Cooking for a Reason

For the last few weeks, I have cooked more veraciously than normal. It started with a dessert party. I wanted to have some friends over for drinks on a Friday, but didn't have time to throw a full-on dinner party. To entertain, I decided to put my new stand mixer (classic Kitchenaid!) to the test, and offer dessert with drinks. Ok, I went berserk and made Mascarpone Chocolate Toffee Bars, Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake, and Peanut Butter Cookies with Blackberry Jam. Served with prosecco and a juicy rosé, I only regret that I forgot to eat a proper dinner.

Most recently, I attempted a savory Cantal cheese tart that was rich and buttery, a perfect compliment to the slightly acidic dilled white bean and grape tomato salad I served alongside. And I cannot get enough harissa these days, that mind-opening North African chili paste! This recipe for carrot salad with harissa, feta, and mint had me chatting up random friends of friends at a Memorial cookout about Tunisia and Parisian grocery stores - pardon me - markets.

With all the recipes I have tried since that dessert party - and I haven't even mentioned half of them, like the cioppino - the one I keep craving, is the one I made up. Know that when I say I made it up, I'm talking about the equivalent of inventing a type of sandwich. I riffed on the classic peanut butter banana smoothie and came up with the PBJ Smoothie!

If you also want to fill goblets with PBJ Smoothie, try this:

PBJ Smoothie, for two
Combine the following ingredients, liquid first, in a blender and blend to the brink of smooth

4 oz blueberry juice
4 oz vanilla soy milk
1 frozen banana, sliced
8 oz frozen blueberries
2 tablespoons peanut butter