Roasted Hazelnuts Two Ways

Something about carefully roasting nuts on a rainy fall morning just warms my insides. Their earthy fragrance mingles in the air with the sweet aroma of the apples I just happen to be drying. It really is quite pleasant.


Last year some friends and I picked pounds and pounds of hazelnuts from a local farm (for about 79 cents/pound!) and I still had a box of them hidden under my bed. Perfect day to roast them? I think so. Last night I spent about an hour and a half cracking the nuts on my bed (cue coffee cup for smashing, cutting board for base, and towel to prevent flyaways) while watching an episode of two or Star Trek.

I love Star Trek. I love Data and I love Picard. I love the whole crew.

Anyways, I made a gargantuan mess--nut casings all over my bedspread, pillows, and floor--but I enjoyed the smashing. No, I do not own a nutcracker. Yes, that may have been easier. But not so fun!


In the wee hours of the morning (well, 9 o'clock) I arose bright-eyed and ready. I had thought of two ideas the night before: curried hazelnuts and chocolate hazelnuts. Savory and sweet.


Let me tell you, I cannot get enough curry. Which is rather strange as I ate curry for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for about a week straight after the last batch I made. You'd think I'd be tired of it, but that is not so. I've been putting curry powder on my eggs in the morning, on my veggies, sprinkled on my cereal.


Well, maybe not my cereal... But anywhere I can. The curry hazelnuts had a nice, full flavor, but next time I'll add more curry powder and cayenne pepper and less salt.

Spiced Curry Hazelnuts

2 c. hazelnuts
2 T. butter
3/4 tsp. curry powder
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. ground red cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 275 degrees and prepare a 9x12 pan covering it with parchment paper. Melt butter in sauce pan; stir in spices and hazelnuts. Turn into shallow baking pan. Bake in heated oven for 20 minutes, stirring nuts at the 10 minute interval.


I've borrowed another recipe from joythebaker.com! I slightly tweaked it though, using half the sugar and less butter. This recipe is actually very simple and satisfying. However, next time I will either lower the oven temperature to 275 degrees and/or lower the roasting time. Also, I might reduce the amount of butter by a tablespoon or two as well.

Salted Cocoa Roasted Hazelnuts
(Recipe adapted from Miss Joy)

3 cups nuts ( a mixture of hazelnuts, pecan halves and walnut halves would be best)
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into chunks
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon cocoa
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Place a rack in the center. Spread nuts out on a half sheet pan (17×12x1-inch) or a 9×13-inch baking pan works in a pinch. Toast nuts for 10 minutes. Remove from the sheet pan and set aside.

Scatter the butter pieces over sheet pan and place in the oven to melt. This should only take a few minutes. Remove the pan as soon as the butter is melted.

Now, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites. When the whites just start to hold their shape, gradually add the sugar and continue to whisk on medium-high for two minutes. The mixture will be sticky and shiny, but may be a bit thinner than meringue.

Sift the cocoa over the top of the beaten eggs and fold in. Pour the chocolate mixture over the toasted nuts and fold in.

Spoon the coated nuts on top of the butter on the baking sheet. Spread out into an even layer. Not all of the butter may be covered by nuts, that’s ok!

Bake nuts for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and quickly stir a bit. Return to the oven for 10 minutes, remove and stir once again. The meringue will look like it’s drying out a bit. This is when you add the salt. Sprinkle it on top of the meringue and nuts. Return to the oven for a final 10 minutes, remove and give it one final stir, breaking the nuts up a bit as you stir them.

When done, the butter should be absorbed and the nuts and coating crisp. Let cool completely before handling. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

It's Curry Night Again!

I do love curry.


Not so much as Lister does on Red Dwarf, because if I had curry for every dinner my bowels might not appreciate me.

But almost as much as Lister.


Tonight after a very beautiful hike right outside of town, my friends and I gathered at my house and we made two different curries: a pineapple-chicken curry and a spicy vegetarian green curry. I was responsible for the veg curry and my friend whipped up the other one.

Neither of us followed any sort of recipe, but rather just started putting things into a pot. Mine had coconut milk, sauted onions, peppers, eggplant, some potatoes, tofu, carrots, bananas, pineapples with juice, coconut flakes, garlic, curry paste, and then a bunch of spices like curry powder, red pepper, cayenne pepper, cumin, cinnamon, onion powder, but no salt.


