Rhubarb, like you may not know it. A silky flavor-packed cool sweet essence of rhubarb, that stalky fruit we love so well in pie. But this jelly will give that pie a run for its money. And oh, the color! It is a guava pink that fairly sings of coming spring. For though the calendar says we’re two weeks past the Equinox, the weather is just beginning to get with the program. The treacherous six-inch deep ice pack on the northern side of the house has, finally, succumbed: there must be hope.
It is April, Eliot’s cruellest month, and the landscape is indeed barren, stirring dull roots with spring rain. Devoid of its snow blanket, the earth seems suddenly naked after such a long, deep winter, surprised to be uncovered and seemingly unready for anything like spring fever. The snowdrops are just now showing their heads.
But from the far coast of Oregon these first spring stalks of organic rhubarb are arriving, vibrant red and green and offering up copious aromatic juice for a simple three-ingredient jelly. Another six weeks and we’ll see some locally, and early strawberries too…
The bright pastel pairing of the Meyer lemon rosemary with the rhubarb is irresistible, Easter egg colors aglow. The two flavors could be layered for a lovely, complex, sweet-tart melding.
Try rhubarb solo on a warm buttered scone, with a wedge of Stilton or Rocquefort, and for a bright brush of color and flavor on your holiday table. A little sweet, a little sour, it is everything we love about rhubarb, xo