“I hope we’re friends until we die. And then I hope we stay ghost friends and walk through walls and

Jessica Howiler….we will be ghost friends, and we will scare the shit out of people. Jessica was my first friend when I moved to Okinawa. She and her family (Daniel and Eden) went on my first great adventure on Oki. Eden had no option as she was only about 6 months old, and really neither did Daniel, but no one died, so that is always something. When we first got to Okinawa, Jessica and I were in the same transition from life in the states to life on the island. She was smart enough to bring her family along, and I was lucky enough to become a part of it. Jessica was always willing to go on an adventure with me, and she even allowed me to take Eden on little adventures. Although, when we went on adventures, for some reason Daniel always felt the need to drive. He would probably say that I am a horrible driver, but all I have to say to that is, “Did you die?” Despite her husband being a bit of a control freak, when it came to driving, we still managed to have some fun adventures and laughs along the way. Jessica was there when life in Okinawa wasn’t a day at the beach. She was always there when I needed someone, and it was easy to be there when she needed. Our friendship began on a whim, and it lasted because our brand of crazy melded well. Some of the best times I can remember on Okinawa involve the Howilers and their shenanigans. There were not many places I explored in that first year that didn’t include Jessica, Dan or Eden. What made Jessica such a great friend for me was her willingness to go along with any crazy idea I had, because chances are she was having the same crazy idea. Nothing was off limits, no place was too scary, and no adventure too far. Okinawa will always begin with wandering through castle ruins, climbing stairwells to nowhere, and checking out abandoned buildings where the floor was made of rubble and the rooms had no windows. Those early memories will be the graffiti warning us of something lurking in the darkness, Eden’s little voice laughing at the shadows, and the unknown drawing us deeper into its depths. Jessica and her family will always be my favorite memory of Okinawa. Jessica had this one obsession…peanut butter. For her, I am going to make Peanut butter brownie cake with Nutella frosting. Even though today I am not feeling that great, making something for a friend always makes me forget my own troubles. Peanut Butter Brownies ½ cup peanut butter 1/3 cup butter-soft 2/3 cup sugar ½ cup packed brown sugar 2 eggs ½ tsp vanilla extract 1 cup flour 1 tsp baking powder *Using stand mixer with paddle attachment (the triangle one), cream the peanut butter and butter together, then add in the sugar and brown sugar. *Mix in the eggs. *Mix in baking powder and extract. *Add in flour ¼ cup or 1/3 cup at a time. Make sure to scrap any residue from side of mixing bowl. *Bake 350 F/175 C for 20-25 minutes *To make it a cake put in two 8 inch round pans. Nutella Frosting and chocolate cream filling 1 pint heavy whip cream *Whip until soft peaks *Add in 2 tsps vanilla extract and ½ cup confectioner’s sugar *Separate ¼ of the whipped cream and add 2 tbsps melted chocolate to this. *Add ½ cup Nutella to remaining ¾ whipped cream. Whip until hard peaks form; add in ¼ cup confectioner’s sugar if needed. *Baker’s notes: My oven continues to work like an actual oven, but it also continues to need about 15-20 minutes to really get heated up. It’s definitely slow to get started, but once it does, it’s on fire (pun intended). The brownies in this recipe will get a golden brown crust along the outside, this is how you know it is done and can be removed from the oven. If you are not using it as a cake, bake it to your own standards. The center will remain slightly gooey, but will harden as it cools. To remove from cake pans, make sure the brownie is still warm, so it slides out easily. Otherwise it may take a little effort to release it from the pan. This recipe is delicious and the combination of peanut butter brownies and Nutella is like crack… in that it is very addicting and unlike crack, it is only bad for you in large quantities…crack is always bad for you. In conclusion, eat these brownies and leave the crack alone!