Roller Derby Snacks with Style

Roller derby is a vigorous spectator sport, calling for sustenance to sustain the raucous cheering, clapping and sign-waving involved in being a worthy crowd. Enter the Penny Roller, the Peninsula Roller Girls peripatetic purveyor of snacks.

Roaming the throngs of beer and soda drinkers, she offers the perfect salty or sweet compliments at only a dollar a serving. Like McDonald's at the Olympic Village, this fare is not meant as fuel for the athletes, but treats for the loyal supporters of our homegrown team.

A Melon Named Charlene

Two reasons (among so many) to love your local farmer's market:
1. Really ripe, just-picked produce

2. Varieties of fruits and veggies you've never heard of before

After weeks of picking up cantaloupes in the grocery store, and being disappointed that they'd come off the vine so early the stem spots were still hard and no real aroma came off them, I was delighted to find a small, yellow-orange melon at my local farmers' market. I picked it up and the sweet smell leaped towards me. The sign by it read "Charlene." Never heard of that type before, but how can I resist a melon that self-advertises so vigorously?

Charlene was delicious - delicate and a little flowery in flavor. And she told me a joke, too:
Did you hear about the family with the sad puppy? It was a Melon Collie.
(Really, don't blame me for that one. Terrible puns are Charlene's only natural defense system.)

PB Chocolate Chip Cookies, Take 2

Batch 2 in front of Batch 1

Batch 2 of the garbanzo bean-based peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies came out really well! This time we followed Texanerin's recipe, but with three modifications.

First, we upped the peanut butter to almost half a cup.
Second, we used a little gluten-free flour (1/8 cup coconut flour and 1/4 cup almond flour) to make them a little more cakey and a little less doughy. Even that small amount stiffened the batter up enough that the food processor strained to mix it.
So we added a 1/4 cup of water, which took care of that issue.

Overall, I preferred the flavor and texture of this batch to the first. (As a side benefit, the dough was also less sticky, easy to scoop and drop onto the cookie sheet.) My co-conspirator and fellow taster, however, preferred the first batch.

Next time, we'll skip the coconut flour and halve the water. But for now, I'm delighted.

Gluten-free PB and Chocolate Cookies, Take 1

Cookies make with a garbanzo bean base, and no flour?

My first batch - not so pretty, but just as tasty

Once again, Pinterest proves the power of the picture. If I hadn't seen the luscious-looking photo of gluten-free peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies there, I wouldn't have given the recipe a fair chance.  But I tracked back to the source, Texanerin Baking, and found not just instructions but also her notes and more yummy photos.

If you like your cookies to stay malleable and more 'doughy' when they've cooled, this recipe may meet all your needs. For me, next time I plan to up the peanut butter slightly, and add a little brown rice flour, to compensate for  the increased oil and also give them a slightly more 'cakey' feel.

But don't take my propensity to tinker as criticism - these are tasty treats that seem pretty healthy. (When I report on Take 2, I'll add my estimates for calories, fat, protein, sugar, and carbs.) Try 'em!