Peanut Butter

What better way to savor peanut butter and chocolate than with this dense, rich confection? They’re like Reese’s peanut butter cups in cupcake form—perfect for kids of all ages. Top with Chocolate Ganache (page 92).

With Thai ingredients available at most natural food stores and well-stocked supermarkets, it has become easy to enjoy the delightful flavors of this cuisine at home. Use your discretion with the red or green curry paste; a little will give a hint of heat, but if you want a spicier stew, you can step it up from there.

This easy, robust soup, contributed by Marti Hall, has several elements of a certain style of traditional African soups—chilies, sweet potato, and a creamy peanut base. The grain of choice in an African soup like this would likely be millet, but here, quinoa, the nutritious South American super grain, makes for a delightful fusion.

Peanut butter gives this soup a rich flavor. In my home, this is a fall favorite!

This is a great way to introduce kids to tofu. Be sure to press all the liquid out of the tofu before adding it to the pot so that it will absorb as much of the sesame and peanut flavors as possible. See page 168 for advice on pressing tofu. I consider this recipe to be mildly spicy. If you need to make it blander for tender palates, use only 1/4 teaspoon cayenne or none at all. If you like more heat, simply add more cayenne. Instant brown rice has been parboiled, precooked, and then dried and packaged. It looks just like regular rice, except it is a whole grain rather than a refined one, and nothing artificial has been added.

Pomegranate molasses is found in Middle Eastern groceries or dedicated spice shops. You can make your own by boiling down pomegranate juice until it is thick and syrupy. Look for no-sugar-added peanut butter for a healthier alternative and explore the organic brands when possible. My first choice for nut butters is to stop at the “grind-your-own” peanut or almond butter stations at the health food stores. Try low-sodium soy sauce as well. For a spicy kick, add 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes.

My husband declares this dish “insanely good,” and he’s right. While satay is traditionally broiled or grilled, this Glorious One-Pot Meal version retains all the flavor and skips the hassle of threading skewers, basting, and hovering over a grill. I sometimes use bouillon cubes to make stock just because they store well and allow you to make any amount you need. Look for low-sodium bouillon cubes in the health food store. Of course, you can use prepared vegetable or chicken broth instead. Make this recipe hot and spicy by adding a teaspoon of Asian chili sauce or minced hot pepper. Or make it vegetarian by substituting tofu for the chicken. (Be sure to weight the tofu and then blot it with paper towels to remove excess liquid.)

Once, when I was visiting Paris, my friend Emile from Gabon, Africa, made this dish for me. I was amazed that cooking with peanut butter could be so good.

It has been successfully argued that these soda fountain favorites are a good source of protein—after all, they’re full of milk and peanut butter. We try to drink them regularly for that reason alone.

We heard about peanut butter–topped Ritz cracker treats from a friend in the Midwest. This is our down-South version, tricked out with both jam and chocolate.

Unless you’re Jamie Deen, you probably need to have a kid around to make yourself one of these melty, divine sandwiches. Add banana instead of jam and you’ve got yourself Elvis’s favorite sandwich.

We can get behind any recipe with peanut butter in it! This savory dish, with just a hint of fiery red pepper flakes, is a nod to our favorite Thai take-out dish from Kao Thai in Savannah. Best of all, it’s based on ingredients you probably already have in the house.

Recently, when I came upon a jar of peanut butter that had been around a while, my New England frugality wouldn’t let me throw it out; instead visions of peanut butter cookies danced in my head. I hadn’t made them in years, and I discovered they are well worth reviving.

Rice Krispies? Check. Peanut Butter? Check. Chocolate? Check. Delicious on their own, these three flavors will knock your socks off when layered together. The bars are decadent and rich, so be sure to have a glass of milk handy.

It’s bananas how good this dessert is! Seriously, it doesn’t get much better than this. A creamy peanut butter topping covers layers of fresh bananas and a tasty vanilla-wafer crust. Drizzled with a rich chocolate sauce, we think it’s the best in the bunch!

Chicken coops have sprung up in some of the poshest neighborhoods. Once you become accustomed to eating well-raised chickens it is hard to tolerate flavorless commercially produced fowl. My friends Paul and Angela Knipple raise chickens in their midtown Memphis yard. They feed the chickens protein-rich peanuts; the result is wonderfully rich eggs and a flavorful chicken. Their rooster is named Karen. He was mismarked at delivery. Peanuts and chicken are found together in Asian dishes. Here those flavors infuse a whole roasted bird.

The origins of this recipe are still a matter of open and often heated debate among my sisters and me, but there is one thing on which we can all agree: It is a favorite of my sister Elizabeth who has special needs. This recipe allows her to come into the kitchen with the rest of us and make something truly delicious. Salted peanuts are best; either cocktail or dry-roasted works well.

My mother became a special education teacher because my sister Elizabeth was born with a mental disability. Mom was always on the lookout for easy recipes that would allow her to be in the kitchen with all of us. When I told Elizabeth that I was working on a cookbook, she asked if I would include some of her recipes. Of course I said yes right away! Liza is a remarkable person and I love cooking with her. This is a quick and easy snack for kids—although I always catch a few adults sneaking a log or two!