Seasonal eating in mid April
The garden bounty is
starting to come in, which is lucky since our freezer and larder are
nearly bare. We're eating leaf lettuce every day, kale nearly
daily, shiitake mushrooms from the old logs under the fruit trees
whenever they feel like popping up, lots of chives and Egyptian onions,
and masses of eggs. Working with what's in season, I made this recipe with shiitakes and dandelion greens in place of the sweet potatoes, and it was delectable!
The new crop coming in
this week is rhubarb. I have two neglected plants...neglected
because I rarely think of eating rhubarb. The trouble is that the
sour stalks require so much sweetening, they don't push my good-for-you
buttons. Does anyone have a recipe for rhubarb that doesn't rely
on copious sweeteners? If all else fails, I'll do what I usually
do --- give the stalks to my mother or brother to bake into a pie.
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About us: Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton spent over a decade living self-sufficiently in the mountains of Virginia before moving north to start over from scratch in the foothills of Ohio. They've experimented with permaculture, no-till gardening, trailersteading, home-based microbusinesses and much more, writing about their adventures in both blogs and books.
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If you have any venison or lamb stewing meat in your freezer, what about a lamb and rhubarb persian khoresh? A savory stew using tart fruit as an integral component (sometimes quince, other times rhubarb or tart apricots.)
Rhubarb as a savory component is not uncommon around parts of the Mediterranean (particularly in the eastern areas) or in Scandinavia. Those cuisines might have some interesting options. I love Persian food though, so savory stews/braises with tart fruit would be where I would start.
My grandmother maintained a bed of rhubarb when I was a child. The only recipe I ever saw was pie.
I can't imagine eating it as a veggie.
Maybe mixed with other sweet fruits?
Good luck. Some things just need sweeting to be palatable.
Rhubarb Pickles.
2 pounds trimmed rhubarb, cut into spears or pieces sized to fit jars; 2 cups water; 2 cups apple cider vinegar; 1 tablespoon canning salt; 1/4 cup honey –or– 1/4 cup sugar; 1/2-inch piece thinly sliced, peeled ginger; 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes; 1 teaspoon whole cloves; 4 whole allspice.
Directions: Prepare rhubarb. To make brine, combine water, vinegar, salt, sugar/honey, ginger, and spices and bring to a slow boil until sugar/honey dissolves. Pack rhubarb into sterilized jars, and pour hot brine over rhubarb (bring to boiling just before pouring), leaving one-half-inch headspace. Center sterilized lids and apply bands finger tight. For crispier rhubarb pickles, allow to cool, then place in refrigerator. Otherwise, water bath process for ten minutes.
I only have two rhubarb plants, which are more than enough for me. I usually go to www dot rhubarbinfo dot com for rhubarb questions. Lots of good info there.