When it comes to my birthday, I still feel like a little kid. I want presents, parties, and many celebrations. Sometimes that means I’m setting myself up. Let’s face it: I’m a mom of three and nobody has thrown me a party since I was 25. That was a loooooong time ago. But still, I hold out hope!

One thing I’ve learned to do is bake my own birthday treat. A few years ago, I baked this cookie cake for the first time. It was my favorite cookie cake ever, but my photo skills weren’t so great back then. Plus, I wanted to see if I could make the whole thing GF and a little easier. Done and done!

Now that I’m off the hook for jury duty (I didn’t get selected, but I did make it into a courtroom, so that’s always fun), I’m full steam ahead on getting ready for the school year ahead. That means a lot of organizing, cleaning, and decision-making.

When I changed schools earlier this summer, I left a very beautiful school building behind in exchange for one with a lot more history and age. My new work home is a lot older, but it’s kept up nicely and I’ve been feeling at home here.

The thing is, I’ve been getting this reaction from some people about my change of venue that is less than desired. People tend to set a lot of store by new and sparkly things. Hey, how can I blame them? New is usually very nice. But no matter how nice a space is, a school especially, the end result is what everyone makes of it.

Students make schools come alive, not awe-inspiring entryways or corporate-looking office spaces. This is a school, and it looks like one. Personally, I find that comforting.

Okay, end rant. Can I talk about this cookie cake now?

It’s chewy in the center and crispy at the edges, just like my favorite cookies are. There’s a layer of hot fudge that glues the peanut butter cups (both chopped up snack-sized and miniatures) to the top. And there are more chopped PB cups in the actual cookie.

Hey, it’s about to be my birthday. I want to do it up, and that means lots of peanut butter lover’s cookie cake for me. And if anyone wants to throw me a crazy wild party, just name the time and the venue. I’ll be there!

I’ve been on a banana kick this summer, and it’s probably just me making up for lost time. I barely posted any banana recipes in the first two years of the blog, so this summer it’s just bananas all the time. Plus, I don’t like to keep them on the counter in the summer. The bugs, they will come.

Plus, this feels like the right time to write about this cake. There’s a slice of it on my desk in my new office, and I’m looking out at the tree by my window and contemplating happy thoughts. Why not add a moist banana cake filled with both peanut butter cups and peanut butter chips to the mix? A gluten-free one, might I add?

I’ve never had a tree by a window where I work, and I’m finding it to be a very cheerful thing. There’s something about connecting to nature when you spend the day encased in cinder block that is very soothing.

The cinder block leads me to my big question here. You ready? Adhesive.

Yes, I said adhesive. I’ve been doing a lot of wall mounting as I set up this office, and things keep falling down. Seriously, one crash after another. I’ve been using adhesive mountings because I can’t make holes in the wall, but it’s not going well. You see, cinder block is very resistant to adhesive.

Any tips? And no, super glue is not one of them. I can’t do that. Or crazy glue. Or any glue at all. Can you help me before I lose my mind? If I hear one more thing come crashing to the floor, I might run for the hills.

A few months ago, I made this banana toffee snack cake, and people loooooved it. Seriously, I can never predict what people will go for. I make the most amazing thing and the pictures turn out great, and barely a reaction. But sometimes, a recipe just goes sailing through the interweb in the most gloriously unpredictable way.

This, then, is an experiment. I used the same cake base, but I changed up the mix-ins. To be honest, I love both versions. If they were my children, I’d love both equally. But as a peanut butter lover, I’d have to direct you toward this one. I mean, come on. It’s so happy.

Like my other banana recipes, this one is effortlessly gluten-free, thanks to oat flour. And it’s also super easy with no mixer or crazy bowl action needed. That means if I see a banana on the counter, it’s getting baked. This recipe is too simple not to go for it.

If you have any help to give me with adhesive matters, let me know. I need it. Pleeeeeeease!

This summer, I’ve got the kids when I’m not working, and it’s great. But I need some hours in the day to get things done, so hello to camp! And hello to having a smidgen of peace and quiet.

And hello to peanut butter cups! My favorite candy is back in these flourless PB cookie cups. They might not have any flour, but you won’t miss it at all with all this peanut butter goodness!