I'm all salted out from salt & pepper pistachios from Everybody's Nuts! Have you tried those? You have to, they're just too good. They're more peppery than salty, but if you eat half of the huge bags, you'll be salted out too.


The pineapple-chicken curry consisted of basically the same, but with coconut flakes and eggplant omitted and chicken instead of tofu. She also added cashews and honey. She is a fantastic cook. We served it with delicious store-bought naan from Costco and some white rice. Then we watched a Western. Monte Walsh.

Do you like my idea? "Curry and Cowboys." I thought it was clever. It sounds nice at least.

Also, Monte Walsh is one of my favorite movies. Behind Quigley Down Under, my top movie of all time, but still pretty good. Tom Selleck makes one fine cowboy. He's just a great actor in general.


So go try making curry! It's simple, delicious, and a fun event to do with friends. Curry is a social food.

Bacon-Oatmeal-Peanut Butter Waffles

I have a problem, a dilemma you might say.

Bacon.


Why is that a problem you ask? I don't eat bacon. I don't eat pork at all for that matter, nor beef, chicken, lamb, etc. I am a pescetarian, fish is my only meat.

But I love baking with bacon. The excitement spreads throughout my entire body. BLTs, classic bacon and eggs, bacon and chive twice baked potatoes, bacon cookies, bacon weaves, bacon bacon bacon. Chicken bakes with bacon bits at Costco?

I don't even like bacon. It's just fun to play with in recipes.


Today I made waffles for my boyfriend topped with bacon, bananas, peanut butter, a drizzle of maple syrup, and some whipped cream. He said the bacon kind of clashed with the other flavors, but he liked it. (He always likes it though--He's the best). So maybe I went a little crazy with bacon this time, but maybe you want to try it out!


Oatmeal Peanut Butter Waffles
(serves two)

1 c. quick oats
4 T. peanut butter
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 T. sweetener of your choice*
2 slices bacon
1 banana, sliced
cinnamon
syrup

Mix first five ingredients together and cook in a waffle iron. Fry up your bacon. Then in the same skillet**, fry the banana with several shakes of cinnamon. Serve bacon and banana over warm waffle with a drizzle of maple syrup.

I topped it with cinnamon whipped cream sweetened with maple syrup because my friend loves it and I had a huge tub of whipping cream in my fridge.***

*I go for honey.
**No bacon for me! Same for bacon grease. I just use a little butter.
***I made a fried egg (duck egg, double yolk) and cut up some peaches for a side, but the waffle was so big he didn't even get to them.

Peanut Sauce With Chicken

It may come off as rather odd, but most foods I post and/or make in my kitchen are not consumed by myself. I love making cookies, but would rather give them away to neighbors, friends, strangers, etc. rather than eat them up myself.

Also, I do not eat a lot of meat. "Pescetarian" is the technical term, so I eat fish and seafood, but chicken, beef, pork, and the likes are not part of my diet. So it might be a little weird that I get excited about foods like chicken bakes from Costco (mmmm) and bacon in any form.*

Mostly, I feed my boyfriend. I like making food for him because he appreciates it and says that everything I make is delicious, even when it is not. He always eats what is on his plate, even my terrible experiments. Luckily, tonight's dinner was "delicious."

As always.

I must be some cook. :)

ON THE MENU TONIGHT: chicken breast sautéd with garlic, pepper, and rice vinegar; white buttered sticky rice; steamed broccoli; and to top everything off, some homemade peanut sauce.**

But first an appetizer? Frozen boxed eggroll and Asian dumplings from Trader Joes.


Peanut Sauce
(Recipe from Cooking With Amy)

1/4 cup peanut butter (natural, no sugar added kind)
2 teaspoon soy sauce
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon or lime juice
1/4 cup coconut milk (lite is fine, if you prefer or substitute water)
1/4 cup water
red chili flakes to taste
chili garlic sauce to taste or 1 clove crushed garlic

Optional:***
sesame oil
curry paste
rice wine vinegar
fish sauce
grated ginger
shallots sauteed till brown in oil
Worcestershire sauce

Combine all ingredients with a whisk in a small bowl, adding the water last. Pour into a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until sauce begins to bubble and thicken. Experiment with this sauce adding a teaspoon at a time of one the optional additions and tasting as you go. Serve hot or cold.


