When I was a child I fondly remember this tart vegetable disguising itself as a dessert. I remember being shown it growing in a neighbour's garden and being encouraged to eat a bit raw. There's something so distinctive about how your face scrunches up with acidic foods - not just rhubarb but also its sour mates lemons, grapefruit, gooseberries and blackberries.
There's a reason we pucker up, and it's down to this sour acridness, often indicating that it is high in vitamin C and antioxidants. Which, as an adult, is a thing to celebrate, and rhubarb something we should eat more of.
Many New Zealand gardens feature rhubarb, and jams are the perfect way to use up a lot of this glut at once. However, to combat the concern of high sugar content, I've created a low-sugar rhubarb compote by adding a bit of sweetness from an orange and gentle spices - a perfect match.
Compotes are generally a very low-sugared preserve, however the lower quantities of sugar (which acts as a preservative) mean they cannot be stored like a jar of jam. So be sure you keep this in the fridge - it will be eaten in no time, on your morning granola or Weetbix, or atop yoghurt or ice cream as an evening treat.
Get creative and swirl it through a cheesecake mixture or homemade ice cream. Add a heaped teaspoon to the middle of muffins just before baking, or gently fold through your favourite cake batter. Use at the base of steamed puddings or as the filler in a layered sponge, as a wintry Eton Mess, with scones and cream, or perfect the art of classic rice pudding using the recipe below.
Baked rhubarb & orange compote
Makes approx. 700ml
450-500g rhubarb
1 large orange, zest and juice
60g raw granulated sugar, or coconut sugar
6 green cardamom pods, gently crushed, seeds removed
15g ginger knob, sliced
1. Preheat the oven to 200C/190C (fan).
2. Wash and chop the rhubarb into 2cm pieces. Line a large tray with baking paper and spread the rhubarb out to cover the bottom in one layer. Zest over the orange peel and squeeze over the juice. Sprinkle the raw sugar over, covering evenly, and dot around the cardamom pods and slices of ginger.
3. Place in the middle of the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the juices start to run and the rhubarb is soft to the touch. Remove from the oven and allow to completely cool before transferring to a container. It will keep in the fridge for 8-10 days.
Perfect rice pudding
Serves 4
900ml full-fat milk
2-3 bay leaves
1 vanilla pod, split, seeds scraped
30g white caster sugar
150g pudding or arborio rice
100ml double cream
1. In a large pot place the milk with the bay leaves and vanilla seeds, along with the scraped-out pod. Bring to a gentle simmer on medium heat, and when you see bubbles and steam start to appear, add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Stir through the rice and once it comes to a steady simmer lower the heat until you see it bubbling gently. Set the timer for 30 minutes and stir intermittently, to remove the skin that forms. Stir more frequently towards the end when it starts to thicken. Remove the vanilla pod.
2. When the rice is soft to the bite, add the double cream, and stir continuously for 30-40 seconds. Serve warm with a dollop of rhubarb and orange compote. Alternatively, chill in the fridge and eat it cold with fruit compote.
Kylee Newton is a food writer and author of two cookbooks, The Modern Preserver and The Modern Preserver's Kitchen. See her work at themodernpreserver.com and on Instagram @themodernpreserver