People don’t really understand what the summertime is like to a teacher, so I’ll try to explain as best I can. See, we are on overdrive for 10 months out of the year. We show up to work at crazily early times (I’m there around 5:45), get set up, and then we’re on. All day.

With teaching, you can rarely sit back. Checking e-mail is often impossible, as is using the bathroom. There is a constant flow of human interaction, ranging from pleasantries to several nonstop hours of active instruction.

Back when I was earning my certification in college, a professor told us that anyone entering the teaching profession would never have trouble sleeping at night. Boy, was he right. Every day, after running around and then running around some more, I crash as soon as the light goes off. It’s a nice perk, really.

In the summertime, our lives resemble other people’s. We can go to bed late (meaning 10 o’clock), we can have moments of leisure, and we can get some sunlight. It’s a totally different experience, and we love every moment of it. It’s a complete change of pace.

You can bet that during these months, I do a lot of baking. In addition to my two months of cake decorating class, I’m in the kitchen every day, testing recipes and trying out new things just for you! So be sure to stick with me during these lazy months as I bring you more dessert.

These are the way to start off a life of leisure. The cookie base is just peanut butter, two sugars, egg, baking soda, salt and vanilla. These ingredients get combined and chilled for a few hours, and then you put the dough into mini-muffin tins with a miniature PB cup pressed into the center. A few minutes later, you have the best cookie cup ever!

Hope your summer is filled with promise, just like mine. Can’t wait to share my adventures with you!

You all know that I have a passion for bar cookies, and I have an equally great passion for chocolate and peanut butter. In my world, no snack beats a Reese’s peanut butter cup. In fact, the absence of PB cups in life is a really good reason to never give up on sugar.

These are dense, chewy, peanut buttery, and flourless. That’s right. Why do you need flour when these bar cookies are decked out with enough peanut butter cup goodness to satisfy even the biggest fanatic?

To put this in perspective, my son ate these. One of my favorite bloggers in the whole universe, Dorothy, has a category for food her husband actually ate. I should institute a similar category for my own son, because he usually turns his nose up at my baked goods and opts to eat rice cakes instead. No, I am not kidding.

He ate these yesterday, and then he had seconds, and then he asked for more later in the day. #success #victoryismine

Of course, he needed some extra TLC after a particularly violent fight with his little sister. Here’s how it went down:

Boy: (screeching at top volume)

Me: What happened?!

Boy: (exhibiting red arm) She pinched me!

Girl: (also crying at top volume) No!

Me: (to Girl) Why are you crying?

Girl: It was sort of an accident!

She maintained that injuring her brother was “sort of” an accident and I never got more details. So I “sort of” punished her by sending her to her room in floods of tears while my son nursed his arm and talked me into giving him more of these bars.

On my trip to Hershey’s Chocolate World a year ago, I learned the secret to baking with peanut butter cups by observing their baked goods and methodology. In my field, that’s the best kind of research. Anyway, I noticed that they use the snack-sized (i.e. regular-sized) Reese’s in their baked goods, which makes so much sense. It packs a more powerful PB punch. So now I try to use them when I can.

The cookie base is simple: peanut butter, egg, sugar, baking soda, salt and vanilla. The baking soda and egg help these bars to rise, and the absence of flour makes the texture super dense and chewy. These are perfection.

If you’re a peanut butter fan, these bars are for you. No Reese’s addict can resist!

I used to take regular pilgrimages to NYC before the kids came along, and back then, there was a Popcorn, Indiana store in Times Square. I’d go there and order popcorn slathered in chocolate, have them pack it up in a big bag, and eat it on the train ride home.

Like all great stores, that one closed down, but I learned my lesson: always dress up your popcorn as much as you can. This one is covered in chocolate, mixed with Reese’s minis, and finished off with dollops of melted Reese’s chips. No trip to New York necessary for all of this madness!

Spring is such a transitional season. It’s when we feel the itch to do new things, see new places, have new experiences. It’s when we see hope that we can rejuvenate and find ways to make our lives even more meaningful. Or is that just me?

This time of year, the world looks totally different. The dark skies are light by 5:30 in the morning, the breezes are gentle, and people begin to daydream more, looking forward to beach getaways or lazy afternoons by the pool.

Maybe it’s just that I work in a school, but the focus here is definitely shifting. The same things that would have bothered me in October aren’t getting to me nearly as much right now. It’s the magic of springtime!