Try it out. My boyfriend says, "If one was okay and ten was pretty great, I think I'd probably give you a hundred and ten thousand stars."

Oh, I like that man.

*There are so many things you can do with bacon! You have the classics like eggs and bacon and toast, BLTs, twice baked potatoes with bacon and chives, chicken bakes. Then you get the weirder stuff like bacon weaves, bacon cookies, peanut butter and bacon sandwiches, etc. etc. Everybody loves bacon. I love bacon. Just not eating it.
**My friend tells me that next time I HAVE to make some Pad Thai to go with the peanut sauce.
***I added one teaspoon yellow curry paste and two teaspoons rice vinegar.

Pineapple-Chicken Curry

Tonight I fed some nerds, some very dear and beloved nerds playing Magic: The Gathering.


Curry for dinner, and cookie dough balls for dessert. Yes, I am a (semi-)grown-up, but I still love eating cookie dough. Just make your standard Tollhouse cookie recipe, stick some toothpicks in them, freeze them for a while, dip them in melted chocolate chips, and there you have it! Delicious.


It was fun. That is all I have to say for tonight, aside from try this sometime. It's good stuff; filling, flavorful, and fun to make.


Pineapple Chicken Curry

2 c. rice
5 chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
4 potatoes
1 c. sweet yellow onion, sliced
1 c. sliced carrots
1/2 tsp. curry powder
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cans coconut milk
2 T. yellow curry paste
1 can pineapple

Begin cooking the rice as instructions dictate.

Boil the potatoes until they become soft and tender. Cool and proceed to cube them.

In the meanwhile, cook cut chicken in a large skillet over medium heat until fully cooked. Set aside. In the same skillet, saute potatoes, sliced onions, and carrots adding water as necessary. When vegetables are tender, combine chicken. Spice with curry powder, cinnamon, and salt to taste.*

In a large pot, add sauted veggies and chicken along with the coconut milk and curry paste. Bring to a boil than reduce to a simmer until thick. Add the pineapples with the juice. Enjoy over the cooked rice!

Gourmet S'mores

Sometimes, I just hate wearing pants. That's why you might find me wandering around in just a t-shirt and my underwear. It's only a problem when I'm forced to go out in public, or when the UPS guy rings the doorbell and blushes crimson when I answer the door. You know, skirts are okay when you have to, but some instances don't allow that. Skirts are inappropriate in some areas of life, such as my place of employment where long black dress-pants are part of the uniform. It's so nice at the end of a shift, the part after I bike home where I walk into the door and immediately unbutton those stupid pants. Aaah.

Sometimes, I go goo-goo over adorable dogs. Even less adorable dogs, I suppose: those little kick-me dogs who wear ridiculous outfits and make yippy noises--yeah, they're still unresistible. Parks are horrible because I want to go visit with every dog around. It's like my mother and babies.* Yeah... I have two woofs; Jojo is a five or six pound yorkshire terrier with a bad haircut and a tendency to smile.** Clif sleeps in my bed and hogs the covers. I allow this because he is my pup--my year and a half old german shepard-boxer pup whom joined the family by accident. Lucky him. He licks the floor clean when I spill and eats socks. He also plays fetch and loves swimming, despite his clumsy frolicking in the water.


Sometimes, I have a hankering to make s'mores. Camping has many great perks, but making s'mores over a campfire after a long, sweaty, dirty day is one of my favorites. However, these urges to make the gooey, sweet treats might come at a time when erecting a campfire isn't plausible, so I make due with the oven and the flames of our propane stove. You could also try the microwaving method, that works too, but nothing beats a golden marshmallow toasted to perfection. Though nothing compares with campfire s'mores, these "ghetto s'mores," or inauthentic s'mores and pretty fun, and my boyfriend likes 'em.***


Gourmet S'mores

1 graham cracker, divided in half
2 mini Hershey's bars
2 large marshmallows
chocolate sauce, to drizzle
raspberries to garnish

Oven directions: Melt chocolate on cookie sheet in oven set to broil keeping the door partially opened when fully heated. Use spatula to spread on s'mores. Remove from oven. Place marshmallow on top and put in oven until marshmallow expands and browns slightly. Garnish my drizzling chocolate sauce over top and adding raspberries.


