This syrup recipe marks our first annual Ode to Rhubarb. This tart, pink, celery-like vegetable is our favorite harbinger of spring, and upon our first yearly sighting of it at the market, a little happy dance ensues. We’re still petitioning Whole Foods to install a disco ball in the produce section. The inspiration for this concoction comes from the lovely ladies at the Canal House. (We bow.)
Of course, some tinkering couldn’t be helped, primarily because the original version called for fresh blood orange juice. Mercifully, its season—aka Winter—has passed. Trust us, as much as we love blood oranges, Winter’s demise has gone patently unmourned, and our pillows have remained blissfully devoid of tears. Good riddance.
Regular oranges filled the bill nicely, and the peel from one was thrown into the mix for good measure to ensure a nice citrus element to the finished syrup.
Also, the lower temperature and longer cooking time indicated in the Canal House Cooks Everyday cookbook is fine, we’re sure, but raising the cooking temperature and staying with it while it reduced yielded a thick, fabulously colored syrup in nearly half the time. Score!
Some suggested uses include folding it into yogurt, drizzling it over ice cream or cheesecake, or even adding it to lemonade, club soda or incorporating it into your spring and summer cocktail repertoire. While all of those beverage suggestions sound perfectly refreshing, we’ll give you three guesses as to which option we went with, and the first two guesses don’t count. What was that you said? Cocktails? Bingo in the front row!
While the Canal House mavens recommended the simple approach of serving the syrup with some tequila in a sugar rimmed glass—which sounds lovely in a pinch—we went with another option. Cinco de Mayo is right around the corner, and just as it does in the rest of the free world, to us that means Margaritas, baby.
A smooth silver tequila, fresh squeezed lime juice, rhubarb syrup and a nice big salt-rimmed glass of ice turn into a mildly sweet, perfectly tart, boozy treat that absolutely belongs in your Cinco de Mayo and summer Margarita arsenal. Salud!
Inspired by Canal House Cooks Every Day.
- Rhubarb Syrup:
- 1 ½ pounds rhubarb, diced, about 4 cups
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 larges oranges, juiced (about ⅔ cup juice), peels from one orange reserved
- ⅓ cup water
- Rhubarb Margarita:
- 2 ounces silver tequila
- 1 ounce rhubarb syrup
- Juice of one lime
- Coarse salt (for rimming the glass)
- For the Rhubarb Syrup, in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, bring rhubarb, sugar, orange juice, orange peels, and water to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let mixture cool.
- Strain through fine-mesh sieve. Refrigerate in a covered container for up to one month.
- For the Rhubarb Margarita, in a cocktail shaker filled with ice, shake tequila, rhubarb syrup and lime juice.
- Strain into a salt-rimmed filled with ice.
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