Strawberry Rhubarb Jam

I came across this jam recipe on facebook the other day and thought I just had to try it, seeing as I had all the ingredients at the time and I love using chia seeds!  Well, it was the easiest and quickest jam I've ever made and it is also healthy and delicious, so I'm sharing it with you here.

Thank you, to thankfulexpressions.blogspot.com :)  I am so impressed with this jam that I may just be making all my own fruit jams from now on!

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam

Ingredients

1-1/3 cup strawberries
2/3 cup rhubarb - cut into small pieces
2 tbsp raw honey (or to taste)
2 tbsp chia seeds


Process all the ingredients in a blender (I used my food processor for this).

Refrigerate overnight, or at least a couple of hours.  The chia seeds will gel, thickening the fruit puree.

Add additional diced fruit if you like it chunky.

Enjoy!  We certainly did in our house!

Caryl ♥

Strawberry Rhubarb Gelato

With the very hot few days we've been having and loads of fresh fruit around the house, I decided to make a fruity ice-cream dessert.  I don't have an ice-cream maker, but I figured I could still freeze my concoction and it would still turn out ok. ...... I still wanted something quite healthy and light, so didn't use cream or eggs and it turned out like a refreshing gelato.

Oh and another wonderful thing about this delicious treat is that it is lactose free, perfect for anyone with lactose intolerance! :)

Strawberry Rhubarb Gelato

Ingredients

1 cup (approx) fresh strawberries
1 bunch (approx) fresh rhubarb stalks - cut into small pieces
2 x 400g cans coconut milk
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp water


Place rhubarb, sugar and water into a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until just tender. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.

Put the strawberries, rhubarb mixture and coconut milk into a blender. Blend until smooth.

Pour the mixture into a container and place in the freezer for approx 3 hours, or until it starts to freeze.

Transfer mixture back to a blender. Blend again, then pour mixture back into a container and refreeze overnight.

To allow it to soften, take out of the freezer a good 20-30 mins before serving.

Enjoy!

Caryl ♥

Spaghetti with Rhubarb and Fresh Dill

This is another savoury recipe with rhubarb that turned out to be one of the best pasta dishes I've ever tasted ..... and no, I'm not pregnant, which is what most people asked me when I made it! :)

Spaghetti with Rhubarb and Fresh Dill

Ingredients

1 bunch of rhubarb
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 tbs evaporated milk
1 tbs creme fraiche
1 leek - thinly sliced
125g butter (I have to think about how to reduce this amount)
3 tbs pine-nuts - roughly chopped
3 tbs sultanas, soaked in warm water 10 minutes, then drained
2 small bunches fresh dill - finely chopped


Please note:

1. It would probably be easier to replace the evaporated milk and creme fraiche with single cream instead .... I just used what was in the fridge!
2. The amount of butter is rather a lot, so I will think about what to do to reduce this!

Cut each rhubarb stalk crosswise into 3 pieces, then thinly slice lengthwise. In a large saucepan, combine wine, evaporated milk, creme fraiche, leeks and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes. Add rhubarb and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb is soft. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine butter, pine nuts and sultanas. Cook over medium heat until butter is melted and the flavours have combined, about 2 minutes. Stir in dill and cook a few minutes more. Remove from heat.

Cook pasta in boiling water until tender. Reserving 1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid, drain pasta. Mix pasta with the cooking liquid, pine nut mixture and rhubarb mixture.

Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Caryl ♥

Rhubarb with Chicken Thighs

Members of my family have mixed feelings about rhubarb.  I quite like it but wanted to try something different, for a change from the traditional sweet desserts that everyone seems to associate with rhubarb.    This chicken recipe was a real hit with everyone.  Unfortunately, it was eaten too quickly to get any photos, but will add one next time I make it! :)


Ingredients

8 x chicken thighs
Olive oil
1 bunch spring onions
2 tbs fresh ginger - grated
1 tsp ground cardamom (I could only get the pods, so opened them up and ground the seeds with a mortar and pestle)
1/2 cup sherry
1 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup honey
Juice from one orange
3-4 sticks rhubarb - diced into small chunks


Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.

Heat a little olive oil in an ovenproof pan.  Place the chicken thighs in the pan and cook until golden, then turn over and cook the other side.  Transfer the thighs to a plate.

Add the spring onions, ginger and cardamom to the pan.  Season to taste.  Saute until the spring onions start to soften.  Pour in the sherry and scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan.  Cook for a few minutes, then add the stock, honey and orange juice.  Stir to combine.  Return the chicken pieces (and any juices) to the pan, turn the chicken to coat, and bring mixture to a boil.

Cover the pan with a lid and place it in the oven and cook for approx. 20 minutes.  Remove from the oven, scatter the rhubarb pieces between and around the chicken, then return the pan to the oven for another 15 minutes.

I served this with brown rice and steamed broccoli.

Enjoy!

Caryl ♥