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Savoring Rhubarb

June 1st, 2015

It’s rhubarb season here in Maine and probably in other parts of the country as well. Rhubarb is one of those vegetables that people seem to love or hate. I happen to love it, the tart/sweet taste, the pink color, the interesting flavor, the plants; I love everything about it.
rhubarb
I have a few rhubarb plants in the garden, two different varieties. I’d love to get a few more as well to compare the plants and the flavors.
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Since it’s rhubarb season I’ve been making all things rhubarb to make the most of this lovely vegetable. I’ve made: rhubarb ketchup (which is fantastic on meatloaf), rhubarb BBQ sauce, rhubarb/apple jam, shrub, syrup, and I’m going to make pickled rhubarb and a few more this week.
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The rhubarb shrub I made is so pretty and it’s really refreshing. I’ve been mixing it with sparkling water for a refreshing afternoon drink. You can find the recipe over on Serious Eats. I’ll definitely be making a few more batches of this!
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Last Wednesday I loaded up a big batch of rhubarb, a few cooking ingredients, and headed over to a friend’s house. We spent the morning making all sorts of delicious things featuring rhubarb. It’s always fun to spend your time preserving with a friend. Not only do you get to chat while you work, you don’t end up with mass quantities of everything. I love only having one or two jars of each thing in the pantry, there are only two of us after all.
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The rhubarb BBQ is FANTASTIC. I love that it doesn’t have any ketchup in it, which is perfect for any of you that can’t tolerate nightshade plants. The flavor is amazing and I can only imagine it will get better and better as it ages. I’m definitely making another batch of this delicious goodness!
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This year I also started some seed for perpetual rhubarb, which allows for harvesting all summer long. The plants are just tiny seedlings right now, I’ll keep you posted on how they do throughout the summer and next year. I would love to have a little bit of rhubarb all summer long instead of just one big glut in the spring.

Rhubarb, do you love it or hate it? What’s your favorite way to enjoy it?

10 Comments to “Savoring Rhubarb”
  1. JS on June 1, 2015 at 7:01 am

    my favorite way to enjoy it is with a friend. I love everything rhubarb!

    Reply to JS's comment

  2. Sofie Dittmann on June 1, 2015 at 7:48 am

    German rhubarb cheesecake. Is all I’m sayin’. :)

    Reply to Sofie Dittmann's comment

  3. kristin @ going country on June 1, 2015 at 8:27 am

    Lovelovelove. My sons eat it raw, though I don’t go that far. I always freeze big bags of it for making strawberry/rhubarb jam when the strawberries are ready, because I don’t like the one-dimensional sweetness of plain strawberry jam.

    Favorite rhubarb recipe is from an old Time Life cookbook of the MiL’s. It’s a Pennsylvania Dutch recipe for Rhubarb Pudding. The diced rhubarb is mixed with sugar and eggs, then topped with a brown sugar strudel and baked. It’s really sweet, which makes it perfect to eat with plain yogurt. I can eat a really alarming quantity of it.

    Reply to kristin @ going country's comment

    • Susy on June 1, 2015 at 10:31 am

      Sounds delicious!

      Reply to Susy's comment

  4. Joan on June 1, 2015 at 3:50 pm

    I love rhubarb crisp… Or strawberry rhubarb crisp. Actually, any crisp – apple, blueberry, you name it! Yum…

    Reply to Joan's comment

  5. Vera on June 1, 2015 at 6:47 pm

    Never liked Strawberries with my Rhubarb. Always made a Plain Rhubarb Pie until a local “Old Timer” talked about his Mother’s Orange Rhubarb Pie. Tried it. Love It! Now I always pair the two fruits. Pie, Crisp, Topping for yogurt, Ice Cream, etc. I am intrigued by the BBQ sauce. Will have to try something new!

    Reply to Vera's comment

  6. Sarah on June 2, 2015 at 11:38 am

    I love rhubarb! Unfortunately it can’t survive our summers here, boo.

    Reply to Sarah's comment

  7. Nebraska Dave on June 2, 2015 at 1:05 pm

    Susy, you have some very interesting recipes for rhubarb. Never thought I would ever hear rhubarb and BBQ in the same sentence. I am a hater of rhubarb. I don’t ever remember Mom making anything with rhubarb. We didn’t really have asparagus either. It is a bit strange because almost every Midwest farm has a patch of rhubarb and an asparagus patch. Long after the homestead has been abandoned, the rhubarb, asparagus, and old orchard fruit trees remain as a reminder that the falling down buildings once was a thriving family. Sad to see so many farm places in ruins with the migration to larger farms.

    Have a great rhubarb BBQ recipe day.

    Reply to Nebraska Dave's comment

  8. Kate/Massachusetts on June 2, 2015 at 9:03 pm

    Simmer rhubarb and blueberries together with a bit of brown sugar to taste and a squeeze of lemon. It makes a nice fruit sauce for breakfast things (like drizzled on oatmeal or mixed into yogurt or over waffles).

    Reply to Kate/Massachusetts's comment

  9. Kristen on June 3, 2015 at 11:49 am

    The older I get it seems the more I like rhubarb. I am partway through making batches or rhubarb jelly. The jelly that doesn’t set up makes a great basis for homemade BBQ sauce. I also enjoy rhubarb crisp and rhubarb coffee cake. One of my favorite recipes is the blueberry rhubarb lime jam on the blog laundry etc.

    Reply to Kristen's comment

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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