Rhubarb is a curious plant. It is classified as a vegetable, but it eats like a fruit.
Its edible stalks are full of vitamins, minerals and fiber, but its leaves are full of oxalic acid, making them poisonous. Our favorite fact about rhubarb (besides how fun it is to spell) is that it signifies the beginning of the Spring produce season!
$ / Take what you need; pay what you can.
Rhubarb Treats
This isn’t quite ready for sale, but we’d be happy to reserve some of the very first crop for you. Let us know what you’re interested in, and we’ll let you know when the harvest is ripe.
About Our Rhubarb
Our rhubarb plot has a variety of varieties. Some of the parent plants were here when we moved to our acreage over 30 years ago. Some we brought with us from our house in town, and some were collected from “back home” before our parents left the farmhouses we grew up in.
This range of varieties produces a beautiful rainbow of thin, thick, red, pink and green stalks. All equally tart and yummy.
Rhubarb Stalks vs. Rhubarb Leaves
Rhubarb stalks, which look and feel sort of like celery stalks, have a very sour, tart taste. The stalks are said to contain healthy amounts of several vitamins and minerals, including vitamins K and C, as well as fiber and antioxidants.
However, the leaves of the rhubarb plant are high in oxalic acid and should not be eaten!
How to Enjoy Your Rhubarb
In our house, Spring means rhubarb! Here are some of our favorite ways to use rhubarb.
- Rhubarb leaves cannot be eaten, but they make an effective weed barrier when placed between garden rows.
- For a dessert in a flash, cook up some rhubarb sauce and serve over crumbled biscuits and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
- Strawberry-rhubarb jam is another easy to make treat that pairs nicely with our breakfast-in-a-mug recipe!
- For another easy dessert, dip your rhubarb stalks in white chocolate chips or baking squares gently melted in a saucepan or your microwave. Place on a sheet of waxed paper and sprinkle with cinnamon for a sweet-tart snack.
- Candied rhubarb curls are a bit more complicated to make, but so festive when sprinkled on top of pudding or cake.
- If you can’t wait to taste Spring, simply dip your stalk of rhubarb straight into your sugar bowl and crunch away!