I wish I were as easygoing at home. It’s almost like an opposing force is at play. Yesterday, I walked by the backpack that I’d asked my daughter to put away five times. It was still in the middle of the hallway in a place seemed almost designed to make someone sprawl face-first onto the floor. Gotta be honest here: I didn’t use my patient voice this time.

But then I made it up to her by giving her some of this popcorn, and all was right with the world again. See? #goodparenting

The best part about making blinged-out popcorn is that it takes almost no time. Typically, I like to use kettle corn because it’s both sweet and salty, which gives the end result more dimension. You can use a microwaveable kettle corn, or many groceries sell really good ones as well. Popcorn, Indiana makes the BEST kettle corn. And no, they’re not sponsoring this post. I wish.

Once you have the popcorn, you mix chocolate candy melts and Reese’s minis into it, which melt ever so slightly. And don’t forget that thick ribbon of melted peanut butter chips!

Spring is here and everything is in transition. The only constant is change, but this time, the change is warmer weather and green leaves on trees. I’ll take it!

You know that I can’t go more than a week or so without doing something PB-related. It’s the ABCs of me, baby, and I’ve embraced it. Just like I’ve embraced the role of sugar in my life. More on that in a bit.

If you get frustrated because your peanut butter ice cream isn’t peanut buttery enough, or because it doesn’t include enough mix-ins, look no further. This no-churn option will satisfy all of your frozen peanut butter dreams!

I’m tired of the war on sugar. Yes, I realize I’m a baking blogger and so my credibility is lessened here, but I’m going to be very real with you.

First of all, a qualifier: the following thoughts do not apply to anyone who cannot have sugar for medical reasons or anyone who has disordered eating habits. I’m not a doctor or a nutritionist (clearly), so the following thoughts are just opinion.

A few years ago, after reading endless articles about the evils of sugar, I tried it cutting out. To call it a disaster would be fair. It’s not that I had withdrawal (I didn’t, shockingly) or any other noticeable symptoms. People told me I’d feel better, and that didn’t happen. I felt no different. Life was a little more boring, and I had to say no a lot, but that was about it.

What prompted the disaster was a lot of sudden weight loss. I’ve always been petite, and I have always worn sizes in the low range of the spectrum. But with the cancellation of sugar, I quickly lost 20 pounds and became very obsessed with maintaining what I now see was an unsustainable diet. I spent a lot of time chopping veggies, eating lean protein, and feeling virtuous.

Along with that came insecurity, doubt, a constant nagging hunger and the desire to eat everything in sight. I didn’t realize it at the time because it all seemed so healthy, but I was depriving my body of essential nutrients. What looked like fitness and health was really dysfunction.

Thankfully, I pulled myself back from the brink. As a result of this experience, I refuse to cut out food groups anymore. Did I put the weight back on? Yes. And I’m grateful for it, for my muscles (thanks, barre workouts!) and for whatever curves I like to think that I have.

When I see people turning sugar into the enemy, I get angry. It’s not sugar that’s the problem. It’s the extreme approach to food and the lack of emphasis our society puts on balance. I haven’t mastered balance, and I might not ever. But I’m sure gonna keep trying.

There’s your PSA. Now let’s get our sugar on!

This ice cream is full of it, not gonna lie. It’s got peanut butter, sweetened condensed milk, and whipped cream. You can be lazy and use Cool Whip (no judgement), but I like the less chemical taste of the whipped cream. And then I loaded the whole thing down with peanut butter cups, peanut butter chips and milk chocolate chips.

Suffice it to say, I’ll be eating a lot of this ice cream later. Probably a little more than I should. But you know, that’s life. And I’m happy that I don’t have to say no to anything anymore!

If you don’t, then there’s a big hole in your life. You know, that void where you have never experienced the joy of dipping food into melty cheese or chocolate. Be sad if you haven’t been there.

But feel free to change your ways, and now! I’m attaching a warning to this recipe: you will eat it and not be able to stop. Be ready. Come with an empty stomach!

In my champagne brownies post last week, I mentioned that our New Year’s Eve is always a chill one. I’ve never been one to go out and party the night away. It’s so much cozier to stay at home, make good food, and cuddle with the man I love more than anything in the world, chocolate included.

