.
  5. Place jalapeños on a serving platter, sprinkle with feta cheese and golden raisins, and drizzle with honey. These are best served warm.

peanut butter stuff jalapeños

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Brown Butter Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

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Are you sick of pumpkin yet? I really, really hope not, because you need to make these pumpkin bars. They are so so so so so so so so sooooooo good.

brown butter pumpkin bars Trust me.

Brown butter. Cream Cheese. Toasted Walnuts. PUMPKIN. Gaaahhhhh. You just can’t go wrong here.

My mom makes these pumpkin bars every year. They are amazing as is, but let’s just face it, brown butter makes everything better sooooo… I re-created them with brown butter. Then I threw in brown sugar and walnuts too for the heck of it. Hey, why not?! We’re gettin’ cray in the kitchen.

Speaking of cray, don’t freak out, there are five sticks of butter in this recipe. I know, I know, that’s a lot of butter; however, this recipe makes A LOT of bars, so it kind of evens out. Plus, they are just too good to not eat. YOLO. Run an extra few miles this week.

Butter is back anyways, right? It’s ok.

brown butter pumpkin bars The bars itself are not too sweet and have the perfect amount of pumpkiny-spice flavor. They are soft, moist (sorry if you hate that word), and cakey with just a little bit of crunch from the walnuts.

Then there is the frosting. Ooohhhh, this frosting! Cream cheese frosting is always incredible, but with the addition of brown butter… incredible to the max. I kid you not.

brown butter pumpkin bars Make these. Eat five. Save six more for yourself. Then bring the remaining to work/bake sale/Friendsgiving/Thanksgiving/wherever people accept baked goods. Since the recipe makes so many bars no one will even know that you hoarded some for yourself.

brown butter pumpkin bars You should have them for dessert after eating this soup. Pumpkin, pumpkin everywhere.

Make sure to add in a few workouts (like this, this, or this) to sweat out some of that brown butter. Life is a balance.  brown butter pumpkin bars

Brown Butter Pumpkin Bars with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
 
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These pumpkin bars are so good. They are super soft and have tons of flavor from the brown butter in both the bar and the cream cheese frosting. This recipe makes a lot of bars, so you'll be able to keep some for yourself and share with friends.
Ingredients
For the bars:
  • 2 cups walnuts
  • 1¼ cups butter (2 ½ sticks)
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • ⅔ cup white sugar
  • 29-ounce can pumpkin puree
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ginger
  • ¼ teaspoon cloves
  • ¼ teaspoon all spice
  • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
For the frosting:
  • 1¼ cups butter (2 ½ sticks)
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2-4 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350° F. Grease an 11x17-inch jelly roll pan.
  2. To toast the nuts: spread walnuts on a baking sheet and bake for about 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Stir them around occasionally (every 5 minutes or so) to ensure they are not burning. Once toasted, chop roughly and set aside.
  3. To brown the butter: melt butter in a medium saucepan. Whisk the melted butter until brown specks appear at the bottom, it will froth and foam a bit. Watch closely and be careful not to burn. It should be a light brown color and have a nutty aroma. Save one cup for the bars and one cup for the frosting.
  4. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices. Set aside.
  5. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine 1 cup of brown butter, the eggs, sugars, and pumpkin. Mix on medium until lights and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
  6. Add in the dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined. Stir in the walnuts.
  7. Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake for 27-30 minutes. Let the bars cool completely.
  8. To make the frosting: cream together the cream cheese and butter, about 3 minutes. Stir in vanilla. Add 2 cups of the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Add the remaining powdered sugar ½ cup at a time until desired consistency is reached.
  9. When the bars have cooled completely, spread the frosting evenly over the bars. Cut into squares and serve! Store leftovers in the refrigerator.
Notes
You can substitute all the spices with 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice.

Slightly adapted from allrecipes.com.

PS- I took a break from knitting and watching Christmas movies on Hallmark to write this. Is that bad? I might be getting too far ahead of myself.

brown butter pumpkin bars PPS- no, I’m not 80-years old. Knitting is cool.

 

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Basic Banana Bread

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Some days just aren’t my days. On these days alliwannado is bake. So bake is what I shall do. And bake is what I did.

basic banana bread I didn’t want anything complicated. Something simple that was comforting and delicious. No tricky concoctions. No big mixer. Just some bowls and spoons and some simple baking magic.

Thus we have here: basic banana bread.

basic banana bread When I say basic, I mean basic. This is banana bread at essentially its purest form: 2 parts flour, 2 parts liquid, 1 part egg, 1 part fat. I also added some toasted walnuts and cinnamon, because walnuts, cinnamon, and bananas are like the three best friends and we needn’t separate best friends.

basic banana bread Baking like this is therapy. It’s a no fuss recipe. All we need here is ten ingredients, two bowls, some measuring equipment, and a whisk.

