Ten Things for Monday and Peanut Butter Pie

I have a recipe to share with you today! Yahoo! It's for this delicious peanut butter pie:

Before I get to the recipe, here are ten things you should know about my world right now:

1. We went to the bustling metropolis of Shiocton, WI yesterday to see the sturgeon spawning on the Wolf River. We got there at the tail end of the season, so we didn't see much activity. It's kind of crazy, though. There were easily a couple hundred people gathered in a park just to watch the fish.

2. We did get to see this cute little fellow along the river bank, which made up for the lack of sturgeon activity.

3. Today has been crummy. Veronica threw an enormous tantrum. I've had a headache for much of the day. The cafe I'm working from right is out of yams for yam fries, and their pitas aren't vegan anymore. I ordered the hummus and veggies. The veggies turned out to be olives (yuck), celery (yuckier), a few slices of mushroom and about 12 small, dry baby carrots. What a let down.

4. On the flip side, I did develop the pie recipe, which is really yummy. Also, the cafe is alternating between David Bowie and some '40s swing/big band, both of which I enjoy.

5. I recently read this article about kitchen gadgets. It made me realize that I have pretty much no useless tools in my kitchen. It also made me start thinking about all the things I wish I had in my my kitchen: a KitchenAid stand mixer, a larger food processor, an oven thermometer and a larger, better functioning refrigerator.

6. The pelicans have started to return to Green Bay! My first sighting of the year was last Thursday evening and we spotted more last night. I adore robins and look forward to seeing them each Spring, but the first pelican sighting of the year is what I really wait for.

7. The book is kicking my butt. I have been spending a whole lot of time outside, playing with my girls. That means that there is little time left in the day for creating recipes, testing recipes and baking off cookies. I feel like I am losing ground on the project, rather than actually making progress. I hope things turn around soon.

8. Steve and I cleaned the basement on Saturday morning. We've been putting it off for well over a year. It is like a whole new space. It's a great relief to have a clean, spacious and orderly space for doing laundry and such.

9. I dressed Clarissa in leopard print and stripes. She had nothing to do with it. The colors don't match anymore than the patterns do.

10. My mom and I successfully made vegan pierogies on Friday. I'll share the recipe with you in the next few weeks. They were amazing!

And now, the recipe. It was prompted by a cookie recipe failure and a suggestion made by Steve. The result was a delicious dessert.

Peanut Butter Pie
Crust:
1/4 cup vegan butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup wheat flour
1/2 cup oat flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cream the butter, peanut butter, sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Mix in dry ingredients. The completed dough will be dry and crumbly, which is what you want. Set 1 cup of the dough aside. Press the remaining dough firmly into a pie pan to form the crust. Bake for 10 minutes. While the crust is baking and cooling, make the filling.

Filling:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup plain, soy yogurt
1/2 cup vegan cream cheese
Whip all the ingredients together in a medium sized bowl, until smooth and creamy. When the crust is completely cool, spread the filling into the crust. Crumble the remaining 1 cup of cookie dough over the top and garnish with grated or shaved dark chocolate, if desired. Chill at least an hour before serving.