We love to do fondue on New Year’s because it’s quick and irresistible. We start with cheese fondue and work our way over to chocolate. One of the most fun parts is creating a dipping plate for each course. Take a look at my newest video about how we do dipping plates, JAB-style. And be sure to check out the full recipe at the bottom after you watch!

But for now, let’s focus on the fondue itself. You know, the good stuff. The stuff I want to eat by the spoonful.

This fondue has a milk chocolate and peanut butter base. It’s important to add the peanut butter cups at the end as a garnish, or they’ll fully melt in. Some of you might prefer that, but I like to fish out little half-melted peanut butter cup pieces with my fondue fork. Or the champagne brownie pieces.

To be honest, the fondue itself is so rich that those of you with less of a sugar tolerance may prefer to stick to strawberries for dipping. But for the rest of us, these dipping plate components will make this a rich and unforgettable dessert experience. Here’s what’s on my dipping plate:

The aforementioned champagne brownies (pictured above and in last week’s post with video tutorial).

Chocolate chip cookie bars. I took 24 oz. of refrigerated cookie dough, pressed it into an 8-inch square pan, and baked until done. Then I cut up the bars in little pieces.

And these lovely blinged-out marshmallows. You make them by brushing marshmallows with water and rolling them in graham cracker or Oreo crumbs.

Maybe it’s me, but I find that fondue is incurably romantic. You share it with loved ones, and in my own case, I got engaged over fondue at a restaurant. So this is always the way I’ll want to spend celebratory date nights with Kenny.

Whether you’re experiencing fondue for the first time or you’re an old pro, up the ante this New Year’s with an unforgettable recipe. Creating a party at home is not a problem with this for dessert! Now that you’ve got the dippers ready to go, here’s the fondue recipe!

I’m totally down with spiders. For one thing, they eat mosquitoes. That makes them awesome. And I took care of a tarantula named Pinky back in high school, and he was a real sweetheart. So I have very positive associations and all.

This is my favorite peanut butter cookie recipe all dressed up for Halloween. Is it me, or are creepy treats mainly just adorable? Must be the candy eyes.

In the midst of all this creepiness, I have to admit that Halloween scares me. It really does. I do not like opening the door to people dressed in costumes that are intended to be terrifying. I don’t care how old they are. It’s just not cool.

One year, instead of candy, my mom gave out crayons. I will never forget the humiliation. I was 100% sure that some unruly trick-or-treaters would bust into the house and steal all our food. I mean, I’d be pretty mad if I got crayons instead of candy. The only thing worse would be toothbrushes.

Let’s face it: Halloween is a scary time of year. The sky is often eerily cloudy, and with people moving around at night like ghosts, it’s not exactly reassuring.

Plus, I teach high school, which means that kids come in costume on the closest day to Halloween and we have to figure out which costumes are crossing the line. I really have no desire to see students dressed in short, tight costumes, or in a worst-case scenario from a couple of years back, like a giant condom. It’s so tacky.

The opposite of tacky is cute Halloween treats. And these little guys just make me happy.

This cookie recipe is so good that my oldest son loves it. That might not mean much to you, but the boy eats about two things in life, and I’m not really exaggerating. The fact that he begged me to bake these again after the first time I made them means a lot. Just believe me on that one.

Once the cookie is baked, you press a frozen Reese’s miniature peanut butter cup into the center. Wait for it to harden, and then pipe on legs using chocolate melts. I also used those melts to stick the candy eyes to the spider’s body, i.e., the peanut butter cup. It’s cute, right? Not gross?

I might not like Halloween, but I do love the treats and all the fun you can have with making scary into cute. Spiders might not be as happy an association for you as they are for me, but how about giving them a try? Just this once!

Um…everything. Anything. Whatever you want. Therein lies the glory and the danger. But the best treats in the world are a little bit dangerous.

I’m not sure if the cupcake craze is over yet (it’s definitely calmed down), but I hope your own personal cupcake craze reignites when you see these chocolate cupcakes. They have a peanut butter cup surprise inside and a healthy dollop of peanut butter pumpkin spice frosting! And, of course, some more peanut butter cup for bling. If you’re gonna make a cupcake, make a dang cupcake.

