Strawberry, Rhubarb & Frozen Banana Dessert + Dinners in Review

I've been waiting patiently for local organic rhubarb to come onto the scene here, and this past week, I finally got my wish. (The strawberries are still from California, but it shouldn't be too much longer!) I tossed ideas around for a couple days about what to do with the rhubarb...I was tempted to do something savory, but ended up with the simple combo of  rhubarb compote, frozen bananas, and fresh strawberries.

Photo-wise, I was disappointed in that the rhubarb did not appear prominent, but there are much bigger problems in the world than that! Originally, I meant to fold the rhubarb into the frozen banana, but I forgot, so I placed it underneath instead.

I stewed the rhubarb with a small amount of water and agave to taste...roughly 2 tablespoons agave to 6 stalks of rhubarb...it came out fairly tart. Separately,  I blended 4 large frozen bananas, 3 pitted dates, and  ~ 1/2 cup oat milk in my food processor until it was smooth ( I think you can see where I dipped my finger in for a taste :) :

  

Then spooned the frozen mixture into open-ended molds and popped them  into the freezer to set up:

I let it set for only 20 minutes or so; I didn't want it to freeze through and start to turn icy. Incidentally, this probably wasn't the best way to mold up frozen things because de-molding is a little tricky...I think there exist plastic molds designed for frozen desserts that you simply pull away from the frozen stuff once it's set. In this case, I  got the molds off by wrapping a hot cloth around each mold for about 30 - 40 seconds and they slid right off without hassle.

I sat the frozen banana on a bed of rhubarb compote and then came the fun part of decorating it.  The result was fresh-tasting, not too sweet, and full of fruity and rhubarby flavor and textures.

 

 
I'm not exactly prolific when it comes to blogging--I'm a sporadic blogger at best,  but this week I did manage to snap some pics of our dinners, and here's a little review.

Monday: BBQ tofu with baked yam, baked potato, and red chard. It was a feast!

Tuesday: Vegetable soup... I used veggies that I have around most of the time: green cabbage, potato, carrot, celery, parsley, leek, garlic, and some garbanzo and kidney beans.

Wednesday: Pasta! This is one of my favorite quick meals: Saute cherry tomatoes with  slivered garlic and a pinch of red pepper flakes until the tomatoes start to "pop" from the heat, then deglaze the pan with plenty of white wine, add some reserved pasta water and salt and pepper to taste, toss with spinach pasta and top with fresh parsley. Simple and flavorful.

Pho Thursday: Vegan Phở. I've never had the traditional kind, but when I saw  Naomi Rose of  The Gluttonous Vegan Loves You post this recipe, I was literally salivating, so I had to try it. I followed the recipe to the 't', except that I added the miso at the end of cooking, and I didn't have any cinnamon stick on hand so subbed some red chilis and ginger instead for the spice sachet:

And GV is right, the house does smell heavenly while this is simmering. My pic doesn't do it justice...definitely check out the original...this was aromatic, noodley, very satisfying to taste and fun to make....easily this week's favorite meal in our house. Thanks Naomi Rose!

I'll sign off with some of my happy little viola and pansy friends...they always make me feel brighter when I look at them: