Concord Grapes 1: Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies

Dear Michelle-

I think that might be more of a question for my father than McGee; I consulted On Food and Cooking and the matter of light and capsicum color is not addressed. I'd guess they were picked unripe and ripened naturally, perhaps with help from the heat of any sun that hit them, or the confines of the plastic bag? I'll be sure to ask the ol' pater familias next time we speak.

 

You're missing Concord grape season on this side of the pond. I've never been overtly aware of them until recently, when my friend Ashley reintroduced me. She offered me some as she was eating them at work, and when I exclaimed over the intensity of their flavor she gave them to me. I guess they were a little strong for her, but since they came from her CSA share and all of her roommates were similarly averse, she felt duty-bound to eat them. I couldn't believe anyone wouldn't be immediately addicted to the vibrancy of this flavor! I happily accepted and made some quick refrigerator jelly with them that evening. Then, I got to thinking about how good they'd taste with shortbread and peanut butter (grape jelly and PB being such a classic combination), and the rest was a foregone conclusion. I invited Ashley over to make cookies, a nice way to spend an early Fall weekend afternoon.

These aren't the prettiest cookies, nor are they the easiest to make; but they are really, really good. The jelly is bright and tart, the peanut butter marries with it perfectly, and buttery crumbly shortbread is just the right vehicle. The jelly was easy enough to cook up, as I didn't bother with making a perfect, glistening, clear jelly.

 

I cooked the grapes until they burst, pushed it all through a strainer to get every ounce of flavor out, added enough sugar to make the mixture sweet-tart, and simmered some more till it passed the jelly test. Then I made my "confection" peanut butter mixture of, you guessed it, peanut butter, mixed with almond flour (I'm sure peanut flour would work, if one can find it), confectioner's sugar, and salt. These additives make the peanut butter more workable, and less sticky. I was inspired by the interior of a Reese's PB cup. You know how when you get "natural" peanut butter cups the filling never tastes as good? I think straight peanut butter is too oily, and does that thing where it coats the mouth, which keeps it from properly combing flavors with whatever else might be intended.

 

I tried these out with both shortbread from Bittman's How to Cook Everything and a standard sugar cookie recipe. Where that came from doesn't matter, as the shortbread won the taste tests! It was more delicate, and complimented the flavors of the filling better. It even made a prettier cookie (in the photo of complete cookies on the plate, all excluding the leftmost were made with sugar cookie dough--the rest of the shortbread cookies were long gone by then). I am very fond of the shortbread recipe in the Williams Sonoma Cookies cookbook, but that shortbread tends to be really crumbly and delicate, and so I thought I'd give Bittman a chance. I'm glad I did.

 

Ashley and I cut, rolled, dolloped, and very carefully pressed the little cookie "pies" together, then chatted and drank tea (and then wine) while we waited for the test cookie to come out. It's a lot more fun with help! We also ate a LOT of cookies. Ashley left with a bag full to share with her roommates, a thank you for sharing their grapes, and I was glad there were fewer of these addictive little morsels in my apartment!

Concord Grape and Peanut Butter Cookie Sandwiches (or Pies)

shortbread cookie dough (see recipe below)
Concord grape jelly (recipe below)
peanut butter mixture (below)

Make shortbread dough and jelly. This can be done the night before, and refrigerated. I'd recommend this, in fact, as breaking up the work makes it more manageable. Preheat your oven to 275F. Roll out dough about 3/16" thick, and  cut out circles (or squares, I guess, if you'd rather), placing on a silicone cookie sheet liner or ungreased baking sheet. Dip your finger or a brush in water and wet around the edge of the dough. Roll a ball of the peanut butter mixture and squash down in the middle. Dollop some jelly on top. VERY CAREFULLY ease another circle of dough on top and pinch firmly down around the outside. It might take a cookie or two to get the amounts right, so it doesn't ooze out when you put the top on; you can use the above photos as a guide for proportions. Bake for about 30 minutes. They should be tinged with gold around the outside.


