Pear and Rhubarb Sauce

Living alone can be challenging when it comes to cooking- what do you do with all the leftovers? I like to make meals that freeze well, so I can make a bunch and stick some in the freezer for the days I don't feel like cooking.

While it's not the greatest picture, what you see above is a jar of pear and rhubarb sauce ready to head into the freezer. With a consistency like apple sauce, this can be eaten alone or as a topping for oatmeal, etc. I created this recipe out of necessity because I had a bag of pears I was afraid would go bad before I could eat them all, and fresh picked rhubarb that needed to get used as well. Voilà!


Ingredients:
-16 ripe anjou pears, peeled, cored and chopped
-12 medium stalks rhubarb, chopped
-2 cups water
-1/4 cup lemon juice
-1/4 cup agave nectar*


Directions:
1. In a large pot, combine all ingredients. Slowly bring to a simmer.
2. Stirring occasionally, cook until pears become soft and rhubarb begins to fall apart, about 10 minutes.
3. For a chunky sauce, use a potato masher to break apart pear pieces. For a smoother sauce, use an immersion blender to purée the pears and rhubarb.



*You may want to use more agave nectar for a sweeter sauce. I like the tang of the rhubarb to stand out!

Rachel's Stuffed Mushrooms

To celebrate World Vegetarian Day today, I made these stuffed mushrooms for dinner. Yum!


Ingredients:
-6 medium portabella mushroom caps, whole
-4 medium portabella mushroom caps, chopped
-small yellow onion, minced
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-1/2 cup walnuts, crushed
-2 cups fresh baby spinach, chopped
-2 T. olive oil
-1 tsp. coarse salt
-1 T. balsamic vinegar
-1 T. parsley flakes


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Using 1 T. olive oil, coat a baking sheet with oil. Place six whole mushroom caps upside down one the baking sheet, spacing evenly.
3. In a large saucepan, heat remaining 1 T. olive oil on medium heat and add garlic and onion. Stir and sauté garlic and onions until soft.
4. Once the garlic and onions are soft, add the walnuts, spinach, chopped mushroom, salt, vinegar, and parsley flakes. Continue to cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until spinach has wilted down, about 3-5 minutes.
5. Spoon the filling evenly into the mushroom caps, pressing down lightly.
6. Place the filled mushrooms into the preheated oven and cook for 15 minutes.