After-dinner protein hit

Aka double chocolate mug cake. A few minutes, real food ingredients, gluten free, grain free, dairy free, low fodmap, over 15g of protein, can be low carb ... And so good.

2 mugs:

1/4 cup plantain flour or almond flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
Tiny bit of stevia powder, like 1/8 tsp

4T pure peanut or almond butter
2T maple syrup (or equivalent of erythritol + water)
1/3 cup water
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Optional:
1/4 cup chocolate chips, low carb if desired.
1 oz Chambord or orange liqueur

Warm the peanut butter, syrup and water, and whisk til smooth. Thoroughly mix in the eggs one by one, and the vanilla.

Mix the dry ingredients together, stir in the liquid until completely mixed. If using chocolate chips, stir them in.

Divide mixture between two oiled/sprayed coffee cups and microwave them together for about 1 1/2 minutes total. If using the liqueur, make a hole in the top of each cake with a teaspoon and pour in 1/2 oz. Eat immediately.

Return of the peanut butter downfall: 3 ingredient ten minute fudge

Concrete fudge.
Looks like concrete.
Pretty sure it doesn't taste like.
But must admit have no basis for comparison.

Following on from my earlier peanut butter downfall, here is the easiest cooked fudge I've seen for ages. This is much, much too good. Sorry.

This recipe is really almost a kind of halva rather than a traditional fudge. Substitute tahini for the peanut butter to make a very respectable version of the Middle Eastern candy.

If you share my fascination with grey and black food, try it with ground black sesame seeds to make Concrete Fudge.

Peanut butter fudge

2 cups brown sugar (or white, but the extra caramel notes are terrific)
1/2 cup milk
1 cup peanut butter

Boil milk and sugar together for 2 1/2 minutes. Quickly stir in peanut butter til smooth and pour into greased pan or baking sheet.

Halvaesque

2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup water
1 cup tahini

Boil water and sugar together for 2 1/2 minutes. Quickly stir in tahini til smooth and pour into greased pan or baking sheet.

Optionally, stir in one or more of these after the tahini when it's nearly smooth:

• chopped pistachios
• lemon peel
• 1 tsp rosewater

Concrete Fudge

2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup water
Sesame.

For the sesame, use either but not both of these:

• 1 cup ground black sesame seeds* and 2 T sesame oil (preferably not toasted)
• 1/2 cup ground black sesame seeds and 1/2 cup tahini

Boil water and sugar together for 2 1/2 minutes. Quickly stir in sesame til smooth and pour into greased pan or baking sheet.

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*Looking for ground black sesame seeds? Try a Chinese grocery/supermarket in the drinks section near tea, hot soy drinks, etc.

Peanut butter downfall cookies/biscuits: 3 ingredients of doom

These are cookies in the US, biscuits in NZ ...

Take two fairly healthy ingredients and with the simple addition of the White Death, make an unholy trinity of ridiculous, iniquitous deliciousness. If you find an easier recipe, for goodness sake don't tell me, I have enough trouble with these.

I think I got this recipe from my sister, else from somewhere on teh interwebs.
Do use proper peanut butter - hydrogenated vegetable oil should not be listed anywhere on the ingredients.

Flatten with a fork ... or as The Teen did, with your fingers (?!)

Easiest Ever Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup peanut butter
1 egg
1 cup sugar

1. Mix all together in a bowl
2. Drop by spoonfuls onto a lined or greased pan. (Optionally, flatten with a fork etc)
3. Bake at 350 F/ 180C until firm - this depends on how big and thick they are, say 8 - 18 minutes? 

Try hard to let them cool before you eat them. Try hard to leave some for others. Good luck with that.