Two recipes to share

I can't take credit for either of these recipes but I have to share them because they are simply so darn good.

The first one came to me from my friend Nicole who posted it. I tried it and Ian went nuts, literally for them. Now usually I shy away from things that try to be glutton free because I often find the substitute ingredient more offensive than just using flour, but in this case it totally works and makes for an enjoyable cookie experience.

http://eatthecookie.wordpress.com/2010/02/20/almond-butter-chocolate-chip-cookies/

Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
(adapted from clean eating magazine)

1 cup almond butter (go to Costco and you can get a giant jar for a very reasonable price)

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 large egg

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds

method:

preheat oven to 350f. line baking sheets with either parchment paper or silpat. racks should be in center of oven.

in medium bowl, stir together the first 5 ingredients until blended. stir in chocolate and almonds.

drop dough by rounded tablespoons, a few inches apart. do not squish these down. they will spread slightly.

bake for 10-12 minutes, until lightly browned.

let them cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet to set up, then transfer to cooling racks.

Now this second recipe is also crazy good, like I mean crazy. I couldn't stop eating it and just thinking about it makes me want to go make more. This is from a blog that I read by Molly Wizenberg who is a Seattle food blogger who just published her first book A Homemade Life and she is co-owner of Delancey which I haven't been to yet but I've heard makes incredible pizza. She has great recipe ideas and I highly recommend reading her blog.

http://orangette.blogspot.com

Roasted Rhubarb
Inspired by Canal House Cooking, Volume 3

2 lb. rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 3-inch lengths
½ cup sugar
½ cup crisp white wine
1 vanilla bean, split

Set a rack in the lower third of the oven, and preheat the oven to 350°F.

Put the rhubarb in a Dutch oven or other deep oven-safe pot. Add the sugar, wine, and vanilla bean, and stir to mix. Bake (uncovered) for about 30 minutes, or until very tender, giving the pot a gentle stir about midway through to ensure that the rhubarb cooks evenly.

Note: I like to eat this cold, though I imagine you could also serve it warm.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings, depending on how greedy you are.

I used Red Rooster 2009 Voigner because that's what we had open in the fridge at the time but it worked beautifully. I also didn't have a vanilla bean so I used some vanilla sugar that I had made from another left over vanilla bean and a splash of Watkins Double Strength Vanilla. I also varied the size of the pieces of rhubarb so some of them dissolved into the sauce and others stayed firmer. I started eating it straight out of the pot when it came out of the oven but we had it for dessert with ice cream and ginger snaps that night. I also had it on plain yogurt the next morning with granola. I'm contemplating make more and taking the juice and reducing it down into a syrup. Right now rhubarb is in season and you can likely get a bunch at your local farmers market.

Sorry I didn't take any photos, it was all eaten so quickly :)