Is it is classified as a fruit or a vegetable? Both apparently! We love this versatile wonder because it works fabulously in savoury and sweet dishes. Rhubarb is jam packed with almost half your daily requirement of vitamin K and at only 26 calories per cup, I don’t need any more convincing!
Here are a few of our favourite swiish recipes:
| Roast Rhubarb, Beetroot and Goat’s Cheese Salad (Serves 4)  |
| What you’ll need: • 4 sticks of rhubarb, cut into 2cm pieces • 4 tbsp honey • 6-8 small beetroots, unpeeled but tops trimmed • 2 tbsp olive oil • 300g baby spinach leaves • 50g walnuts, halved • 100g goat’s cheese, crumbled For the dressing: • 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar • Salt and black pepperWhat to do: 1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas. Drizzle the beetroots with the oil, then individually wrap them in tinfoil and place on a baking tray. 2. Place the tray in the oven to bake for 40-50 minutes until the beetroots are very tender. Leave to cool slightly before peeling and dicing them. 3. Meanwhile, place the rhubarb on a baking tray and drizzle with honey. 4. Toss the rhubarb in the honey and place in the oven, on another shelf, to roast for 10 minutes or until beginning to soften. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the tray. 5. To make the dressing, whisk together the oil and balsamic vinegar in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. 6. In a large serving bowl, add the spinach leaves and walnuts, drizzle with the dressing and toss together. Top with the goat’s cheese, beetroot and rhubarb and serve. *recipe courtesy of The Dining Room |
| Rhubarb and Apple Pie (serves 6) |
| What you’ll need: • 30g unsalted butter • 6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, sliced • 150g caster sugar, plus extra to sprinkle • ‘1 bunch rhubarb, washed, sliced • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon • ‘1 tbs milk • ‘Thick cream or custard, to serve For the pastry: • 300g plain flour • 150g unsalted butter, cubed • 1 eggWhat to do: 1. To make the pastry, place the flour and butter in a food processor and process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg and 1-2 tablespoons chilled water and process until it comes together to form a smooth ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. 2. Preheat oven to 180°C. 3. ‘Melt the butter in a large frying pan. Add the apples and sugar and cook for 2-3 minutes over low heat. Add the rhubarb and cinnamon and cook for a further 2-3 minutes until the fruits are just starting to soften. Transfer into a 3-litre (6-cup capacity) pie dish and set aside to cool. 4. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured work surface and cut a 1 1/2cm-wide strip of pastry. Press it around the rim of the pie dish and brush with a little water. Cover with remaining pastry, then trim the edges. (This method helps stop the pastry lid shrinking.) Pinch the pastry together to seal, brush with milk and scatter with the extra caster sugar. 5. ‘Bake the pie for 35-40 minutes until the pastry is golden. Serve hot or warm with thick cream or custard. *recipe courtesy of taste.com.au |
| Rhubarb and Tequila Cocktail (serves 1)  |
| What you’ll need: • 2kg of fresh or frozen rhubarb, cut into pieces • 1 1/3 cups of superfine sugar (you can make your own by blitzing granulated sugar until finely ground but not powdery) • 2 cups of orange juice (from about 8 oranges) For the cocktail: • 1/3 cup of Rhubarb Syrup • 1 thin slice of orange • Superfine sugar (you can make your own by blitzing granulated sugar until finely ground but not powdery) • ¼ cup of tequilaWhat to do: Make the rhubarb syrup 1. Place the rhubarb and sugar in a deep-sided pot over medium heat and bring to a very gentle boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the mixture ever so gently for about 50 minutes. The rhubarb will exude its juices and although some of them will evaporate, you don’t want the juice to evaporate completely. 2. Add the orange juice and simmer gently for 10 more minutes. Strain the juice through a fine sieve. (It may seem more of a syrup than a juice, and you may need to press on the solids with the back of a spoon to release the moisture. This is okay.) 3. Return the strained juice to the pot, bring to a gentle boil, and cook for about 20 minutes, until it has reduced to a light syrup. Measure the syrup. You should have about 4 cups. If necessary, continue to cook over medium heat until it reduces. Let cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours and up to 1 month. Make the cocktail 1. Wet the rim or edge of a glass with a little Rhubarb Syrup or swipe it with a slice of orange. Then dip the rim or roll the edge in a shallow dish of superfine sugar. Stash the glass in the freezer for as long as you can so it gets at least a little frosty. 2. In another glass or a cocktail shaker, mix together the rhubarb syrup and the tequila. 3. Fill the sugar-rimmed glass with ice, pour in the cocktail, and drop the orange slice on top. You know what to do from here. swiish tip: If making the rhubarb syrup from scratch seems way too hard (we get it, you’re thirsty!) then we love Morris Kitchen Rhubarb Syrup, which you can buy online from Bottega Del Vino YAY! *recipe adapted from Leite’s Culinaria |