*Except... well, not weird. Okay, maybe a little weird, but in a different way.
**Yes, she smiles. It looks like an innocent, sweet snarl.
***I don't eat them ever, just give them away. That's what I do.

Peanut Butter Love & Fluffer Nutters

I don't think this is any secret, but peanut butter by the spoonful, straight from the jar is perhaps the best snack in the world.

Period.

Peanut butter mixed with honey. REAL peanut butter. Add some mashed strawberries or bananas, top it off with raisins.

PB&J. Duh.
PB&Banana. Mmm.

Fluffer nutter, anyone? Start out with a slice of bread, lather on some peanut butter, then add a layer of marshmallow fluff. Try it! Just do it!!


Do you like chocolate? Peanut butter loves chocolate. They are a perfect marriage.

I made a birthday cake for my friend this summer. A Peanut Butter-Chocolate Marble Cake, in fact.*


Only after the fact did I learn that my friend is mildly allergic to peanut butter, but previously I had made some delicious Peanut Butter Blondies with Milk Chocolate Frosting that he raved about.**


This picture isn't the greatest (okay, it's not even remotely nice), but I'll blame the lighting.We were in a pit of a garage; We call it the Pit, and dark scary things happen in the Pit. Namely all the rat droppings my friends and I might find on the couches and the rotten food we'll discover every so often under them.

Anyways, I've found some recipes that celebrate the prized peanut butter, and they must be tested.

Examine:
Peanut Butter-Banana Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies. Notice that there's TWO peanut butters in its name. Also, I love stuffed goods.

I would never eat these Peanut Butter-Bacon Cookies***, because I don't eat beef or pork (nor turkey, chicken, lamb, etc.), but I have so much fun making food with bacon. My friends like bacon, so that's acceptable.

It may not seem like it, but I really am some sort of health nut. I like baking for other people (but we'll get into that later). Sometimes I like making things for myself, and I've made some versions of this relatively healthy Peanut Butter Cheesecake Mousse recipe.

I also want to make some of those peanut butter rice crispie bars with the milk chocolate frosting. Fond memories of that treat.

Yes, so to conclude, I recommend you now try the aforementioned fluffer nutter. It goes something like this:

Fluffer Nutter
2 slices whole wheat bread, toasted or untoasted
peanut butter
marshmallow fluff

Spread a thick layer of peanut butter on one slice of bread, then spread an even thicker layer of marshmallow fluff on the other slice. Bring together. Enjoy. Amen.


*Are you wondering why there's only one giant, fat candle on this birthday cake? Well, of course it is not because I had no birthday candles... No... See, there were two layers of cake for each decade he's been alive, and one candle for the year... Uhm... Yes. 21. Yes.
** It's also the same story with pineapples; He's allergic to the fruit, but he can't resist that one either.
***Okay okay, I'll be the first to note that many of the recipes I share are from two other blogging folk. I just think Sugar Plum and Joy the Baker are delightful, fun, and great bakers. So sue me. And/or recommend some other great food artists. That's an option too.

Vegan Muffins: Recipe Swap

My mother works as a nurse, and she's darn-tootin good at what she does. I guess she was telling a patient about how much I love to bake, and so begins the recipe swap. A notecard with this on it arrives home for me:

Oatmeal Cookies
"Heat oven to 375 degrees and oil cookie sheets.*

Cream:
1 1/4 c. "Earth Balance" (butter substitute)
3/4 c. dark brown sugar (packed)
1/4 c. evaporated cane juice crystals (such as "Florida Crystals")

Add:
1 T. "Ener-G" egg replacer w/ 1/4 c. water (beaten seperately)
2 T. Water
1 tsp. vanilla

Add & mix:
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3 c. rolled oats

Stir in:
1 1/4 c. walnuts, chopped
1 c. raisins

"How many cookies you get depends on how you divide the batter. The neighbors who game me the recipe makes only nine--big, huge circles. I made two dozen.