Mix the dry. Mix the wet. Combine the dry and the wet. Stir in some nuts and pop it in the oven. That’s it. That’s all it takes. The only difficult part is waiting for it to bake while your kitchen fills with the sweet banana bread smell.

Even those who “cannot bake” can successfully make this bread happen. I promise you.

basic banana bread When I say that it is basic, I don’t mean to say that is isn’t delicious. It is. This banana bread is goooooood. I want to curl up inside of it and take a warm, cozy, banana bread nap. But since I am not Miss Frizzle and cannot in fact shrink myself to fit inside the banana bread (remember this episode?!), I will instead settle for enjoying it with a big ole cup of coffee and a brand new day. Like I did this morning and will tomorrow morning too.

basic banana bread Last night I decided that with the whole pain in my hip/leg/knee I am just going to stop running. Not one more running step until I walk up to the start line of the Philadelphia Marathon on November 23 and hear the starting gun… or whistle or announcement or whatever they use to signify the start of the run (plus about 5 minutes, because I’ll be at the back of the pack). Then from there I will try to run/walk/survive 26.2 miles while having as much fun as I possibly can. Who knows, maybe with all the rest I will have some sort of Philly Rocky miracle. Riiiiighttt???

In the meantime I will get an x-ray (eeks!) and do lots of yoga and cross training and foam rolling and, let’s face it, baking.

basic banana bread So there will be other days for fancy banana breads with brown butter or coconut oil or peanut butter or chocolate chips or cocoa nibs or all of the above. Today, however, is just a basic banana bread day.

Basic Banana Bread
 
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This basic banana bread is both simple and delicious. Enjoy it with coffee and your favorite spread for breakfast or as a snack!
Serves: 1 loaf
Ingredients
  • 2 scant cups all-purpose flour (see note)
  • ½ cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 medium overripe bananas, mashed
  • ¼ cup buttermilk
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup walnuts, chopped and toasted
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
  2. In a small bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
  3. In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, mashed bananas, buttermilk, and eggs. Whisk until combined. Having some small banana lumps is completely ok.
  4. Add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined.
  5. Stir in the walnuts, saving some for the top of the loaf.
  6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle with the remaining walnuts.
  7. Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean.
  8. Let the bread cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes before removing and transferring to a cooling rack.
  9. Slice and serve the bread warm with your favorite spread. It will keep well for a few days wrapped in plastic wrap or in the freezer for a few months.
Notes
When measuring the flour spoon the flour into the measuring cup rather than using the cup to scoop out the flour. The first cup can be full, but make the second one just a little bit short.

Toast the walnuts by placing them on a baking pan in the oven for 5-10 minutes or until fragrant. You can go ahead and put them in right when you start the oven, no need to wait until it is fully pre-heated!

basic banana bread

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Hearty, Healthy Pumpkin Soup

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HAPPY HALLOWEEN! I have some orange soup for you to eat.

Hearty, Healthy Pumpkin Soup I know. It’s Friday and I never post on Fridays (not that you pay attention to my posting schedule), but I had the urge (and the time!) to tell you about this pumpkin soup.

So I am. Right now. On Friday. On Halloween. Talking about soup. Pumpkin soup. The soup I mentioned in my post yesterday.

The story: Tuesday night was cold and windy. The temperature had dropped 20 degrees from what it was on Monday. It was the perfect evening for soup, a big ole bowl of hot, comforting soup. So I made this and was super happy with my decision.

Hearty, Healthy Pumpkin Soup This soup has a pinch of spice, a dollop of sweet, and a handful of pumpkin. I will use these adjectives to describe it: simple, smooth, creamy, healthy, satisfying, hearty, filling, delicious.

Originally I tried to craft all of that into one sentence, but it was getting too long and run-on, so I went with the list. Good choice, I’d say.

As you could have inferred from the name of this soup, it is both hearty and healthy. The star of the show here is obviously the pumpkin (again, the name of the soup). This fruit is mega high in vitamins and anti-oxidants and also has loads of fiber. The coconut milk and almond butter offer lots of healthy fats and help make it surprisingly creamy and filling. Finally we get some health boosting benefits from all the spices. Ginger, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper are all great for easing digestion, improving the immune system, and reducing inflammation. As another added benefit, this pumpkin soup is oohhh soooo easy to make.

Hearty, Healthy Pumpkin Soup So you see I was not trying to trick you with the name of this soup. There is heartiness. There is health. There is pumpkin. It is a treat.

Trick or Treat? I choose treat.

