Peanut Butter Sweets
Read Peanut Butter Sweets Online
Authors: Pamela Bennett
Pamela Bennett
Photographs by Joyce Oudkerk Pool
Peanut Butter Sweets
Digital Edition 1.0
Text © 2012 Pamela Bennett
Photographs © 2012 Joyce Oudkerk Pool
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any means whatsoever
without written permission from the publisher, except brief portions quoted for purpose
of review.
Gibbs Smith
P.O. Box 667
Layton, Utah 84041
Orders: 1.800.835.4993
www.gibbs-smith.com
ISBN: 978-1-4236-2449-3
To all Bennett and Draughon family members; what a blessed journey we've shared.
Michelle Branson and Joyce Oudkerk Pool; artists who encourage me to reach out and
catch my star...
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Smoothies & Shakes
- Cookies, Bars, & Muffins
- Beach Balls
- Quickie Peanut Butter Cookies
- Polar Bears
- Five-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
- Cry Baby Cookies
- Little Helper Peanut Butter Cookies
- Potato Chip Cookies
- Peanut Butter Macaroons
- No-Bake Wonders
- Yummy Peanut Squares
- Peanut Butter Bars
- Chewies
- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars
- P.B. & J. Bars
- Peanut Coconut Muffins
- Peanut Butter Muffins
- Beach Balls
- Cakes & Pies
- Desserts & Treats
- Candies
- Dips, Sauces, Toppings, & Spreads
- Metric Conversion Chart
Peanut butter was an “essential” in my mama's kitchen cupboard. It was woven into the
everyday fabric of our lives: creamy peanut butter tucked inside hot buttermilk biscuits or
generously slathered on bread with homemade blackberry jam, and the unmistakable fragrance
of peanut butter cookies, fresh from the oven, awaiting us as we came home from school. Even
when our mother became a successful business owner, she literally tucked a small jar of
peanut butter in her purse everydayâit was her snack of choice. Growing up with peanut
butter as a staple, it was only natural that my fifth-grade research project was written on
the history of peanuts!
Peanuts were first grown by the Incas in Peru around 950 BC. They gradually made their way
from South America to Africa and then onward to Spain, before finding their way to the
American colonies. My native North Carolina shows a history of peanuts being planted by the
year 1818, although some farmers claim that peanuts were growing there during the
Revolutionary War.
George Washington Carver, the great botanist and inventor, promoted planting peanut crops
to help poor farmers when their cotton crops failed. He developed over 100 recipes using
peanuts as well as developing dyes, paints, cosmetics, even nitroglycerin using the complex,
versatile peanut. His scientific research illuminated what we know todayâpeanuts are packed
with protein and vitamins E and B3; they're higher in antioxidants than apples or carrots.
However, the most important thing isâpeanut butter just tastes delicious! It enhances
whatever it accompanies. Scientists extol the health benefits of eating peanut butter, but
the kitchen of my childhood elevated simple peanut butter treats to rock-star status.
The paradox seems to be that the more we eat peanut butter, the more we enjoy it. Its
versatility allows us to never tire of itâperfect peanut butter bars, dreamy, creamy peanut
butter pie, decadently rich penuche and fudge, gooey lip-smacking pound cake laced with
thick peanut butter frosting..., so it's little wonder that the average American
consumer eats six pounds of peanut butter each year. By the time a teen graduates from high
school, she or he has eaten over 1,500 peanut butter sandwiches!
But there's so much more versatility and potential waiting inside each of these legumes.
This book will guide you through simple steps, using basic ingredients, to produce amazing
goodies. It is filled with mouth-watering recipes of delectable sweet treats featuring
peanut butter as the star ingredient: cakes, pies, cookies, candies, toppings,
beveragesâamazing sweets that you can't imagine how you lived without before now.
