When I was young, way before I learned to cook or even had the slightest interest in food, I had a small list of favourite snacks. Among them were peanut butter cracker sandwiches, really nothing special, just Skippy peanut butter squeezed between saltine crackers. Its taste was far from my concerns, rather, it was the sheer fun of playing with food that kept me making them, one after another, slowly and quietly in the hot, stuffy kitchen.
As the only child, I’ve
learned early on to find ways to keep myself amused and making these square
sandwiches was one of them. There was the ritual of opening the cracker package, I gingerly tore apart the
thin, plastic wrapping, determined to keep
the conjoined crackers intact. When I succeeded, I broke apart two crackers and with one swift hand, a thick,
glossy layer of peanut butter covered one cracker; just enough to fill the
sandwich, but not too much that it would squeeze out when pressed together.
Finally I aligned another cracker on top, adding
just enough pressure for the peanut butter to seep through the cracker
peepholes but not too hard that it broke the layers.
I’d proudly stack 5 or 6
sandwiches on a plate, make my way to the living room, change my mind and
rearrange them into a flat circle, lest they topple over. Sometimes, I’d make
extra and save them for my dad, who like me, loved snacks and his eyes lit up when he found the leaning tower of crackers by the bedside table. I think that was one of the earliest moments where I recognized the satisfaction and pride in watching
someone eat something you made.
Aside from the methodological measuring and mixing of flours, creaming butter and sugar to create air, baking is more than a science. It’s soothing, de-stressing and a little magical. My heart flutters like a butterfly when I watch my friends sink their teeth into a cake I made, the satisfied sounds that erupt, the empty dessert plates, the crumbs on the floor, a smear of icing on the nose, baking is all about sharing.
I take any opportunity I can to honour a special occasion, and what says happy birthday better than a chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting? I like cakes with a bit more heft, denser and strong in flavour and these cupcakes hit the spot. Based on Jill O’Connor’s recipe for Devil’s Food Cake, there’s a hint of coffee in the batter to enhance the chocolate flavour and brown sugar to give the cake dark and richer notes. I adjusted the amount of white sugar and replaced a little with malted chocolate powder.
For the first time, this frosting won me over. I find frostings too sweet, burning my throat, but this frosting from the popular Baked stole the show. The cream cheese gives it that tangy, lush quality, yet the peanut butter manages to tone down the cloying sweetness. On top of cupcakes, it’s like they were meant to be: chocolate and peanut butter.
At my friend’s birthday
party, we held our cupcakes high in the air and toasted. There were moans,
groans and big sighs of satisfaction, compliments flew my way and I smiled. I can feel the magic.
Recipe here!
