Rhubarb Round-Up

Last weekend I bought my first bunch of rhubarb at the farmers’ market. Long green stems with the perfect splash of ruby. Rhubarb that said “So what if the weather is cold and wet. Let’s have dessert!” Out comes the brown sugar. Out comes the oatmeal. Ladies and gentleman…it’s rhubarb season.

Did you know I think we have more rhubarb recipes on Minnesota Locavore than any other ingredient? Every year I get dragged down by the long winter and the lack of green stuff around this place. Then sometime around mid-May rhubarb shows up and I go absolutely nuts. FINALLY…a fresh fruit/vegetable. (We wont get into whether rhubarb is a fruit or a vegetable. The kitchen partner and I have been back and forth about that for years!!)

A few weeks after it appears, we stop buying it by the bunch and start harvesting it from my parents’ backyard by the grocery bag full. I make dessert after dessert, then start trying weird stuff with it. Cocktails. Pasta sauce. Ketchup. Rhubarb and goat cheese pizza. The crazier rhubarb recipe the better as far as I’m concerned.

Today I’m giving you a just-in-time recap of all the rhubarb recipes we have here, as well as some links to a few of my favorites from my fellow Minnesota food bloggers. The weather is perfect for rhubarb and the best harvests are slated for the next few weeks.

And if you’re looking for some extra-special rhubarb fun, head to Lanesboro–the Rhubarb Capitol of Minnesota–for their Annual Rhubarb Festival this Saturday. There’s even a rhubarb fashion show. What could possibly say “Hello Spring!” more than that!?!