I remember the first time I ever cooked/tasted rhubarb.

While I was in my junior year of  college,  my foods teacher, ( the one with whose shoes made scary clip clip sounds when she walked down the hall), brought in these long, skinny looking, green and red streaky stalks.

This is what rhubarb looks like.

They look delicious right?…pat the time I did not think so.

She walked (with her clip clip shoes) to the front of the classroom and told us…”today class, we will make a spread using rhubarb.”

Being raised around farms my whole life, and with all the church socials I attended growing up, I had never gotten brave enought to eat anything with rhubarb (or gooseberries….really…who would name a berry a goose).

My foods class in college was encouraged but never forced to try the recipes we made, just as long as we made them.

I am SO glad I tried this spread made out of rhubarb.

We cooked down the rhubarb with a little water until it got soft and added enough sugar to make a sweet/tart spread.

I went home and made it again and again…as long as I could find some rhubarb.

This summer I planted some rhubarb, because I love it so much!!!

This is what my rhubarb looked like before I planted it. (one died or was eaten by some critter)

One of my favorites blogs that I read is called One Hundred Dollars a Month, and she posted this great sounding recipe for vanilla rhubarb jam. When I read the recipe and seen that it had earl grey tea in it, I knew I had to at least try it.

All I can say is….lick that spoon clean, it was so good.

Anywho, if you can find some rhubarb, I know it is a little late in the season, (but I did see some at Hyvee over the weekend) try making a little bit of jam. You can save it to eat during the winter months, and it will remind you that spring will come again…if you can wait that long to eat it!

Here are your step by step instructions on making vanilla rhubarb jam.

This is all you need to make your jam!

The first thing you need to do is slice the stalks into one inch pieces.

In a large sauce pan, combine the sliced rhubarb and sugar.

Pour in your earl grey tea to the sauce pan with the rhubarb and sugar.

Bring to a boil.

         

Add the lemon juice, vanila paste (or split vanilla bean) and salt to the jam. Simmer for 10 minutes until the rhubarb is tender.

Add the pectin and cook until the jam thickens and coats  the back of a spoon.

Skim off any foam that forms on top of your jam.

Fill hot sterlized jars with jam (leaving 1/4 inch of head space), screw on sterlized lids and rims. Process in a water bath for ten minutes. (make sure at least one inch of water covers the top of the jars).

Take the hot jars out of the water, and let them cool on towels. You will hear the lids go, ” POP,” when they are sealed.

I have to say a thank you to my foods teacher, with the scary sounding clip clip shoes…..I would have never tried rhubarb if it wasn’t for her!

Here is the recipe!

Adapted from One Hundred Dollars a Month web site.

Vanilla Rhubarb Jam

Ingredients:

10 cups of sliced rhubard stalks, which is about 2 adn 1/2 pounds

5 cups of sugar

1 cup of brewed earl grey tea

1 teaspoons of vanilla paste, or one vanilla bean, split and scraped

1 tablespoon lemon juice

pinch of salt

1 box of pectin (1.75 ounce size)

Directions:

In a large saucepan, bring the rhubarb, sugar and tea to a boil. Add the lemon juice, salt and vanilla. Simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the pectin and cook for a couple of minutes or until the jam coats the back of a spoon.

Fill sterilized jars with the jam, and process in a water bath for 10 minutes.

Remove from the water bath and cool on the counter.

Have a try at making jam with this recipe. It does not take too long and it taste wonderful!

I have two more rhubarb recipes I will be posting this week.

I guess it is time for me to “jam” out!

Enjoy!

Becky