Hearty, Healthy Pumpkin Soup
 
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This pumpkin soup is surprisingly filling and is packed full of health benefits! Plus it is delicious, easy to make, and oh so comforting - perfect for a cozy fall evening.
Serves: 6 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 cup yellow onion, diced
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, chopped
  • 29 oz pumpkin puree (or 2-15oz cans)
  • 32 oz low sodium chicken broth
  • 14 oz can coconut milk
  • ½ cup almond butter or smooth peanut butter
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • Suggested toppings: Greek yogurt, maple syrup, and pepitas
Instructions
  1. Heat up a large saucepan on medium heat. Add the olive oil and onion. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté for 3-4 minutes until translucent.
  2. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer.
  3. Take the soup off the heat and use an immersion blender to puree. Alternatively, transfer the soup to a blender and blend until smooth. Use a towel to cover the top to avoid explosions.
  4. Return the soup to the heat and cook for about 10 more minutes. Adjust the seasonings if needed.
  5. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with a dollop of Greek yogurt, a swirl of maple syrup, and a sprinkle of pepitas.

This was slightly adapted from Country Living.

Make this soup tomorrow after you go crazy on Halloween candy tonight. You will be full and satisfied and not even want any more candy. Except for maybe just that one last tootsie roll. Then on Sunday I’ll post a nice workout for you too.

Have a spooky, safe weekend!

Hearty, Healthy Pumpkin Soup

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Mocha Energy Bites

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Remember snack breaks in Kindergarten? You know, that magical time in the afternoon to break for treats like milk & cookies, apples, chex mix, or ants on a log?

mocha energy bites Now that you’re past Kindergarten (assuming I don’t have any Kindergarten readers out there) do you still make time for snacks? I loooovvvee snacks and always look forward to these little breaks, or as I like to call them: “mental vacations”.

These days in the peak of marathon training with hills and speed workouts and hours of running I am hungry like all the time, even more than normal. It’s true what they say about EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption), people. It is true.

With that said I need a little bit more than carrots and cucumbers to get me through my afternoon. Yeah sure, I’ll throw in some hummus and nuts every once in while, but I some days I just want more.

I made these little balls of deliciousness, so that I’m not a worthless hangry disaster in the middle of the workday.

mocha energy bites Except I don’t call them “balls of deliciousness” because that would be weird. Instead I went with “Mocha Energy Bites”, which is maybe a little more appetizing? However, you can call them whatever you want. Perhaps something like – I’m just going to throw this out there – Shweddy Balls.

PS – I am already excited for when they play the SNL Christmas Special on TV. My favorite. Who’s with me?!

Ok, let’s take a look at what is actually in these things.

mocha energy bites Oats, dates, almond butter, chocolate covered coffee beans, ground flaxseed, honey, instant coffee crystals (not pictured), and vanilla (also not pictured).

Mix everything together and you got yourself a tasty little snack. Not only are these bites super delicious, they are also good for you and will keep you satiated (and energized!) until your next meal or snack or until the next time you want/need to eat again.

The coffee flavor isn’t overpowering, but if you really aren’t into coffee (who are you?!) you can leave out the coffee crystals and beans and just use dark chocolate chips instead. No biggie.

Besides being healthy and delicious these are ridiculously easy to make. All you need to do is pulse a few things in a food processor, then mix everything together, then form them into balls. I’m talking minutes here. Super quick. Super easy. And then your fridge is stocked with snacks for the rest of the week!

Oh, oh, oh, they are also nice and convenient to pack to bring to class/work/errands. Throw a couple in a little baggie and toss (or gently set) into your purse/gym bag/briefcase/backpack/lunch box for a quick, popable, delicious, healthy treat.

How much do you love that?!

Gaaahhhh I love it so much!! But then again, I get really excited about my snacks.

mocha energy bites So what I want you to do now is schedule a mental vacation for Monday at about 3:00. Ok? Can you do that, please? All you need is a few minutes.

Now what I want you to do in make these. Again, all you need is a few minutes. Ok?

Then when your mental vacation alarm goes off eat 2-3 of these mocha energy bites and happily power through the rest of your day. Mmk? Great. Thanks.

Mocha Energy Bites
 
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These bites are a simple, delicious, and healthy snack that will keep you satiated and energized until your next meal.
Author:
Serves: 16-17 bites
Ingredients
  • ½ cup dates
  • ½ cup almond butter
  • ¼ cup honey
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • ½ teaspoon instant coffee crystals
  • ¼ cup ground flaxseed
  • 1 cup old fashioned oats
  • ½ cup dark chocolate covered coffee beans
Instructions
  1. Put the dates in a bowl of a food processor and process until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the almond butter, honey, vanilla, and instant coffee until combined. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl.
  2. Add in the flaxseed, oats, and chocolate covered coffee beans. Stir until everything is incorporated. You may have to get down and dirty with your hands here.
  3. Form the mixture into balls that are about 1 to 1½ inches. Store in the refrigerator for about a week or in the freezer for longer.
Notes
You can use peanut butter or sunflower seed butter instead of almond butter. However, if the nut butter you choose is pretty sweet, you may want to decrease the amount of honey or vanilla used.

