The elderflowers are really starting to look good in the hedgerows and this is a perfect way to use their subtle flavour with that other early summer favorite rhubarb. You don't need may umbrels of flowers to get a hint of the taste, and you can use any extra to make elderflower cordial.

This recipe is adapted from the one in Edible Wild Plants & Herbs by Pamela Michael.

See here for the elderflower and rhubarb jam recipe in more detail.

Recipe Costs

£0.00 6 large elderflower heads (you can get dried ones on ebay, but I haven't tried them)
£0.00 1.5 kg rhubarb (£9.33 if bought)
£1.40 1.5 kg sugar
£0.35 1 lemon

£1.75 Total (£11.08 if buying the rhubarb)
£0.87 per kg of jam (£5.54 if buying the rhubarb - Elderflower and rhubarb jam costs £9.26 a kg at gallowaylodge.co.uk)

My elderflowers were on the small side, so I used about 15, they are tied up in a muslin bag and put in the bottom of a large bowl.

The rhubarb is chopped up and placed on top of the elderflowers.

The sugar is sprinkled onto the rhubarb and the bowl shook to make sure it settles down. This recipe relies on the sugar drawing out the juice from the rhubarb by osmosis, the only other liquid added is the juice of a lemon. As a result the jam should have an intense flavour. I used a glass bowl so I could see just how much juice was coming out, I've used a similar process before when making marrow and ginger jam and am always surprised how well it works.

Afetr 12 hours the rhubarb is starting to give up it's juice, it's given a quick stir and then covered back up again.

After another 12 hours the rhubarb is swimming in it's own juice, it's heated up slowly to dissolve all the remaining sugar, then returned to the bowl for another 12 hours.

Before the final cooking process the juice of a lemon is added, using my satisfyingly functional glass lemon squeezer.

The jam is cooked for about 45 minutes until it reaches setting point, then potted in steralised jars. I always find a jam funnel useful at this stage.

Recipe Timings

20 minutes Preparation
36 hours standing
45 minutes cooking
10 minutes bottling

Taste Test

It's surprising how so few elderflowers give such a distinctive taste to this jam. It's not overly sweet, which brings out the flavour of the rhubarb nicely.

 

This recipe was tempting to try as another way of preserving rhubarb.
There's nothing wrong with relilable rhubarb chutney, but you do have to wait several months before it's good to eat, the advantage with this recipe is that the sweet fruity relish can be enjoyed straight away.

As a variation you could add finely chopped chilli, or try the lime and ginger version on sweet mary's blog.

This recipe is taken from Preserves: River Cottage Handbook No.2 by Pam Corbin

See here for the rhubarb relish recipe in more detail.

Recipe Costs

£0.47 500g granulated sugar
£0.14 100 ml cider vinegar
£6.22 1kg rhubarb (equivalent cost, mine was free)
£0.35 125g raisins
£0.50 50g fresh root ginger
£0.34 2 cinnamon sticks
£0.02 6 cloves

£8.04 Total (£1.82 without buying the rhubarb)
£5.74 per kg of relish (£1.30 without buying the rhubarb)

The ginger is chopped into chunks and bruised with a rolling pin, then put with the other spices in a muslin bag.

The spice bag is put in a saucepan along with 100ml of water and 100ml of cider vinegar, I find it easiest to use a glass measuring jug.

500g of sugar is also put into the pan, this seems like quite a lot but does make the relish lovely and sweet.
The mixture is heated gently until the sugar has dissolved, then set aside for 20 minutes.

About a kilogram of rhubarb is washed and then chopped into 2 - 3 cm long pieces.

125g of raisins are used to give some variety to the relish, these could easily be left out if wished.

The spiced syrup, rhubarb and raisins are combined and cooked gently for about 45 minutes. At first the pan will seem very dry, but the rhubarb releases a lot of liquid as it cooks. I left the muslin bag in during the cooking to try and extract more of the flavour.

This is meant to be a runny preserve, suited to being poured from a wide necked bottle, so shouldn't be reduced too much when cooking.

Recipe Timings

10 minutes Preparation
20 minutes standing
45 minutes cooking
10 minutes bottling

Taste Test

Great in a strong cheese sandwich and should go well with cold cooked meats. This is most definitely a sweet relish, but has a pleasing acidity from the rhubarb.

Now is the time of year when rhubarb is readily available. Why not get the preserving pan out, celebrate this most English of vegetables, and try some of the following recipes:

 

Last spring's rhubarb schnapps was one of the great preserving successes of the year, so I have been keen to make some more from the moment the rhubarb in the garden started sprouting

As well as making a jar of the original version this year I have also tried a jar with added ginger. Ginger always works well with rhubarb, rhubarb and ginger jam also being a favorite, so this schnapps should be good with a extra bit of spice.

See here for the rhubarb and ginger schnapps recipe.

