A Glimpse of Glam: cookies

Four Ingredient Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

Hey everyone!

It’s been awhile since I’ve last shared a food post. With summer drawing to an end fairly soon, I figured why not share a recipe that might take your minds off of the impending autumn? Food is something I really love. To eat and to make. But, a recipe doesn’t have to be super complicated and exotic to capture my attention. I am not a foodie to that extent. Sometimes, something simple and basic can be just as comforting and rewarding.

I've mentioned in the past how during spring quarter I took a nutrition class, not sure if you recall or not? For the final project for that class we had to alter a recipe based on a predicted outcome. Testing how manipulating certain ingredients in a controlled way would change the results for better or for worse. In essence, a science experiment. Texture, taste, weight, volume, density, appearance, moisture content, fat absorption, variables as such had to be taken into account of. I chose to manipulate the basic four ingredient peanut butter cookies recipe by testing out how different peanut butters of varying consistencies played a role in the outcome.

Today I wanted to share with you all the recipe that was the winner of the five I tried out. Okay, before I continue I must confess. This recipe does NOT use only four ingredients as the title states. There are a few ingredients that are optional, but I highly recommend to include. Disclaimer done.

Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies - A Glimpse of Glam Andrea Tiffany

Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, here is the recipe.

~ ~ ~

1 cup peanut butter (preferably Adams 100% Natural Peanut Butter)

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 egg, at room temperature

1/2 tsp baking soda

Optional (but highly recommended for optimal results)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

chocolate chips as desired

Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe - A Glimpse of Glam Andrea Tiffany

Peanut Butter Cookies before baking - A Glimpse of Glam Andrea Tiffany

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Using a hand mixer, cream together the peanut butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg until the yolk and white combine and is lightly frothy.

Add in the egg, vanilla, baking soda, and salt into the dough. Continue using a hand mixer to mix together. The dough will clump up and look almost broken, but that is the consistency to look for.

Using a wooden spoon or spatula, mix in the chocolate chips (and other toppings you may desire).

Shape 1 tbs balls of dough spaced out two-inches apart onto a lined baking sheet.

Using a fork, lightly press in a crosshatched design on the dough. The balls of dough should flatten out to be roughly 1 1/2 inches in diameter.

Bake for 10 minutes until a medium-dark brown color.

Allow the cookies to cool and set before removing from the tray, as the cookies are fragile once out of the oven

Makes approximately 24 cookies

~ ~ ~

I specified in the recipe to use Adams peanut butter because the type of peanut butter used was the main variable I tested in my experiment. I found that the thick, creamy, near-liquidy consistency of that peanut butter worked best. Other brands can have peanut butters that are too dry and solid, or overly sweetened and dense. This one worked really nicely and provided a cookie that spread evenly with less color discrepancy overall, a chewier texture, and balance in sweetness and saltiness. There is a stronger brown sugar flavor that results from using this peanut butter, though I am not sure why. Also, the dough seems oiler prior to baking, but in the end result it was not discernible.

Flourless Four Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies - A Glimpse of Glam Andrea Tiffany

I chose to use granulated sugar AND brown sugar because the combination makes better tasting better textured cookies. Typically, cookie recipes involve brown sugar for the chewiness, moisture, and deep caramel sweetness it can provide that counters the structured crunchy lightness granulated white sugar adds. Also, that dash of vanilla extract and salt helps to bring out all the flavors. Although not exactly four ingredients per se, these cookies can be made with just four ingredients (peanut butter, sugar, egg, baking soda), but is definitely better with all.

It’s definitely quiet surprising how without any flour this recipe can still result in cookies that seem to have flour. The fine crumb size doesn’t seem any different from that of a cookie with flour. I always enjoy trying out flourless food recipes because as someone of a gluten-free diet, it’s nice to have recipes that don’t require any substitutions of any kind. No discrimination.

Flourless Four Ingredient Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cookies - A Glimpse of Glam Andrea Tiffany

I really hope you all give this recipe a try! If you love cookies like I do, then I definitely think you will enjoy these. I got some friends and family to try them out, and they all liked it too.

Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are such a classic treat. Peanut butter’s other soulmate besides jelly is chocolate. The perfect combination.

Lemme know in the comments below what you think! Are you a fan of peanut butter cookies? What types of peanut butter treats do you like to enjoy?

Also, comment down below what recipes you would recommend me to try out! I am always on the lookout for new foods to try!

Thanks for reading, I hope you all have a wonderful week ahead!

Till next time,

9:40 PM
60 Comments

#WarbyHoliday: Winter With a Warby Parker Twist

accessories

Hey everyone!

Tis the holiday season. Well, actually, it is Christmas now, to be exact. Don't want y'all to be correcting me in the comments, now do I? Anyways, I figured that each of us do different things in the winter, for we all got our own little traditions. Today, I wanted to share with you some of the winter activities I've done this past year.

Warby Parker, an American brand that features sleek, beautiful eyeglasses and sunglasses, kindly reached out to me to help introduce their new Winter 2015 collection. Because of this exciting news, I decided to feature some of my favorite frames that I would sport whilst doing my usual winter thing.

To do so, I tried out their Home Try On Program, which allowed me to order 5 frames (eyeglasses or sunglasses), to try out at home for 5 days. All for a grand total of $0. Didn't cost me nothin'. And I got to try em on, and pose for the camera.

The package came within 7 days of ordering. Inside, there was a card with some details about the company, and how to order frames. It's really exciting getting a package like this! I felt like I was opening a present.

Sadly, I got this package after I had already done my usual winter routine. So, I decided to share with you guys, which frames I would wear had I gotten this earlier. Also, I couldn't resist, and I chose a couple pairs of sunglasses as well. Which, for obvious reasons, wouldn't be necessary in the middle of winter, but is still fun to try on.

Something I love to do in the winter time is to cuddle up by the fire, catching up on some shows on Netflix while eating homemade goodies. Winter vacation is the perfect excuse to lie around doing nothing but eat sweets and binge watch TV. My sister and I usually like to hang out together, and lie by the fire side by side, with a plateful of cookies between us.

Theo: Whiskey Tortoise

Because of this cozy, indoor activity, I would definitely choose these frames to wear. The frames I chose, Theo in Whisky Tortoise, are such a lovely color and style. Tortoise is such a classic design, and with the activity being cozying up to a warm fire, this emphasizes the timeless quality to the frames.

There was a cool living-room set up so I just had to sneak over and snap a quick shot of me nonchalantly lounging on the chair.

Because it is the holiday season, I generally have a long list of things I gotta buy for people's presents. Plus, a few goodies for myself to reward myself for hard work, and whatever other excuses I can think of. I usually do a lot of my gift shopping at Target because it's Target. And who doesn't like Target?

Gilbert: Scarlet Tortoise

Because of the hustle and bustle of the holiday shopping rush, I would need a great sturdy, stylish pair of frames. The fact that these were in a rich red hue matched perfectly with the iconic color of Target. Pretty cool how that worked out, eh?

I really like how these look on me because of the pop of red. The pattern is still that classic tortoise, yet the red makes it stand out and look way more unique and special, which is exactly the kind of gift you should be giving. Almost works like your own personal reminder and source of inspiration.

When winter rolls around, I'm all about that baking. I literally would spend hours upon hours scouring Pinterest for the best ideas for holiday treats. For myself and for others. But mostly for myself.

Simone: Blue Coral

I found a wonderful pair of glasses that matched this very mood. These frames are in a fun blue pattern, which correlates with the creativity necessary when baking. You can't get by with boring ol' cookies, now can you? No. You gotta make the best of the best, with super creative and original ideas. Thus, the unique blue-patterned frames. I think these would have been perfect for this occasion.

I also wanted to share a couple of the sunglasses I tried out with the Home Try-On Program. Warby Parker features a wide selection of eyeglasses and sunglasses, so I just had to choose a couple frames to try out as well, despite it being winter.

