Late Night Odd Pairing: Cookies and Grilled Oysters

When I worked with Elizabeth Falkner on her latest book, Cooking Off The Clock, we would always work on/eat from the book after I was done filming something and she was done with Orson and/or Citizen Cake. For Elizabeth, this was one of the moments where she really took the time to cook for herself, and that’s why she always thought of this book as Late Night Appetite.

I was fortunate to receive many of these meals, some of which served as inspiration for the book. What I really liked was that there was no meal that was forbidden until late at night, neither grilled, freshly baked nor fried. Not sweet or savory.

Here are two recipes from the book that I think are particularly addictive and easy to make – late at night, during the day, or whenever the snack feeling hits.

Photo by Frankie Frankeny

Peanut butter coconut cookies

• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 ½ cups oatmeal
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 ½ cups unsweetened coconut
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Melt 1/2 stick of room temperature, unsalted butter in a skillet over medium heat. Scrape out 1 vanilla pod (split the pod and scrape out the pulp) into the butter. Add 1 1/2 cups oats and cook, stirring frequently, until browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add 2 tbsp. Add baking soda, stir and set aside to cool completely.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat 1 stick room temperature, unsalted butter with 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, 1 cup light brown sugar, and 1 cup creamy peanut butter (you can also use almond butter). !) on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add two large, room temperature eggs, one at a time, mixing well for about 1 minute after each addition. Reduce speed to low and add 2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut, and 2 tsp. kosher salt (I used less) and stir until well combined. Fold in the cooled browned oats until evenly distributed.

Roll the dough into golf ball-sized rounds (about 1 tablespoon of dough each). Place the circles about 1 inch apart on the parchment-lined baking sheets and bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on the sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Store the completely cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature.

Photo by Frankie Frankeny

Oysters in the fire

• 24 fresh oysters in the shell
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• 1 lime, quartered

Place the oysters on a preheated grill or on a baking sheet over a fire and allow them to open (due to the pressure that builds up inside the puffer as it heats) for about 3-5 minutes, depending on the heat of the fire. .

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small saucepan and add Tabasco.

Serve the opened oysters with the butter mixture and a squeeze of lime juice. Serve immediately.

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Named one of the 100 Most Creative People in America by Entertainment Weekly, Frankie creates images for some of the top names in food.

Frankie helped: The art of the bar: cocktails based on the classics;The Sample Bakery Cookbook; Miette: Recipes from San Francisco’s Most Charming Pastry Shop; The Green Eggs and Ham cookbook and the Star Wars cookbook series. Follow her on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.