Rhubarb: Old Favourite's Comeback

May 15 2009 by Sadie Parker, The Journal

landscape: clare winfield, rhubarb

I WAS stuck for ages when I heard that this week's in season ingredient was going to be rhubarb. I have to admit that apart from the occasional yoghurt, it's been years since I last ate it and even then it was only in a traditional crumble with lashings of custard.

However, when I started to look at rhubarb recipes, it looks as if the vegetable (apparently not a fruit as you only eat the stem) is making a comeback.

From smoothies to soup, bread and salad, rhubarb is proving to be a mightily adaptable ingredient, which is handy as I've heard it's easy to grow and takes not much looking after.

Originating from Siberia, rhubarb is a hardy plant and can withstand the harsh winter frosts. It is usually ready to eat around this time of year if not a little earlier. You would normally grow it outdoors, but forced rhubarb, a technique discovered accidentally in the early 19th Century, produces a much sweeter variety.

It's easy to try the forced rhubarb process at home – all you need is a container, such as a dustbin with a lid or a box, that keeps the light out. Start to grow the plant and as soon as its shows signs of life, cover it up.

The heat and lack of light forces the rhubarb to grow quicker than it does outdoors. Once you have picked your crop, remove the lid to allow the plant to recover for the following year.

At Gibside at Rowlands Gill, catering supervisor Sharon Dews gets her rhubarb from the estate’s walled garden when it's available, otherwise it is bought in from North Country Organics. This week she has given me a gluten-free recipe to mark Coeliac Awareness Week (May 11-17). Coeliac is a serious and lifelong condition triggered by eating gluten found in wheat, rye and barley.

The only treatment is to keep gluten out of your diet, but that isn't always easy.

A close friend of mine is intolerant to wheat and she finds that her menu options are very limited when dining out. For those with Coeliac disease, it must be much harder.

Sharon's recipe is for gluten-free, seasonal fruit muffins which are served in the tea room at Gibside. You could use any fruit but as rhubarb is in season at the moment, we're going to use that.

FOOD FACT OF THE FORTNIGHT

The leaves of rhubarb plants contain a poisonous acid, so steer clear of eating these.