An Excess Of Rhubarb

We’ve had more rain, plus lots of lightning and thunder, but no hail (knock on wood). With these last storms there have been some power outages, so I’m grateful for our generator. The extra wetness has made weeding easier. I’ve had plenty of grass clippings to put between the garden rows, so I don’t get too muddy doing the weeding. I was even able to dig out a lot of the volunteer grass alongside the walkway between the house and garage. I do hate spraying chemicals around.

The garden has reached that stage of development where less weeding will be required. There will be more reaping the rewards of my earlier toil. Currently most of the reaping is in the form of salad makings. For variety, here’s another dressing recipe. This one is compliant with my Whole Life Challenge. I’m into the summer session. I took this one to the American Legion Fourth of July picnic in Opheim, and was asked to share.

Sugar-free

Balsamic Salad Dressing

1/3 C balsamic vinegar

2/3 C EVOO

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

3 Tbl equivalent of Stevia

1 tsp Dijon mustard

Salt & pepper to taste

Optional: 1 tsp honey

Optional: 1 tsp fresh chives (or herb of choice)

Whisk all ingredients together. Refrigerate. Let warm a bit when serving.

I added in both options since I have lots of chives. I’d recently bought a pair of herb scissors at the Red Barn, so chopping chives is now a breeze. I’d wanted one of those for some time, and my hints about it fell on deaf ears so I treated myself.

I’m also going on a fresh rhubarb binge. I think rhubarb is better in the spring and early summer, so these may be a bit late in the season for you. Save these recipes for next spring, or try them with frozen rhubarb. Just be aware that frozen rhubarb yields a wetter result.

Rhubarb/Oatmeal/ White Chocolate Cookies

1/2 C butter

3/4 C brown sugar

1/2 C white sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1 3/4 C flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp soda

1 tsp salt

3 C old-fashioned oatmeal

3 C rhubarb, chopped fine

1 C white chocolate chips

3/4 C walnuts, chopped (optional)

Heat oven to 375°. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. Beat butter and sugars together until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and blend in. Whisk together the flour through salt and blend into the butter/egg mix. Add in oatmeal, rhubarb, and chips. Blend. Drop by tablespoons onto paper. Bake 9-12 minutes. Cool on sheet a couple minutes, then fully on racks.

I made these cookies to meet my dietary restrictions for the WLC. Instead of brown sugar I used coconut palm sugar, and erythritol instead of white sugar. Almond flour was used instead of regular white flour. I didn’t have anything to sub for the white chocolate, so I’m just enjoying that little bit of forbidden sugar in my two-cookie limit.

These next two recipes are unusual ones for rhubarb. The chutney is good as is, although it was recommended to go with Brie or grilled pork. I think it will also pair nicely with chicken. I did cut the recipe in half as I still can’t get Dennis to give rhubarb a whirl. Again, I subbed coconut palm sugar for the brown sugar. (I think the word rhubarb throws a lot of people. When I was little, I wouldn’t even try squash because the word was weird. And cheeses were out since someone told me it was moldy milk! I’m glad my taste buds matured.)

Rhubarb Chutney

2/3 C cider vinegar

1 1/2 C packed brown sugar

8 C rhubarb, in 1/2” pieces

1 C golden raisins

1/4 C peeled, chopped fresh ginger

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 tsp salt

12 peppercorns

Bring vinegar to a boil in a large dutch oven (NOT aluminum). Add rest of the ingredients and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until rhubarb is tender and the mix thickens, 6-8 minutes. Cool completely. Store in a glass jar in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before serving. Makes 5 1/2 cups.

I copied and saved this last recipe a few years ago, but hadn’t made it until last week. I’d pulled too much rhubarb and didn’t want to make the Polish rhubarb drink again. This recipe popped up as I searched my recipe tin for other ideas. It has a bit of a bite, which you could either intensify or moderate by adjusting the amount of cayenne you add. This recipe came from foodandwine.com.

Rhubarb Ketchup

2 lbs. rhubarb, cut in 2” pieces

1/3 C ruby port

1/4 C red wine vinegar

1 C sugar

Zest of 1 orange, peeled in wide strips

Salt

Cayenne pepper

In a medium saucepan, bring rhubarb, port, vinegar, sugar, and zest to a boil. Remove from heat and let steep 30 minutes. Cover and simmer over moderately low heat, stirring often, until rhubarb is tender, about 5 minutes. Discard zest. Purée and season with salt and cayenne.

Serve with pork or veal chops, chicken, onion rings, or bratwurst.

I didn’t have any port, so I mixed some leftover wine with red cooking wine. Again, I subbed in a sugar substitute rather than the real thing. I nibbled on some of the zest as I removed it - after all, people eat marmalade, don’t they? Also, when doing the simmering after letting it steep, I brought it almost back to boiling before simmering. And I let it simmer about 10 minutes because I got distracted. That happens too easily.