Recipe Costs

£6.22 1kg rhubarb (equivalent cost, mine was free)
£0.28 300g granulated sugar
£11.19 1l vodka
£0.50 50 g fresh ginger

£18.19 Total (£11.97 without buying the rhubarb)
£18.19 per litre of schnapps (£11.97 without buying the rhubarb - peach schnapps costs £14.27 at ocado)

I picked the rhubarb on one of the glorious sunny mornings we've been having recently, just the weather for getting inspired to make a drink that's best drunk when outdoors.

One kilogram of rhubarb stalks (a mixture of thick and thin) is chopped up and packed in to a steralised preserving jar.

Sliced fresh ginger is added amongst the layers (best to add it as you're packing the rhubarb in the jar).

300g of granulated sugar, this amount can be varied if you prefer a sweeter or sharper schnapps. You can taste the schnapps after six weeks or so and add more sugar if you wish.

I find a jam funnel helps to avoid spilling sugar everywhere, although obviously it's not a problem if you're working outside.

The jar is topped up with cheap vodka, sealed, and given a good shake, once a day for a few weeks until the sugar is dissolved and then every week until you feel like straining it. The jar should be kept in a cool dark place and the rhubarb should be strained out before drinking. Wait at least six weeks before sampling, but you can leave it for up to six months if you wish.

The liquid will turn a lovely pink colour and is great drunk neat, with sparkling wine or with fizzy water.

Recipe Timings

15 minutes Preparation
6 weeks Standing

Taste Test

This will have to wait a few weeks.

 

After making Rhubarb Schnapps six weeks ago (see here for the rhubarb schnapps recipe) I've been popping under the stairs every few days and giving it a good shake. It's been great to watch the colour change, and finally yesterday I got to strain it and see it in all it's glory.

Straining was easy enough, a piece of muslin in a sieve worked well, although you can get muslin bags for this purpose. I just need to think of something to do with all that vodka infused rhubarb. Not sure if it would work in a crumble, maybe an alcoholic smoothie.

The first taste test was the neat drink (in a small amount), and it was not as rough as I'd expected given the quality of the vodka used. Actually the rhubarb taste was much stronger than I'd hoped for, and the sweetness wasn't overpowering.

The second taste test was a cocktail of one shot of schnapps and one of elderflower cordial topped up with sparkling water. This was a much more of a refreshing drink, with a wonderful summery taste.

I had a hunt around for cocktail recipes using rhubarb schnapps, but perhaps not surprisingly I couldn't find any. There were plenty using either rhubarb puree or peach schnapps, so  may be doing a little experimenting over the next few months, first off will be rhubarb schnapps topped up with sparkling white wine, a sort of rhubarb Bellini.

 

See here for the rhubarb schnapps recipe.

Recipe Costs

£6.22 1kg rhubarb (equivalent cost, mine was free)
£0.28 300g granulated sugar
£11.19 1l vodka

£17.69 Total (£11.47without buying the rhubarb)
£17.69 per litre of schnapps (£11.47 without buying the rhubarb - peach schnapps costs £14.27 at ocado)

The method couldn't really be easier, it took me longer to pick and trim the rhubarb into the compost heap than it did to follow the instructions.

I raided the cupboard and turfed some pasta out from a large preserving jar, then stuffed it full of the chopped rhubarb. Raw rhubarb has an indescribably lovely fresh smell which I am hoping will come through in the finished drink.

Sugar in next, I had to temporarily take out some of the rhubarb so I could fit it in, hence the above picture looking a bit like one of those coloured sand in a jar things you can get at the seaside.

I managed to top the jar up with about 850ml of the cheapest vodka I could find, I guess I'll mix the remainder in once the recommended six weeks is up and I'm bottling it.
By all accounts this will turn out to be a lovely pink colour and taste just perfect mixed with sparkling white wine. I'll watch it carefully as it has to be regularly removed from it's hiding place under the stairs and given a good shake.

Recipe Timings

15 minutes Preparation
6 weeks Standing

Taste Test

This has gone down very well.
Very drinkable on it's own, sweet with a good taste of rhubarb. Also worked well mixed with sparkling white wine, adding a subtle yet distinctive flavour.

The recipe I used was adapted from the one at the thefoody.com, as recommended on the grow your own forums.

See here for the rhubarb chutney recipe in more detail.

Recipe Costs

£9.34 1.5kg rhubarb (equivalent cost, mine was free)
£2.06 1500g dark brown soft sugar
£1.15 900ml vinegar (malt)
£0.55 425g sultanas
£0.36 75g chopped dried apricots
£0.40 40g root ginger
£ 0.01 30g salt
£0.30 30g garlic
£0.10 1 chilli
£0.01 2 tsp peppercorns
£0.90 3 lemons, peel only
£15.18 Total (£5.84 without buying the rhubarb)
£5.06 per kg of jam (£1.94 without buying the rhubarb - 30% of the cost of equivalent at ocado)

I made half as much again as the original recipe, mainly because I enthusiastically picked too much rhubarb. I find adapting a recipe like this isn't a problem with chutney, I'd be a bit careful doing the same with jam as it can be tricky to get large quantities up to temperature quick enough. The rhubarb was chopped into quite fine slices, about 1cm, as I didn't want the end result to be too stringy. Not a problem when you have a nice sharp knife.
Substituting some of the sultanas for apricots was inspired by seeing several recipes containing apricots or dates, I imagine they complement the rhubarb well and add more variety than the standard sultanas. We've been mixing our own muesli lately so have a good stock of dried fruit in the cupboard.

