Where has all the rhubarb gone? I love rhubarb. As a kid growing up in Minnesota, Spring meant rhubarb. The neighborhood "pack" would roam the neighborhood, begging rhubarb from anyone that had it in their garden patch. We would take it home, dip it in sugar and greedily consume the fleeting treat. This year, I learned that the reason the rhubarb I have growing in a pot on my back porch fails every year is not because of my cat napping on it daily, but because it is pot bound! Thank you big sis for the heads up! So, I have to get my rhubarb elsewhere. My current work schedule makes it difficult to frequent the Farmer's Markets so I depend on my store to supply me with this spring treat. Unfortunately, this year, the rhubarb crop has been decimated and delayed by the incessant rain, as have been the famous Hood strawberries. However, I did snatch some in a brief window of time early this spring and created a wonderful rhubarb tart in puff pastry. You can find the recipe at Epicurious.com. Here is the link: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Rhubarb-Tart-with-Orange-Glaze-352290. I like my rhubarb tart, tart (maybe I should say sassy to avoid redundancy) and so I cut way back on the sugar but if you prefer yours sweeter, follow the recipe. Grand Central Bakery has begun supplying our store with their marvelous, buttery puff pastry...a HUGE improvement over what was previously available. I'm going to give it a little plug here as it was SO easy to work with and SO incredibly delicious, it is totally worth the price and WAY easier than making it yourself, which I have also done. I'm thinking that with the somewhat improved weather patterns, we may be seeing a little more rhubarb available. If you're a rhubarb fan like me, grab it!
