The Pie Plant

Rhubarb!  What an odd and wonderful food.  Even though we think of it as a fruit, it is actually a vegetable.  We eat the stalk of the plant, not the "fruit."  Rhubarb is one of those foods it seems that people either love or hate.  I am on the love side.

Here is a picture that I posted of our rhubarb plant in April.

 And here is one I took this week.  Our rhubarb is obviously very happy and productive.  



 
Rhubarb is also called "pie plant."  I once read that this is because it is the first plant of the spring available for making pies.  Makes sense to me.  Also, rhubarb is used in Chinese medicine to keep one's body working regularly, so to speak.  Another interesting thing is that the leaves are quite poisonous, so don't eat them!                                                                                                                                   
Because we have this healthy plant, we are always looking for ways to fix rhubarb...rhubarb muffins, rhubarb coffee cake, roasted rhubarb.  One of my favorites is a family recipe for a sort of rhubarb cream pie with meringue on top.  Paul loves strawberry rhubarb pie.  I just found a recipe for a rhubarb pecan loaf I want to try.  
 
Tonight it is rhubarb crisp, pretty straightforward but with a bit of orange peel added for flavor.  Can't beat it with a scoop of ice cream. 

There is something exciting about the first fresh pie of spring.  Rhubarb season can last as long as it wants as far as I'm concerned.