How to make a Peanut Butter and Jelly Dessert
One of my favorite combinations! Peanut butter and jelly. I haven’t met too many americans that don’t like peanut butter and jelly unless they are one: allergic or two: didn’t grow up in the USA. If you are like me and you grew up eating this ultimate comfort food then it will be hard not to like this recipe. The concept is easy here, but giving it a new face and dimension is what can be challenging as a chef. Not overly complicated as the bottom of this is simple shortbread cookie. The middle is a plum jam and peanut butter cream cheese mixture. The top is a meringue shaped as a grape cluster. The rest is delicious! Here is the recipe I hope you enjoy how to make PB&J!
Recipe Ingredients
How to make Shortbread recipe
Peanut Butter “mousse”
12 oz of creamy peanut butter
8 oz of cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp of vanilla paste
Plum Jam
4 cups of plums pitted
2 cups of sugar
1/2 jalapeno
3 tbsp of pectin
Grape sorbet
2 cups water
1 1/2 cup sugar
3 cups of thomcord grapes
1 lemon
1 cup of dehydrated grapes or blueberries ground up into powder
Recipe Instructions
How to make Meringues, Preheat oven to 200 degrees
Simply place your egg whites in a stand mixer with a pinch of sugar. Whisk on high speed after a minute gradually add your sugar. Keep whisking until you have stiff peaks and shiny about 4 mins. Place in a pastry bag with a plain tip. Line a sheet pan with silpat or parchment paper and pipe small rounds in the shape of a small grape vine cluster. Place in the oven and bake for an hour, then take out and let it completely dry for 5 minutes. Then take out and place in an airtight container. Then when ready to plate you can place them in plastic bag and smash them all up.
How to make Shortbread, Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Using an electric mixer beat butter until soft and fluffy. Add granulated sugar and salt and mix well. Then add the flour in 3 stages until just blended. Take out the dough and form into a using parchment paper and cool in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. Then take out and roll the dough out to 1/8 inch thickness. Take a grape cluster cookie cutter and cut our grape cluster shortbread cookies. Place them on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and place in the oven until golden brown about 18-20 minutes depending on how big of cookies you cut. Take out and allow to cool.
How to make Plum jam
In medium size pot add plum and sugar. As the plum starting to simmer blend/mash either with a masher or with a hand stick blender until almost smooth. Bring to a boil and cook for 4-5 minutes and then stir in the pectin powder constantantly stirring. Add the jalapeno half, Cook for another minute or two and then turn off the heat.
Or if you want to preserve the jam, fill one 8 oz jar and seal tightly and flip the can over. Allow to stay like that until it has come to room temperature and the tops have popped.
How to make Thomcord grape sorbet here
How to make Peanut butter mousse,
Place all the ingredients into a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Start on low speed until things start to get incorporated then turn up to high and whip for 2 minutes until completely smooth and fully incorporated. Take out and set aside to build the sandwich.
How to make Peanut Butter and Jelly
Take one shortbread cookie and the spread some of the plum jam on top of it. Then take some of the peanut butter mousse and spread on the bottom of the grape vine meringue. Then sandwich together the meringue and the cookie with the mousse and jam. Place on the plate. Take a few crumbs of the shortbread and place on the plate next to the meringue sandwich. Take a scoop of the grape sorbet and place on top of the crumb (this helps the sorbet not slide all over the plate). Finish with a little dehydrated grape powder on top of the meringue. Serve and enjoy!
