Rhubarb...a food that is filled with memories!

If there were a food that I think most people have a vision or feeling linked to it would be Rhubarb.  Most people when you have something with Rhubarb in it, they tell a story, whether it be picking it as a kid at their grandparent's house or a favorite recipe your mom would make with it.  My husband loves rhubarb, whenever we go to visit his parents, he wants to bring a bunch home and he picks a stalk right from the patch and eats it.  For me, I remember as a kid having a large patch of rhubarb behind the garage and we'd pick it, take a big bite of it and make "pucker" faces.  For my husband, it is his dad's first log cabin, in front of the concrete wall, there was a big patch of rhubarb that was super sour.  He remembers as a kid standing there eating pieces of it, just thinking about it makes his cheeks pucker.   Since we bought our house a couple years ago, we've been trying to get a rhubarb patch going, so far we've been unsuccessful.  We're going to keep trying though so that we can have our own rhubarb and hopefully someday our family will have the same memories we do of rhubarb.  

On our quick vacation, to Fort Kent this week, I picked a large bag of Rhubarb to bring home.  Some classic rhubarb recipes to share and make memories with your family.  

Rhubarb Sauce

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

6 c sliced fresh rhubarb (2 lbs if you have a kitchen scale)

3 drops red food coloring

In a large saucepan stir together sugar and water.  Heat to boiling stage and add rhubarb.  Return to a boil, reduce heat to low.  Simmer, covered for 6-8 minutes until rhubarb is tender.  Remove from heat.  Stir in food coloring.  

Ladle hot sauce into hot, sterilized half-pint canning jars, leaving a 1/2 inch head space.  Wipe jar rims and adjust lids. Process in boiling water canner for 5 minutes (start timing when water returns to a boil).  Remove from canner and cool on wire rack.  

Serving Suggestion: 

Layer 3 small pieces of angel food cake in a dessert bowl.  

Spread a row of strawberries in sugar at and angle across the top.  

Making an "X", spread a layer of rhubarb sauce on top.  

Add a dollop of Cool Whip and a chunk of chocolate.  Pure deliciousness!

Other serving ideas: 

Great Served over vanilla ice cream, fresh angel food cake or if you're a chocolate fan...it's even good over a warm brownie with vanilla ice cream.  

Rhubarb Jam

4 1/2 cups prepared rhubarb (about 2 1/2 lbs fresh)

1 cup water

1 box Sure Jell pectin

1/2 tsp butter

6 cups sugar (separate bowl) 

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Smidge of ground clove

4 drops food coloring

Finely chop rhubarb, add to a stockpot with water.  Bring to a boil on high heat and then reduce to medium, cook until rhubarb is tender, approx 2 mins.  Add pectin and butter (to reduce foam), put back on high, stir constantly until it comes to a full boil (bubbles and doesn't stop when stirred).  Stir in sugar, cinnamon and clove and bring back to a full boil, stirring constantly.  Boil for 1 minute.  Remove from heat and skim foam from top with a metal spoon.  

Ladle immediately into approx 9 half pint jars.  Leaving 1/8 inch headspace.  Wipe jar rims and sides, cover with two piece lids and screw tightly.  Process in boiling canner for 10 minutes.  Remove from canner and cool.  

Enjoy on your favorite toasted bread, bagel or even as a peanut butter sandwich.