"Drop onto the cookie sheet, then flatten and shape with the back of a spoon.

Bake approximately 16 minutes (golden on top, but still moist). Cool on rack before storing."

Apparently, this woman is a vegan, something I tried one year for lent. It was rather difficult for me because I went about it very unhealthily.** If it had eggs or butter or the like in the recipe, I just wouldn't go for it. This is rather stupid, I now realize, because there's so many alternatives! My mother confused a gluten-free muffin recipe I once made up with a vegan recipe, but I can work with that.


Now, I have yet to actually try out her recipe, but the idea was that maybe we could start swapping recipes. A lady I've never met who knows me through her nurse... I find it interesting. All the more interesting with the added challenge of vegan cooking. So, I have decided to play with muffins using my personal favorite substitutions. More blackberry, because I have it on hand.


Vegan Blackberry Muffins
1 1/2 c. all -purpose flour, divided
1/2 c. oat flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
4 T. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 ripe banana, mashed (substitutes eggs)
1 c. soy milk (substitutes milk)
1/4 c. applesauce (substitutes butter)
1 c. blackberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sift 1 1/4 c. of all-purpose flour with oat flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and sugar. In another bowl mix banana, soy milk, and applesauce. Pour this over the flour mixture. Stir just enough to moisten the flour.*** Dust 1 cup fresh blueberries with the reserved flour and stir gently into the batter. Pour paper muffin cup liners two-thirds full of the batter and bake about 15 minutes. Makes about 1 1/2 dozen muffins.


They turned out fairly well, moist and not too sweet. My friend, who prefers things too sweet, said they would be better with some sort of frosting, so I smeared some Nutella on one and that made it perfect. Now just to copy the recipe down and send it off to this random woman!

*I would just use parchment paper.
**I should really try it again, now that I'm more informed. Maybe next year.
***The batter should not be smooth.

Mango-Blackberry Cobbler

Mmmmm... cobbler.

We still had a few leftover bags of blackberries from last year's picks, and my mother accidentally left one out after grabbing a handful for her oatmeal. Can't let that go to waste! I'm trying to get over my sugar-phobia, so I had some myself. If I might say so myself, it was pretty delicious. My friends and I play this game every week or so, and I like to make food for the occasion. Plus, my sister and dad are in town to enjoy some too. Not to mention, I love baking. But who needs an excuse anyways?


Mango and Blackberry Cobbler
(Recipe from Baking Bites)

16oz fresh blackberries
16-oz fresh mango, cubed
1 medium apple, thinly sliced
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk*
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon**

Preheat oven to 357F.

Combine blackberries, mango, apples, cornstarch and sugar in a large bowl. Toss well and let stand for 2-3 minutes. Pour into an 8×8-inch or 9×9-inch square baking dish.

In the same bowl you used for the fruit, combine flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla and whisk to combine. Pour batter (should be similar to cake batter) over the fruit in an even layer.

Bake at 375F for about 45 minutes, until dark golden brown. The center will spring back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted into the cake will come out clean, just like a regular cake that is done. Cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.***

Serves 6-8


*I used 2% milk, and it turned out just fine.
**My addition, because I love cinnamon.
***With vanilla ice-cream! Alone is swell as well.

Lemon-Lime Bars

I attended a farewell party for two dear friends who will be moving to Portland, Oregon. It'll be sad when they aren't around. Change is sometimes difficult, you know? I will enjoy going to visit them.

Lingfei is from China, Chris's dimpled, charming wife, and she made an authentic Chinese dinner for a dozen or so of us. Let me just say, it was a spectacular feat, complete with a half a dozen dishes or more including, fried rice, fried eggplant, wilted spinach and eggs, cashew chicken, a cabbage dish, a tomato dish, fried tofu, various vegetable dishes and meat dishes, a shrimp stir-fry, wontons, and fried bananas and apples for dessert (among others!). The theme was fried food, it seems. And MSG--about half a bagfull. I don't normally eat either of those foods, but I decided to enjoy myself, and I think we all did. She just kept dishing these things out, even after everyone was satiated. I came to the party a few hours early to help out, and it was quite a project. She was wonderfully adorable, a perfect hostess.