I pulsed my chocolate covered coffee beans in the food processor a few times to break them down a little bit.

If you don’t want to use chocolate covered coffee beans increase the instant coffee to 1 teaspoon and use ½ cup dark chocolate chips. These would still be good without the instant coffee or coffee beans as well. I would recommend keeping the chocolate though!

Make these gluten-free by using gluten-free oats.

Geezzzz sorry for being so bossy there, I just want you to have snack time like the glory days of Kindergarten.

mocha energy bites

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Frosted Pretzel Shortbread

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Do you and your girlfriends have any silly little traditions? My friends Sarah, Pooja, and I do. We tell sneakrets. We write down predictions. We drink champagne. We snack on pretzels and frosting.

Pretzels and frosting, a salty/sweet mix of deliciousness. frosted pretzel shortbread 5 years ago I moved to Tennessee for work and didn’t know a single soul. This was both scary and exciting at the same time. I was lucky to meet Sarah and Pooja there, two amazing ladies who greatly impacted my life and are two of my best friends.

Our short time (1 ½ – 2 years) living in Murfreesboro together was full of high highs and low lows for all of us. I don’t think any one of us would have survived our time there without the love and support from each other. I have learned so much from these girls and love them so much. I could go on and on and on about how amazing they are, but I won’t. There’s just not enough space on this blog. frosted pretzel shortbread I don’t remember exactly how our pretzel and frosting obsession originated. If I were to guess though, I probably had leftover frosting from a cake or cupcakes lying around. We then probably used pretzels as a vehicle to transfer the frosting from the bowl to our mouths, because spoons are overrated and pretzels are delicious. Don’t judge. It happens.

Now whenever we get together pretzels and frosting are one of our “must have” snacks. Unfortunately geography (Sarah in Arizona, Pooja in New York, and me in Minnesota) and other grown up life things prevent us from getting together as often as we would like (everyday), but we try to have a reunion at least once a year.

On the last day of our time together we write down predictions for each other that we anticipate will come true by our next reunion and read through our predictions from the previous reunion. It’s a fun little tradition. Sometimes our predictions come true, but sometimes we’re way off.

I was super lucky to see Pooja a couple of weeks ago when she was in a town for a work conference. She recently announced that she is expecting her second child, another beautiful little baby girl! I wanted to make her a little treat to celebrate this wonderful news. Champagne was obviously out of the question this time around, but pretzels and frosting definitely were not, so I transformed our favorite treat into some cookies.

frosted pretzel shortbread

frosted pretzel shortbread These are simple shortbread cookies made with pretzel flour (finely ground pretzels) and powdered sugar, giving them a fantastic salty/sweet combination. They are then topped with my absolute favorite buttercream from Magnolia Bakery, which is, of course, colored pink.

I was planning on adding sprinkles, but totally forgot. Huge fail. If you have some I would highly recommend using them for these cookies. Maybe add some sea salt too. Then get crazy and make these little gems.

frosted pretzel shortbread If you have never had the pretzel and frosting combination, you need to try it out. Make these cookies and start some new traditions with your friends!

Frosted Pretzel Shortbread
 
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These cookies are a simple shortbread, but some of the flour is replaced with ground pretzels to make a delicious salty/sweet combination. They are then frosted with Magnolia Bakery's vanilla buttercream.
Serves: 1 dozen
Ingredients
For the Pretzel Shortbread:
  • 1 ½ cups pretzel flour (~3-4 cups pretzels, see note)
  • ½ cup all purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Magnolia Bakery Vanilla Buttercream:
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 3 – 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup milk
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place parchment paper or a silpat mat on a cookie sheet.
  2. In a small bowl combine the pretzel flour, all purpose flour, and salt.
  3. In the bowl of an electric mixer add the butter and powdered sugar. Mix until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Add in the vanilla. Add in the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
  4. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll to ¼-inch thick. Use the cookie cutter of your choice (I used a glass, because I apparently do not have a circle cookie cutter) to stamp out the cookies.
  5. Put the cookies on the prepared cookie sheet. Baked for 8-10 minutes or until cookies are set. Be careful not to burn them. Let them cool on the pan for 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.
  6. Make the frosting while the cookies are cooling. Place the butter, 2 cups of powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla into the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on medium until smooth and creamy, 3-5 minutes. Add in the remaining sugar ½ cup at a time until the icing has reached your desired consistency (you may not use up the full 4 cups). It should be thick enough to easily spread. Add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly.
  7. Once the cookies are completely cooled, spread a nice layer of frosting on each one. I like my cookies to be heavy on the frosting. Feel free to add some sprinkles and a little bit of sea salt on top!
Notes
Place 3-4 cups of pretzel twists in a food processor until it is finely ground.

frosted pretzel shortbread

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