Burnt Ends Twice

Summer has arrived.  It's been close to 100 degrees every day for the last week or so.  It's simple to tell what the temperature is, just look at the brown spots on my lawn.  As it gets hotter, they get bigger.  Luckily it's been in the low 70's every morning, just perfect for a cup of coffee outside.

On the way out, I turn on my little tabletop fan and set it in the doorway to blow cool air into the house.  It works really well, taking the inside temps down 8 or 9 degrees with a minimum amount of electricity.  The pups love it too ... they get to roam outside whenever they want after getting up enough hutzpah to sneak past the humming machine.

In case you didn't know, I'm the Queen of Microwave Dinners.  As much as I love to cook, my skills over the years have waned.  When I DO cook something good, I have to eat it for two weeks in order not to be terribly wasteful.  Better to look for single serving sizes.

Here's my latest find while shopping at Costco.  It's a dangerous place to be sure, especially since containers there are made for families of 15 instead of one or two.  However, I LOVE brisket!  So when I found this box, I thought what could be better than burnt ends?

Does that package not look amazingly delicious?  I probably should have checked the price for you, but alas, the ticket is gone and I have no idea what I paid.  

Upon opening the box, I was a little disappointed.  For the weight, it should have served at least four.  Maybe it would serve two?  There was enough barbecue sauce to cover an entire cow, but the meat serving looked a little skimpy.  

I could probably smoke my own.  I began to calculate in my head the cost of a brisket at the store ... they are HUGE and VERY expensive.  Add to that the cost of the food saver I would need to buy and I'm over my head.  Still ... in the long run it's probably cheaper per meal than this.

I put a small serving into my microwave safe bowl and nuked them according to directions.  It smelled just wonderful!!  With another bowl of sauce to dip the meat into, I was instantly in heaven.  It was absolutely wonderful!!  Soft, tender and smoky.  Even the barbecue sauce was tasty.  THIS is a keeper.  Next time I'll pay more attention to the price.   Lucky for me, I even had enough for THREE dinners.

I probably should have quit while I was ahead.  While rummaging in my junk drawer for a skinny screwdriver, I came across my favorite peanut butter cookie recipe.  It must be fate.  I had just picked up a package of peanut butter chips.

Trying to practice patience, I made them according to directions and even remembered to leave the batter in the fridge before cooking.  I couldn't wait.  My mouth was salivating!  Ummmm COOKIES1

Well ...... as you can see, burnt ends are pretty easy to make.  Instead of waiting an hour for my big oven to heat up, I used the smaller Breville.  I also followed the directions, really I did.  375 degrees for 10 minutes.  That was WAY too long.  RATS!!!  The salivating stopped instantly as I contemplated burying them in the cemetery.   

It's pretty hard for me to bury sweets.  I baked the rest at a lower temperature (that's the two on top) and scraped off the burnt ends with a sharp knife.  No use being wasteful.  Funny, Jonathan is not a fan of burnt ends.  I gave him a small bite and he spit it out on the floor.  Oh well, the more for me.

I wrote on the recipe in big letters the new time and temperature.  Next time they will be perfect.

I spent the rest of the day sewing a new project.  I receive directions once a week on line.  Wait till you see my latest!!