Bellies full, we walked home in the cold, thundering night together, me finding my way into bed around four in the morning.

I had made a dessert for the night, a little lemony treat inspired by a friend's craving a week or so back. We didn't really get to it though, not even close, so it became the dessert for our National Man Day Barbeque on June 14 the next day.


Lemon-Lime Bars
(Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens, May 2008 Issue)

2/3 c. butter
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour, divided
4 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel, divided
6 eggs
2 1/4 c. granulated sugar*
1/2 c. lemon juice
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. finely shredded lime peel
2 T. sifted powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 13x9x2-inch pan with heavy foil; set aside.

2. For crust, in large mixing bowl beat butter on medium to high 30 seconds. Add brown sugar; beat until combined. Beat in 2 cups of the flour until crumbly. Stir in 2 teaspoons of the lemon peel. Evenly press on bottom of prepared pan. Bake 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, for filling, in medium bowl combine eggs, granulated sugar, remaining 1/2 cup flour, lemon juice, baking powder, and nutmeg. Beat on medium 2 minutes. Stir in remaining lemon peel and the lime peel. Pour over hot crust. Bake 20 minutes more or until edges are browned and center appears set. Remove to racks; cool 1 hour. Refrigerate, covered, 2 hours.

4. To serve, sprinkle evenly with powdered sugar. Lift from pan using foil; cut into bars.

5. If desired, add Candied Slices (recipe follows).**

Candied Citrus Slices In large skillet combine 1/4 water and 3/4 cup sugar; bring to boiling. Add 2 lemons or 10 key limes, thinly sliced. Simmer gently, uncovered, for 1 to 2 minutes or until just softened. Transfer to rack; cool.

*Or less, depending on if you're like me who loves the sour lemony flavor.
**The candied citrus slices weren't really a hit, mostly picked around. I like them more as decoration, so it might be prudent to half or quarter the recipe. It makes too much.

Plum-Rhubarb Yogurt

Nothing quite compares to the delectable goodness of a hot rhubarb cobbler, a little vanilla ice-cream on the side. I have enjoyed pies and cobblers and crisps and bars with rhubarb since my days living in North Dakota. We've always had a patch growing at some hidden corner of our yard.

However, one thing about rhubarb, sugar makes it sweet.

I know that is kind of an obvious statement. Sugar makes anything sweeter. Now that I am more conscious (slightly overly-conscious) of the foods I eat, sugar isn't nearly as enjoyable as it once was. Nowadays I tend to avoid processed sugar where I can.

I've been toying with the concept of incorporating rhubarb into a main course, but aside from that, also turning it into a dessert that doesn't have a gallon of sugar in it.

I know this recipe needs work, but this rhubarb yogurt has potential. It reminds me a bit of those fruit-at-the-bottom yogurt cups, with the mushy, doesn't-really-resemble-food stuff that tastes surprisingly yummy. I've tried several varieties of the recipe, and I'll likely try several more, but this one has plums in it (which give it a pretty color aside fromThe texture is wanting, and it needs more flavors, but here it is:

Plum-Rhubarb Yogurt

1 c. rhubarb, sliced and diced

1/2 c. plums, cut up with peel

1 packet stevia

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. vanilla

1/2 c. non-fat plain yogurt**

1 T whipped cream (optional)***

In skillet with enough water to cover the bottom of the pan, saute rhubarb until soft and tender. Add plums to hot pan Remove from heat, stir in stevia, cinnamon, and vanilla. Chill for at least an hour. Combine rhubarb mix with yogurt. Plop a dallop of whipped cream on top, if so desired.****

Makes two servings. (Approximately 95 calories per serving with whipped cream).

*Of course I would have prefered strawberries, a perfect combination fruit, but my freezer contains a dozen pounds of Italian prunes from last year's harvest of my neighbor's trees. (Bought, not stolen).

**Maybe try it with vanilla yogurt or even strawberry, and of course it doesn't have to be fat-free.

***Honey-sweetened whipped cream is delicious. Fluffy and delicious, it's a nice touch.

****After careful evaluation, I have decided this would be improved with raisins and/or nuts.