Reilly: Whiskey Tortoise

This pair of snazzy sunnies are Reilly in Whiskey Tortoise. Ooh, I'm sensing a pattern here. Whiskey Tortoise seems to be the design I'm liking for glasses frames. I love these sunglasses. They are the perfect style and shape for me. They look so retro and gives off just enough attitude.

Dempsey: Jet Silver

The other pair of sunglasses I got to try on are the Dempsey in Jet Silver, a pair of trendy sunglasses that I've recently fallen in love with. I wasn't sure about the silver at first because it seemed so bright and shiny. I'm fairly sure you guys can guess by now that I am the type of person to go for black sunglasses. But, given that these are a different style for me being in silver, I'm pleasantly surprised and happy with the way they look because I think they turned out pretty sleek and chic.

Warby Parker as a great selection of frames to choose from for lots of different occasions. They have a new Windsor Collection out, which offers a "a new range of extra-special frames influenced by the timeless Windsor rim". Definitely check them out!

They've released a bunch of new stuff for the winter. Treat yourself for the new year. If you're already making some excuses to splurge and indulge for the holidays, might as well treat yourself to some new frames too.

Lemme know what you guys think of these glasses and sunglasses in the comments below! Which ones were your favorites?

Thanks so much for reading, and I wish you all a happy holidays!!

Til next time,
~A

3:49 PM
89 Comments

Flourless Chewy Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies: Starbucks Copy and then some

baking

Hey everyone!

Starbucks copy-cat Flourless Chewy Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies. Oh yeah, I went there. It is definitely possible to make these bad boys at your very own home. And they taste super amazing and way better than you can possibly imagine. Think of a brownie in a convenient, portable cookie form then multiply that taste by ten.

These delicious cookies are super easy to make! They take the simple concept of making meringues, and simplifies it by a billion. Because they are flourless, they are naturally gluten free!

Super chewy and delicious

Look at how shiny and crackly the beautiful cookie is

Ingredients

The one thing I DEFINITELY recommend is to MAKE SURE YOUR EGGS ARE ROOM TEMPERATURE! This is a very important step. VERY IMPORTANT! VERY IMPORTANT! This is what makes the cookies super chewy and gooey and yummy. If not, your cookies will end up as dense, rich fudgy blobs, which isn't bad, but that isn't what we're going for here.

Let the eggs sit in warm water to easily make it room temperature. You only need 3 egg whites, but there are 6 in this picture because I was baking two batches.

If you let your eggs sit in warm water for awhile, they will be at just the right temperature when it is time to add the eggs into the mixture.

They will soon become cookies!!

This is how the cookie dough will look on the sheet. They do not spread much in the oven, so whatever shape you put them in is approximately what they will end up being.

Boom! Cookies!!

Basically, to make these beautiful delicious cookies, all you need are:

3 cups confectioner's sugar

2/3 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder

1 tbs cornstarch

1/3 tsp salt

dash of cinnamon

3 egg whites at room temp

1 tbs vanilla extract

2 oz melted chocolate

2/3 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup walnut pieces

salt for sprinkling on top

Whisk together confectioner's sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, salt and cinnamon

Add in egg whites, first add in two then add in the third after you have begun mixing (you may not need the entire third egg white!)

Mix in the egg whites and while everything slowly starts incorporating together, add in vanilla extract, melted chocolate, chocolate chips and walnut pieces

Continue mixing, the dough will start to come together and become very stiff and thick in consistency

(it should resemble brownie dough)

Drop onto parchment paper and shape into circles of choice (they won't spread much in the oven unless the egg whites were too warm; also, I used large tablespoon scoop amounts, but it is all up to you)

Sprinkle on a bit of salt on top

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes, then check and bake for another 1-2 minutes until the tops are glossy and crackling like brownies

Let cook completely before removing from the tray because they are very fragile

Makes 16 cookies

And those cookies are just that easy to make! Give them a try! They are super dark chocolate-y and chewy and yummy. If you take one bite, you may not want to stop. Those 16 cookies do not necessarily have to be shared, if you don't want to.

Who needs to waste money on Starbucks cookies when you can make them yourself for way cheaper?