The scene: You get a call from your boss/teacher/supervisor holding obligations over your head. You receive the best news of the week—you don’t have to go to work/school tomorrow! No, you have the day off and you can do WHATEVER your heart desires. What would you do?
Want to get to know someone? Ask this question. You learn so much about what they hold important. When my dear friend came to me, frustrated because he didn’t know what he was passionate about, this was the scene I painted for him. Where does your mind go when it wanders? What do you think about before you go to sleep? When you’re waiting in line for coffee?
I think I would go for a run, hang out with my brother and sister and roommate, read magazines, speak some French, ride my bike, and host a rockin’ dinner party with all my friends in attendance. I’d eat pie and drink a martini (side note: none of those calories would stick around). There are not enough hours in the day for all the things I’d want to cram into my day off, but this is where I would start.
I’d also like to go back to Quebec, learn Spanish and German, and go to cooking school. These are a little more long-term though :]
The challenge: Make it happen. No excuses. Do one thing for yourself, whether it’s watching an extra half hour of TV, making steak and mashed potatoes for dinner, going for a run, walking mindlessly around Target–whatever. Make yourself happy—you deserve it. If you need help getting started, look no further than these peanut butter cup cookies. For real yum.
Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
From The Picky Palate
Makes about 4 dozen cookies
- 3-½ cups all purpose flour
- 1-¼ tsp. baking soda
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks!!) butter, softened
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 TBSP corn syrup (Or you can use the substitute I used: Mix 1/2 cup white sugar with 2 TBSP warm water. Mix together—it’ll be kind of soupy—and measure out 3 TBSP of this)
- 2 eggs + 1 egg white
- 1 TBSP vanilla extract
- 3 cups chopped Reese’s peanut butter cups (I used 24 full size PB cups)
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the butter, sugars, and corn syrup. Add in eggs and vanilla extract. Beat together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Add flour mixture in batches.
Gently fold in chopped peanut butter cups.
Scoop rounded tablespoons onto cookie sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes, until golden brown around edges.
These cookies are one of the more cake-like cookies I’ve made, but they are so peanut buttery and light and airy, I can hardly handle it. YUM. Is it really bikini season already? I’d rather eat cookies.