A nice large amount of garlic went in to the pot, it was getting on for two heads, leaving us with only one head of homegrown left. The lemon peel was taken off some lemons from the freezer, I'd picked these up in the out-of-date section at the supermarket a few weeks ago. Not having any cayenne pepper I chucked in a finely chopped chilli, I'm sure given the volume being made it would be fine to add a few more if you liked it hot.

The ginger, lemon and peppercorns went in the muslin with the garlic, chilli and salt joining the fruit, sugar and vinegar in the Preserving Pan. I'd got the large pan off the top shelf in the kitchen where it had been collecting sticky dust, as I figure it's best to use stainless steel when making chutney, especially with something as acidic as rhubarb. The non stick ones would probably not have suffered too much but I don't really like the thought of Rhubarb and Teflon Chutney.

After several hours of simmering the chutney looked thick enough to pot, it's fine to have a small amount of liquid in the top of the jars as this is absorbed during the 3 months of maturing time. The chutney looked very rich and dark as it went into the jars, I shall look forward to tasting it in August, preferably outside with a nice lump of cheese.

Recipe Timings

0.5hrs preparation
2 hrs simmering
0.5 hr potting

Taste Test

This is a good fruity chutney, great in an everyday cheese sandwich. It doesn't taste overly of rhubarb, and is given extra depth by the addition of the apricots.

 

image source wikimedia commons

1. The edible stalks of the Rhubarb plant (Rheum rhabarbarum) are technically a vegetable.

2. The rhubarb plant is a herbaceous perennial and, in temperate climates, is one of the earliest vegetable crops, usually in April.

3. The plant is native to Asia and grows wild along the banks of the River Volga.

4. Rhubarb became popular as a food in the 17th Century when cheap sugar became available.

5. Rhubarb can be stored in a plastic bag in the fridge for 2 - 3 weeks.

6. Rhubarb can be frozen raw, or blanched for 1 minute in boiling water, or stewed to take up less space.

7. Rhubarb can be used as a laxative.

8. You can buy Rhubarb and Custard sweets at www.aquarterof.co.uk

9. Rhubarb leaves are considered toxic, but a human would have to eat about 5kg of bitter leaves to reach a lethal dose.

10. There is an amazing amount of information about growing and eating rhubarb at The Rhubarb Compendium website

This was the first time I had tried preserving with it, the recipe with ginger was enticing, as I have made wonderful marrow and ginger jam before. The addition of crystallised ginger was a good excuse to have a go at making that as well. The recipe from the "Good Housekeeping" Cookery Book which was on the veg plotting blog, seemed to be the classic.

See here for the rhubarb and ginger jam recipe.

Recipe Costs

£6.85 1.1kg rhubarb (equivalent cost, mine was free)
£1.03 1.1kg sugar
£0.60 2 Lemons
£0.24 25g root ginger
£1.36 100g crystallised ginger
£10.08 Total (£3.23 without buying the rhubarb)
£5.04 per kg of jam (£1.62 without buying the rhubarb - 33% of the cost of equivalent at Tesco)

This jam was a dream to make, chopping rhubarb is particularly pleasurable, something to do with the noise it makes.

The recipe said to leave the rhubarb, lemon juice and sugar mix to stand overnight, so I did, but couldn't resist stirring a few times. I used the mixing bowl pictured above, it's important not to use a saucepan as rhubarb is quite acidic and can react with some metal pans. When returned to in the morning the sugar had drawn out a lot of liquid resulting in chunks of rhubarb floating in sugar syrup - half way to jam already.

All of the crystallised ginger was finely chopped and added directly into the jam, along with the fresh crushed ginger in a muslin. This seemed like a lot of ginger for the amount of jam, but the end result wasn't overpowering.
The boiling process was more frantic than some jams, the rhubarb broke down quickly, leaving it's characteristic strands. It might be an idea to chop the rhubarb into smaller chunks to start with, if you're not keen on stringy jam. Setting point was soon reached, no need for hours of simmering with this jam.



Recipe Timings

0.5hrs Preparation
overnight standing
0.25hrs chopping ginger
0.5hrs first boil
0.5hrs to reach setting point
0.5 hr Potting

Taste Test
I had though this could be overpowered by the ginger in it, but although it's obviously there, it's actually quite subtle until you bite into a small lump of crystallised ginger. The lumps of ginger have remained firm and crunchy, and although it would still be a tasty jam if they were left out, I think it's worth the effort of making and adding them.