Where does the time go? I understand that my 17th year was spent beating Mario Brothers 3 on Nintendo 64, but what about this year? And the one before? I’ve played a little Cooking Mama, but video games can’t be the culprit here.

It’s actually been 5 years since Terry and I made the PPK Passover episode and made “Nazi Punks Fork Off” the official matzoh ball anthem. (Ever notice how few Passover songs there are?) Ever since that fateful day I have been shvitzing like a shlemazl trying to bring you a ferkafte matzoh ball soup recipe that didn’t contain tofu. I was farblonget, farmisht and ferklempt, but I persevered. (Anyone got a good yiddish word for persevering?)

And today I bring you Flaxen Matzoh Balls, via Julie Wiener’s article in the Jewish Week. Also in the article is a tropical spin on the latke made with yucca and a mango salsa. And if you want to do some heavy lifting this Passover, the heeb’n'vegan is always up to something to keep your brain in shape.

Hannukah was heartbreak city for me here in Portland. There were no electrical menorahs anywhere! Bubkis! On my last trip to NYC I safeguarded against the same eventuality for Passover and went on a crap finding mission, procuring Passover ephemera from the LES to the UES. I finally understand how my midwestern Jewish friends felt upon coming to NYC for the first time. Maybe not as romantic as our great grandparents on their ships approaching Ellis Island, but I’m sure their Greyhounds pulling into Port Authority moments to remember, too. Anyway, I found these Passover Masks at the Jewish Museum.

The ten plagues, in convenient mask form!

First off, I caved and joined twitter. So if you want to know what spices I am running low on, today is your lucky day. OK, now I’ll make with the cookies.

It seems that Peanut Butter Pillows won this battle, but the war still rages and I’ll post a few more of your recipe requests in the next few weeks. Right now, though, let’s get down to business. This recipe come straight from the ska checkered oven mitted hands of Terry Hope Romero.

Chocolate and peanut butter fans will totally stalk you once they get a bite of these classic chocolately cookies with a heart of sweet and salty peanut butter. We can’t deny impatience is rewarded here: these cookies when eaten warm just a few minutes out of the oven are dynamite. We use black cocoa powder because we happen to have it, but dutch processed or even regular cocoa powder would be A-OK.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Pillows
makes 2 dozen cookies

Chocolate dough:

1/2 cup canola oil

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

3 tablespoons non-dairy milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup unsweetened dutch processed cocoa powder

2 tablespoons black unsweetened cocoa or more dutch processed unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling:

3/4 cup natural salted peanut butter, crunchy or creamy style

2/3 cup confectioner’s sugar

2 to 3 tablespoons soy creamer or non-dairy milk

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large mixing bowl combine oil, sugar, maple syrup, non-dairy milk and vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Sift in flour, cocoa powder, black cocoa if using, baking soda and salt. Mix to form a moist dough.

Make the filling. In another mixing bowl beat together peanut butter, confectioner’s sugar, 2 tablespoons of soy creamer and vanilla extract to form a moist but firm dough. If peanut butter dough is too dry (as different natural peanut butters have different moisture content), stir in remaining tablespoon of non-dairy milk. If dough is too wet knead in a little extra powdered sugar.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line bakings sheet with parchment paper.

Shape the cookies. Create the centers of the cookies by rolling the peanut butter dough into 24 balls. Scoop a generous tablespoon of chocolate dough, flatten into a disc and place a peanut butter ball in the center. Fold the sides of the chocolate dough up and around the peanut butter center and roll the chocolate ball into an smooth ball between your palms. Place on a sheet of waxed paper and repeat with remaining doughs. If desired gently flatten cookies a little, but this is not necessary.

Place dough balls on lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart and bake for 10 minutes. Remove sheet from oven and let cookies for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack to complete cooling. Store cookies in tightly covered container. If desired warm cookies in a microwave for 10 to 12 seconds before serving.

I was on AM Northwest making picnic salads, check it out!

And don’t forget that this salad is incredibly versatile. The basic is idea is something sweet, something hearty and a little sumpin sumpin to pull it all together, in this case cilantro. The dressing is super simple; a little vinegar and oil. All of these components can be filled in by you like one big culinary mad lib.

Just off the top of my head, a great autumn salad might be wheatberries, apples, pecans (toasted, if you want to get crazy), red onions and a little fresh rosemary. Or how about peaches and basil in the summer? Spring is coming and if you find yourself stumped at the farmer’s market, picture my floating head above your shoulder going “graaaaaain salaaaaaad.” It’s creepy, but effective.

The recipes are both in Veganomicon, but they’re also right here, enjoy!

So I’m back in Portland, just in time for the tail end of the rainy season. What better time to bake cookies? Terry stayed with me for over a week and we got some much needed foodie time. We took lots of pictures for the cookie book and even got to make a few new recipes together. Reunited and it felt so good.

Now I am just kind of settling in and letting life get back to normal. I have a bit of a cold so it’s been mostly soup, cats and tea for me, but I hope to get back to blogging regularly again in the coming weeks. For now, I’ll share some cookie pics and you guys can let me know what you would most like the recipe for. And don’t say all of them! You can also check out our Flickr set and pick any recipe you see there.

Magical Coconut Bars - These are absolutely insane; graham cracker crust, gooey condensed coconut milk layer, chocolate layer, shredded coconut layer. Addictive.

Peanut Butter Blondies - Really simple, REALLY peanut buttery. Dense and delish.

Iced Grapefruit Icebox Cookie - Long neglected grapefruit gets its dessert comeuppance in this delicate, buttery, cookie.

Pignoli Cookies - Who amongst us hasn’t pressed out faces up against the glass to admire these Italian bakery favorites?

Pecan Bars - Do you like pecans? Do you like caramel? OK, then, we are in business.

Peanut Butter Pillows - More peanut butter! This time encased in a chewy chocolate cookie.

Deluxe Chocolate Brownies - OK, enough with the fancy shmancy. Deep down I am a straight up brownie girl, how about you?