Special to AOL Food From Sherri Brooks Vinton
Ahh, Springtime. The air is a little warmer, the sun shines a bit brighter and our taste buds are looking for something as peppy as our step. Pick up a few stalks of rhubarb and you'll have a delightfully
tart fruit that brings the right, bright note to your Spring dishes.
From as far back as 2700 BC, Chinese varieties of rhubarb have been appreciated for their curative properties. Indeed, rhubarb's astringent quality seems just the thing for dusting out the cobwebs
after a long winter. As one of the first foods to come off the fields each spring, this vegetable (yes, it's a vegetable not a fruit) is cherished by seasonal eaters who hail it as the kick-off to the year's growing season.
You can find fresh, crisp stalks at your farmers' market where patient growers have tended their patches for several years before being rewarded with a bountiful harvest. Rhubarb is also readily available,
in the early spring months, in the grocery store.
Look for long stalks that have a sheen and feel sturdy-they shouldn't be dull or rubbery. While rhubarb is prized for its ruby red color, which lends a pretty pink hue to your recipes, the plant can be pink or
even green. Color does not determine sweetness.
In England, rhubarb crumble is as popular as our apple pie. But you don't have to save your rhubarb for dessert-every course can benefit from the tangy zip of this easy-to-use specimen. Its flavor pairs
beautifully with rich, savory dishes such as roast meats, particularly game, making it a cozy companion to spring lamb. Its citrus-like flavor also works well with fish, as perfect a pairing as a squeeze of
lemon. Just strip the leaves, which are mildly poisonous, from the stalks, give them a quick rinse and you're ready to cook it up.
Just like those first warm breezes, the rhubarb season is fleeting so it's worth stocking up while you can. The stalks can be washed, diced, and frozen in tightly sealed plastic bags or turned into preserves so
you can enjoy rhubarb's tangy flavor whenever you like-a little zing of spring all year round.
