Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce

         One of my favorite parts of the spring and early summer is enjoying a nice slice of strawberry rhubarb pie. The strawberries add just enough sweetness to help cut the tart flavor from the rhubarb, and the combination of the two together can not be beaten. My mouth is salivating just thinking about it. Yummm.  When I saw rhubarb at the store this week I had to pick some up. Unfortunately, I didn't have the time or ingredients to make a pie. So instead I came up with an almost perfect substitution... Stawberry Rhubarb Sauce. 

           My Strawberry Rhubarb sauce was the perfect replacement. It is basically all the goodness of the pie filling, without the crust. And I promise you will not miss it once you taste a spoonful of this sauce. And even better, the sauce only contains four ingredients and takes a total of 20 minutes to prepare and cook. An all around winning recipe if you ask me!

 

     I have been adding the sauce to just about anything. In the morning, I have it with my yogurt and some granola. It is almost like eating dessert for breakfast but without all the guilt. The sauce would be great on top of pancakes, waffles, or toast as a substitute for jam. It even tastes amazing on oatmeal or as a topping for ice cream, which my hubby has been enjoying. You decide. The options are endless!

Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce

Servings: 16 (1/4 cup per serving)

Ingredients

• 1 pound strawberries
• 1 pound rhubarb
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons honey

Directions

1. Core strawberries and cut into quarters, then cut rhubarb into 1/2 inch pieces.

2. Add strawberries, rhubarb, lemon juice and honey into a large sauce pan. Cook on medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes stirring occasionally to prevent the sauce from sticking. (Makes about 4 cups)

3. Let cool then store in glass jars. *

*Sauce will thicken when cooled. Sauce will keep in the refrigerator for two weeks or in the freezer for 3 months. 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Pears with Pistachio Goat Cheese and Fig Butter

           If I haven't mentioned this already, one of my biggest pet peeves is food waste. I hate having to throw away food that has gone bad, it's a waste of money and food that could have been enjoyed! So when I am trying to come up with a last minute snack or meal I usually end up using random ingredients left over in my pantry or fridge. And, most of the time, my creations come out pretty delicious!  
        This time I was trying to come up with a quick appetizer for a family New Years party and had a bunch of pears that needed to be used up. Pears are a great seasonal snack, but I wanted to spice them up a bit and so was born these sweet and savory pear bites!  For something savory I added goat cheese and pistachios and for natural sweetness I used some leftover fig butter. Who says cheese needs to go on crackers anyway? All in all these tasty seasonal snacks are packed with flavor and texture and make a easy appetizer for your next dinner party.
     

Pears with Pistachio Goat Cheese and Fig Butter

Ingredients

• 3 pears, cut into 1/4 inch slices
• 4 ounces goat cheese
• 1/2 cup fig butter
• 1/4 cup pistachios, crushed

Directions:

1. For each pear slice, spread on 1 teaspoon goat cheese, 1 teaspoon fig butter and sprinkle on 1/2  teaspoon pistachios.

If you don't have these ingredients you could substitute another soft cheese (i.e. brie, light cream cheese, or Neufchatel etc.) for goat cheese; apples for pears; apple butter or pumpkin butter for fig butter; and crushed walnuts or pecans for pistachios. Be creative and let me know what you come up with!

Cool Summer Recipes

Summer is finally here! I don't know about you, but the last thing I want to do when it's over 80 degrees out is turn on my oven or eat anything hot. Here are a couple of my favorite healthy and easy to cook summer recipes that will keep you cool and feeling satisfied during these hot summer months! My other favorite part about these recipes is that they are great make ahead dishes.

Black Bean Cilantro Lime Quinoa

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 2 cups reduced sodium vegetable broth (or water)
• 1 cup black beans
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1/2 red or orange bell pepper
• 1/2 cup cucumber, diced
• 1 jalapeno, finely diced
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 tsp lime zest
• salt/pepper to taste

Directions
1. Over medium heat in a medium sauce pan cook 1 cup quinoa in 2 cups water or broth, bring to a boil, cover and simmer on low heat for ~ 15 minutes or until no liquid is left. Then let cool.
2. Once quinoa is cooled add in diced tomatoes, pepper, cucumber, jalapeno, cilantro and mix together.
3. Then add in remaining ingredients (olive oil, lime juice, lime zest, salt and pepper) and stir to combine.

Nutrition Information per serving: 405 calories, 16 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 50 g carbohydrates, 13 g protein, 300 mg sodium, 12  g fiber


Cool Avocado Cream Soup

Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 3 Avocados, peeled, pitted
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 28 ounces (3.5 cups) of low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
•  1 lemon, juiced
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• salt and pepper to taste
• toppings: cilantro, plain Greek yogurt

1. Put the avocado flesh in a food processor with the onion and half of the lemon juice. Process until smoothly pureed, stopping a few times as necessary to scrape down the bowl, about 2 minutes. Stir in 2 cups of the chicken broth and the cream until thoroughly blended. Season with salt, pepper to taste and more of the lemon juice. Cover; chill in the refrigerator at least 2 hours.
2. Taste the chilled soup; adjust the seasonings if necessary with a little more salt, pepper and lemon juice. If you prefer it thinner, stir in some of the remaining chilled chicken broth. Serve in chilled bowls, garnished with cilantro and greek yogurt.

Nutrition information per serving(not including toppings): 200 calories, 15 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 12 g carbohydrates, 4 g protein, 300 mg sodium, 7 g fiber