Shortbread (from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman, pg 898) directions paraphrased

1/2 lb unsalted butter, softened
3/4 c sugar
1 egg yolk
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c cornstarch
pinch salt

Mix flour, cornstarch, and salt together in a small bowl. In a larger bowl, mix butter and sugar with an electric mixer on low till just combined. Still mixing, add the egg yolk, then the flour mixture, and mix until the dough just barely holds together. This should take a few minutes.

Wrap in plastic and smash into a disc. Chill at least 30m. See above recipe, or if just making shortbread, follow the below instructions:

Heat oven to 275F.
Roll out on a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thick. Cut out shapes and place on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake until firm but tender and not browned, about 30m. Cool on sheets before moving to a rack.


Peanut Butter Mixture

peanut butter
almond (or peanut) flour (I've found ground pistachios work well also)
confectioner's sugar
salt

Start out with about a half cup or so of peanut butter. I use the natural kind, and have to stir it all together. Add about 1/4 cup (starting out) of nut flour, a few T of the sugar, and a pinch of salt. Mix thoroughly. Test: you want to be able to pinch off a piece and roll it into a ball without it sticking. Taste: it should be salty, creamy, crunchy, and not too sweet. If it needs more body (too creamy still), add more nut flour, 1T or so at a time. Adding additional powdered sugar helps it stick together, but too much and it will be too sweet--remember that is is already going inside a cookie!


Fast Grape Jelly

at least 2 cups Concord grapes
sugar

Heat the grapes in a saucepan (they should not fill it more than 1/4; the fruit will expand in volume as it boils) over low heat until they start to release skins. Simmer on low heat 10-15m, to get all of that good flavor out. Press through a sieve or a food mill (I bet this would work best), squeezing out as much juice as possible. Return liquid to heat, and taste. Add sugar as necessary, remembering to keep it a bit tart as a contrast to the richness of the peanut butter and the cookie. Simmer another 10m or so, and then do a jelly test: take a spoon and put a few drops of the jelly on it. You can either put it in the fridge or leave it out a few minutes; either way, you want it to cool. When it has reached the proper concentration, the cooled result will have gelled onto the spoon, and will not be runny. I took this even further and really boiled it down, but I went too far--it was almost the consistency of "fruit snacks" when it cooled, and had to be warmed up again so we could work with it!

You could probably doctor up store-bought grape jelly by boiling it down a bit and adding some lemon for additional tartness if you didn't want to bother with making your own jelly, or wanted to make this out of season. If you try this, let me know how it works!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Dear Devon,

Have you ever flipped over the lid of a Quaker Oats box? On the backside, discreetly printed in light blue ink, there's a great recipe for oatmeal raisin cookies. The recipe is probably fifty years old, but how many people actually use it? If you don't know about it, I suggest you take a look at your box of oatmeal now. Because it's on every lid, I haven't bother writing it down. But for you, I will, along with my suggestions.


I first came across this recipe years ago when I went digging through the pantry and found, to my horror, three boxes of half eaten oatmeal. It is a universally acknowledged fact that people of a certain height have a hard time finding things on high shelves. The result is that mystery items can persist in our shelves until a giant comes along to rectify the situation. In my frustration, I sometimes think that anything above eye level might as well have been left at the store.


In the case of the oatmeal, I decided that consolidating the opened boxes wasn't enough. This oatmeal had to be consumed. Haunted by visions of eating oatmeal every day for the next three months, I followed Quaker's advice. Oatmeal raisin cookies bring to mind chalky, dusty, over spiced hockey pucks- but what ended up in my cookie jar was surprisingly moist, chewy, and flavorful. Since then, these cookies have made regular appearances at my table.

From the start, I substituted chocolate chips for raisins. I have never liked the sharp, pointed sweetness of raisins in baked goods. Chocolate is much better. A half cup of peanut butter folded into the batter increases the depth of flavor and adds a bit of needed saltiness. Note: peanut butter usually makes things better.



Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
inspired from the Quaker Oats lid
makes 36 cookies

2 sticks of butter, at room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
3 cups oatmeal
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, line a baking sheet with waxed paper.

Beat butter and sugars together until smooth and creamy. Whisk in two eggs and 1 tsp vanilla. Fold in 1/2 cup peanut butter. Sift in flour salt, baking soda and cinnamon. Using a rubber spatula, fold in sifted flour mixture. Measure 3 cups of oatmeal and 1 cup chocolate chips, add to dough. Cool batter in fridge for about 15 minutes.

Drop cookies onto prepared baking sheet, using two flat spoons. Space cookies about 1 to 1 1/2 inches apart. Roughly 20 cookies should fit on one 18" x 13" baking sheet. Bake in the oven for 15 - 17 minutes or until the tops are nicely browned. Remove cookies to cool on a metal rack. Cool baking sheet before preparing the second batch. I learned this the hard way.

Dog Treats

Dear Devon,

Is it crazy that I make dog biscuits? Is a dog's palette sufficiently refined to distinguish between milkbones, gourmet treats, and my homemade dog biscuits? I like to think it is. For those who object to dog food showing up on a food blog, my reply is: dogs need healthy, yummy treats, too!! The way I figure, dogs make me happy, so I should give them something that makes them happy, too. Since I'm lucky enough to be surrounded by adorable pooches, these treats won't last long.

My obsession with dogs didn't begin until I started working at my current job. Before, I had always hesitantly approached dogs. Oliver, the ultimate charmer, completely changed that. Before long, we were best buds. He follows me around, sits on my lap as I work, and licks my face at least twice a day. How could I not fall in love? Of course, he's hopelessly spoiled, but then again, he puts up with our crazy antics (see below).

I first got the idea to make dog biscuits when my friend Eva abandoned our island of New York for the sandy, mango-filled island of Vieques, Puerto Rico. Eva left with a suitcase in one hand and her four legged companion, Qilin, in her sidecar. Their departure was met with great sadness on my part, so as a parting gift, I made a big bag of these delicious treats. Qilin loves these dog treats so much, he'll do four roll overs for one!

He's not the only one who will do tricks for a tasty bite. Watch the amazing aerialist Kugel below:



What a superstar!

Ivy won't do tricks for her treats. She just attacks the camera for her tasty bite. Note the large smudge. Her sweet wet nose smashed into the lens.

Before writing this post, I polled a number of friends about the idea of putting dog treats on our blog. The reactions were mixed. For those who are a bit squeamish, I didn't post any pictures of the treats in progress, only the beautiful finished treats and happy doggie faces: Qilin (Parson Russell Terrier), Nala (Mutt or 'Sato') , Kugel (Beagle), Oliver (Jack Russell), Ivy (a proud Mutt), Dante and Casey (Mini Poodles, not pictured).


Dog Treats
makes 167 3/4-inch round treats
(inspired by Traunfeld, Jerry. The Herbal Kitchen)

1 2/3 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 cup rolled oatmeal
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 medium sized carrot
1 bunch parsley, roughly 1 cup
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 egg
1 cup water

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Line one large baking trays with wax paper. Set aside.

Using a food processor, process carrot and parsley, stems and all. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, cornmeal, rolled oatmeal. Add flour mixture to parsley and continue to process until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Scoop in a generous 1/2 cup peanut butter. With the machine running, pour in 1 egg and water through the feed tube. Process until a dense, doughy paste forms. It should smell of peanut butter, garlic, and parsley. Turn out into a large mixing bowl. The dough should be a bit wet and a little sticky.

Lightly flour a clean work surface. Roll dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut using cookie cutter of your choice. I chose the smallest round fluted cutter I own. It measures 3/4-inch in diameter. A small size treat will make any dog happy, from mini poodle to beagle. The dogs love it.

Bake in the oven for 2 hours until hard and dry. Cool in the oven overnight. Store in an airtight container, away from inquisitive sniffers and tail waggers.