My house in Colorado is for sale. Several weeks ago a young couple looked at it and when they saw my rhubarb patch, one of them asked me what it was. I told them it was rhubarb. His comment was "what is rhubarb?". It wasn't until then I realized that rhubarb wasn't as well known in some parts of the country as in other parts. So I decided to post this for all of those who either don't know what it is or don't know what to do with it!


Here's what it looks like....

Basic things you should know about rhubarb:

• It's a staple in the Midwest. ;-)
• It's tart
• It's most common use is for desserts/sweets (pie, cobbler, cake, muffins, jams, sauces,etc.) See link for WAY more uses and recipes
• It's leaves are poisonous. (don't let you pets nibble on them!)

If you want to know more and want hundreds of recipes to choose from, go to 
The Rhubarb Compendium

Strawberry Rhubarb "Lemonade"

This recipe is simple and very refreshing (especially with a splash of Vodka!)

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups water
1/2 pound rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
3/4 cup sugar, or to taste
Two 3-inch strips of lemon zest removed with a vegetable peeler
plus additional for garnish
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup fresh lemon juice

Procedure:

In a saucepan stir together the water, the rhubarb, the sugar, 2 strips of the zest, and the vanilla, bring the mixture to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved, and simmer it, covered, for 8 minutes. Stir in 1 cup of the strawberries and boil the mixture, covered, for 2 minutes. Let the mixture cool and strain it through a coarse sieve set over a pitcher, pressing hard on the solids. Stir in the remaining 1 cup strawberries and the lemon juice, divide the lemonade among stemmed glasses filled with ice cubes, and garnish each glass with some of the additional zest. Makes about 7 cups, serving 6