While walking through the Farmer’s Market on Saturday, I was happily surprised to find a vendor selling Rhubarb, and I couldn’t resist buying every stalk she had on display. The problem is, it’s too warm to bake (and eating raw rhubarb is a non-starter!). What to do with 12 stalks of Rhubarb? Now, when I was growing up, my mom and my Oma would often make a fruit compote to be eaten as a dessert... either alone, or over pudding. A compote is a fairly simple thing to make, fruits are cooked in a sugar syrup to preserve them. Rhubarb has a tangy sour flavor and celery-like texture, so by cooking it with sugar, you end up with a soft, sweet/tart concoction that my people (and I) LOVE to eat on Vanilla ice cream, or alone with whipped cream. This Rhubarb Compote Recipe is EASY to make! In under 20 minutes of prep and cooking time, you can have tonight’s fruit dessert ready to go… without overheating your kitchen. Just cook it up in the morning, and leave it in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat.

Rhubarb Compote Recipe is EASY

This Rhubarb Compote Recipe is Easy!!

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Ingredients

1 pound Rhubarb
1/2 cup Sugar approximately... you might want more or less
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/4 cup Water

Instructions

Wash the Rhubarb, and trim off the ends. Then cut the stalks into 1 inch chunks.
(BE AWARE.. Rhubarb Leaves are not Food!! DO NOT EAT THEM. Just chuck them into the compost pile)
Put the cut Rhubarb pieces, a bit more than half of the Sugar, the Vanilla extract and the Water into a saucepan over medium high heat.
Cook and stir until the sugar dissolves.
Taste the liquid... Is it sweet enough? Or do you need more sugar? Add more if you need it.
Cook, stirring, until it comes to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
Stir occasionally.
Taste occasionally (maybe let someone passing through the kitchen have a taste)
At this point, the Rhubarb should be softened, and even beginning to fall apart.
Take the pan off the heat and let sit for a few minutes... then pour into a bowl to cool.
You CAN eat it warm (and it's quite delicious that way)... or put the bowl in the refrigerator until later.
Serve alone with Whipped Cream, or serve over Vanilla Pudding, Ice Cream or Yogurt.

Notes

If you accidentally make it TOO sweet.... add a squeeze of Lemon Juice to tart it up.

NOTE- Rhubarb leaves contain oxalic acid which can cause serious kidney damage, and make you very sick if you eat them. Don’t panic! A 140 pound person would have to eat 10 pounds of the leaves before it’s fatal! Just cut them off the stalks and throw them out. It is ok to put them in the compost, the oxalic acid will not be absorbed by other plants in your garden.

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