I’m not sure if extreme thinking works all the time the way it does for cupcakes, but it’s good to try and keep your fears under control. Whenever I’m equally eager to give something a shot and terrified that it won’t work out, I know I have to just go for it, no matter what happens.

Two years ago, when I’d just started playing the guitar, my then-teacher made me do my first open mic night. Part of me really wanted to do it while the other part was just in the horrors. I could barely play. How was that going to work out?

I still remember how scary it was waiting for my turn to play and sing. Everyone was just so good, and they’d clearly done the open mic thing a zillion times. I was nowhere near that skill level, and I remember really hating my teacher for forcing me to humiliate myself in front of everyone.

But you know, while it wasn’t the best performance ever (I played a bunch of wrong notes and my voice was all wobbly), it wasn’t terrible. I learned that people are really nice and encouraging, and that they just want you to do well. If you can let go of the fear, then just trying something new is the success story. You don’t have to be amazing to avoid failure.

One of my colleagues has an expression she uses on our students. When they’re fearful about doing anything, she says, “You gotta shut up and participate.” In other words, quit whining and worrying and just do whatever is causing all the drama to build up inside your head. It’s great advice, and I try to live by it some of the time. It’s not always possible to conquer every fear.

But it’s totally possible to make pumpkin spice peanut butter into the #bestfrostingever. If you haven’t seen Jif’s line of whipped PB in the grocery store, go look for it. When you mix it into vanilla frosting, it makes a perfect, easy cupcake finisher. If you want to make your own vanilla frosting first, you can. But I went easy and bought some from my local bakery. Sometimes it just works to skip a step.

Hey, I’m not afraid to admit that I take shortcuts sometimes, and I’m also not afraid to tell you that it makes me feel a little guilty. But who has time for making frosting every day? It’s much better to spend that time doing something new that utterly terrifies you. I dare you!

That’s right. You can have all of my Andes mints or Krackel bars. Those don’t rank so high with me. But if you try to get into my Reese’s supply, we’ll probably have words. Heated ones.

These cookies are classic and indisputably a winner. Who could argue with a peanut butter cookie wrapped around a peanut butter cup and baked into a mini muffin tin?

Not me, I tell ya. What I will argue, and endlessly, is the need to use apostrophes correctly. Is everyone ready? Because it’s time for a little lesson. Here we go:

IT’S = IT IS. Example: It’s so bizarre that she’s using her blog for a punctuation lesson!

ITS = possessive (as in, belonging to IT). Example: She put the giant muffin back in its wrapper.

Get it? Totally different, right? It confuses people all the time. But I’m an English teacher, so I’m here to educate. Here’s another one!

YOU’RE = YOU ARE. Example: You’re so awesome when you whisper sweet nothings in my ear.

YOUR = possessive (as in, belonging to YOU). Example: Here is your cookie. I wish it were mine.

And finally, for the big finish, the three words that always get my students:

THEY’RE = THEY ARE. Example: They’re eating my cookies! I hate them!

THEIR = possessive (as in, belonging to THEM). Their cookies were stale, so no wonder they took mine.

THERE = location. Example: Go there to buy more cookies!

Are we all good now? Can I stop being a total English teacher nerd?

Okay, here’s the truth. I read a lot of stuff online. And most of what I read is super amazing and written so nicely and it’s truly a pleasure.

But some writers are in need of some serious writing TLC. Like, the text is mostly emoticons, and the sentences don’t end with periods, and there’s no capitalization, not to mention a total absence of punctuation. We all have typos, so I’m not talking about that. I’m more talking about just not proofreading at all.

All writers are looking to improve and to gain wider audiences, so I figure, fix the easy stuff first. It’s super easy to fix apostrophes.

Don’t worry, y’all, I’m not pretending that I’m this genius writer. I just know a tiny bit about it. And I also know a tiny bit about peanut butter and chocolate desserts.

These cookies are the summary of what I love in life. Peanut butter cookies are so lovely. Peanut butter cups are even more lovely. Put them together and you’ve got one happy Mir!

Besides, I love Reese’s so much. See that apostrophe? Reese’s, as in, belonging to Reese. At some point, there must have been a Reese. Whoever he or she was, I love that person. Happiness is a day with peanut butter cups, and that is all.

If your writing doesn’t need any help, sorry about this impromptu lesson. Feel free to totally ignore anything I ever do or say. I won’t take it personally, I promise!