Makes 1 to 2 servings
| 1/4 cup peanut butter |
| 1 medium banana, peeled |
| 2 tablespoons powdered creamer |
| 1 (12-ounce) can Sprite |
| 3/4 to 1 cup ice |
Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
Makes 2 servings
| 1 cup peanut butter |
| 1 small avocado, ripe but not bruised in any way or overripe |
| 2 cups soy milk |
| 1 cup chocolate chips |
| 2 tablespoons agave* |
| 1-1/2 cups ice |
Combine and mix in a blender. The surprise is the avocado! It helps create a truly
smooth smoothie.
*Agave is a plant-based sweetener. You can substitute honey.
Makes 2 servings
| 2 ripe frozen bananas* |
| 2 cups almond milk |
| 1/2 cup peanut butter |
| 2 tablespoons agave** |
| 1/4 teaspoon vanilla |
| 1 cup ice |
Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until the ice is well crushed, or if
you prefer, blended until smooth.
*Freezing the bananas makes the smoothie much creamier.
**Agave is a plant-based sweetener. You can substitute honey.
Makes 1 to 2 servings
| 1/3 cup peanut butter |
| 1 large orange, peeled and segmented |
| 2 cups banana slices |
| 1 cup strawberries, cherries, or mango or papaya slices |
| 1 cup soy or rice milk, divided |
| 2 teaspoons agave* |
| 1/2 cup ice |
Combine peanut butter, fruit, half of the milk, and the agave in a blender. Process
until smooth. Add the ice and continue processing until smooth. Add the remaining
milk, if you desire a thinner consistency.
*Agave is a plant-based sweetener. You can substitute honey.
Makes 2 servings
| 3/4 cup vanilla ice cream |
| 1 tablespoon sugar |
| 4 tablespoons peanut butter |
| 1/4 cup milk |
| 1/4 cup Reese's Pieces candies |
| 1/3 cup ice |
Combine all ingredients in a blender. Pulse on low so ice breaks up, but do not
over-process.
Makes 4 servings
| 1 quart vanilla-flavored soy milk |
| 6 ounces extra firm silken tofu |
| 4 tablespoons peanut butter |
| 6 tablespoons maple syrup |
| 2 tablespoons vanilla |
| 2 teaspoons cinnamon |
| 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg |
| 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves |
Combine everything in a blender and process until creamy and smooth. Chill before
serving.
Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg on top before serving in festive holiday glasses.
Makes 2 servings
| 6 Reese's Peanut Butter Cups |
| 2 cups milk |
| 3 cups chocolate ice cream |
| 1 (7-ounce) can Reddi-Whip |
Process the first 3 ingredients in a blender until smooth. Top with a generous dollop
of Reddi-Whip.
Makes 2 servings
| 3 cups vanilla ice cream |
| 1/2 cup peanut butter |
| 1/2 cup red cinnamon candies |
| 1 heaping tablespoon cayenne pepper |
| 1 teaspoon vanilla* |
| 1 cup ice |
| 1/4 teaspoon cocoa, sweetened or unsweetened, as desired |
Combine all ingredients except the cocoa. Blend in a blender until creamy. Dust the
top of the shakes with the cocoa.
*Authentic Mexican vanilla preferred.
Makes 2 servings
| 4 scoops apple pie ice cream |
| 1/2 cup peanut butter |
| 1 teaspoon nutmeg |
| 1 teaspoon cinnamon |
| 2 cups sparkling apple cider |
Place 2 scoops of ice cream in each of 2 tall sundae glasses. Combine the peanut
butter, nutmeg, and cinnamon and spoon over the ice cream. Pour the apple cider over
the top. Serve with tall straws and spoons. This is especially good on a crisp
autumn day.
Makes 4 servings
| 4 scoops vanilla ice cream |
| 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter |
| 1 teaspoon vanilla |
| 2 (12-ounce) cans root beer |
| 12 vanilla wafers, crushed |
| 4 sticks cinnamon |
Scoop the ice cream into 4 glasses. Evenly divide the peanut butter among the glasses
and place on top of the ice cream. Add the vanilla to the root beer and pour over
the ice cream.
Sprinkle the crushed wafers over the top of the floats. Finish with a cinnamon stick
to stir the float.
