Following a Four Year Old (My Little One's First Post)

Recently, my oldest has been full of dessert ideas.  Almost every day on the way home from school, she talks about something.  Usually it's what kind of cake she wants for her birthday...in August.  Guess she's going to be a planner just like me.  She's also been throwing out cake ideas for other events she knows we have coming up.  My grandfather is turning 85 in June, and we are all flying out for his birthday.  If it were up to her, his cake would be a layer of cookies, a layer of chocolate, a layer of strawberry, sprinkles and more cookies.  We'll see what we can do...

Yesterday, however, she got set on one idea that she wanted to make when we got home.  This is 100% her idea, executed exactly the way she wanted...with a little guidance by me.  It wasn't something I had ever heard of before, and I'm not sure where the idea came from, but since I'm always up to experiment...and I was super excited that she was being so creative...we came home and cooked...a Sweet Tea Pie.

What's a sweet tea pie you ask?  A four year olds first creation.  I have to admit that the idea sounded pretty good.  After all, we do live in the south.  Who doesn't love a good glass of sweet tea?  For that matter, who doesn't like pie?!?  Win, win.  First we made the crust.

She insisted on doing everything herself.  So here she is cutting the butter for the pie crust into cubes.  I'm still working on getting her to hold the knife better...which is why I don't let her use a "real" one yet.

She even rolled the dough out herself.  I loved seeing how focused she was.  Definitely took her work seriously!

For the "sweet tea" part, I fell back on a trusty recipe I have for an earl gray custard.  Since black tea would probably have been a little strong for her taste, I used plan ole Lipton instead.  What better way to get sweet tea flavor than to use the tea you make sweet tea with!  Here's that recipe:

Lipton Tea Custard - adapted from Martha Stewart
1 c heavy cream
1 c milk
2 T Lipton tea (about 1 large tea bag)
4 egg yolks
1/2 c sugar
pinch salt

1 - Heat cream and milk in a saucepan over medium heat until simmering.  Add tea, stir and remove from heat.  Cover and let steep for 30 mins.  Remove tea bag, squeezing out the juices.  Re-measure the remaining liquid and add more cream if needed so you have 2 cups.  Return cream and milk to the saucepan and place back over medium heat.
2 - In a small bowl, whisk together yolks, sugar and salt.  Once milk is steaming, slowly whisk into egg mixture.  Pour entire mixture back into saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Strain into a bowl and put into the refrigerator to chill.

Once the pie shell had been blind baked and cooled, she got to work on filling it.

All good pies need berries!  She selected blueberries and strawberries for this creation.  She filled her pie shell with custard and topped it with the berries she cut.  There were also a few peanuts thrown in there since ever good pastry chef knows you need a little crunch. 

I must say I was impressed with her skills right out of the gate.  If she keeps up this way I may loose my job to her by the time she's five!

We put her pie in the refrigerator to finish setting up.  She was super excited to enjoy it for dessert after dinner!  The look on her face was priceless when she brought out her final project to show everyone.  I wish I had a picture of it, but I had a baby attached to me at the time...and missed it...oh well, next time!

In the end, it was a pretty good little pie.  With a few tweaks here and there, I think we may have stumbled onto the next great pie flavor.  What do you think?

My Little Peanut and the BEST Cookies Ever!

I knew it had been a while since I was on the blog, but I had no idea it had been as long as it has!!  I have missed writing and need to get back in the swing of things soon!  However, my absence hasn't been completely unwarranted.  A month ago today my family grew by one amazing little peanut.

Isn't she beautiful!!  I can take credit for the beautiful little girl, but I have to credit to Portraits by Crystal for the beautiful photo!  Such a talented new mommy herself.  In honor of our sweet little peanut making her entrance into this world, I decided to share with you the recipe for the BEST COOKIE EVER!

A few months ago my little one wanted to make peanut butter cookies.  I've tried several PB cookie recipes before and they were always just ok.  So this time around, I went on the search for one that would be a keeper.  Boy did I find the perfect recipe!  These cookies are chewy, gooey and h so peanut buttery!  They are the kind of cookie that make me cry for all those out there allergic to peanut butter since they will never know the yummy goodness that exists within them!  Of course, having an adorable sous chef to help me bake up a batch was extra icing on the cake!

The only other thing you need to know about these cookies is they make BIG cookies.  Do yourself a favor and keep them big!  The size helps keep them moist and chewy on the inside while being slightly crunchy on the outside.  So without further ado...here you go.  Get the milk ready!

 

The Perfect Peanut Butter Cookie (recipe adapted from Wallflour Girl)

 

1 egg, at room temperature

1 c light brown sugar, packed

1 c peanut butter (I'm a snob and only use JIF so I take no responsibility for the outcome if you use a slightly less appealing peanut butter..haha!)

1/2 c butter, melted

1 T vanilla extract

1 3/4 c AP flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 c chocolate chips

 

1 - In a stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream egg, brown sugar, peanut butter and vanilla for 5-6 minutes until very fluffy.  *Side note...This can be done by hand if you don't have a mixer, just be prepared for an intensive arm workout...which probably isn't so bad before eating the cookies!

2 - Add flour, baking soda and salt and mix until incorporated.

3 - Toss your chocolate chips in about a tablespoon of flour and fold into your cookie batter.  Doing this will help the chips hold their shape in the oven.

 

4 - Use an ice cream scoop to portion your cookies onto a greased cookie sheet.  You really want the cookies to come out looking like little scoops of ice cream, taller than they are wider.  Gently push down on each cookie to make the top flat but don't smoosh.  Cover the sheet tightly with plastic warp and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or the freezer for 45 minutes.  The original recipe had you chilling the dough before portioning it, which make it pretty impossible to scoop after it's hard.  Save yourself the headache and portion before but DON'T SKIMP on the chilling time!  Trust me!

5 - Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Bake cookies for 8-12 minutes until the edges are golden brown and the centers are still nice and soft.  Allow them to cool for 5-10 minutes before eating...if you can wait that long!

6 - Store any leftovers...weren't any in my house...in an airtight container.

ENJOY!!