As a kid I loved rhubarb – but not in pie. I would sneak a stalk (or two) when my mom wasn’t looking, cut it up in little slices and savor the crisp tart flavor. Well I bought a little rhubarb plant this spring, put it in a whiskey barrel planter near the beehive and wow did it take off! Today I harvested 3 stalks and decided to kick off the 4th of July weekend by making ice cold Strawberry Rhubarb Lemonade. At 83 degrees and a relative humidity of 93% that doggone ice cold lemonade really hit the spot!
Ingredients
- 3 stalks rhubarb cut in pieces
- 1 cup fresh very ripe strawberries stems removed and cut in half
- 5 cups water
- Date sugar (to taste)
- Lemon slices
- Fresh mint leaves
Directions
- Pour the water into a medium cooking pot then add the rhubarb and strawberries. Cook until the mixture starts to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes or until soft.
- Pour the mixture through a strainer retaining the liquid. Using a potato masher or the back of a spoon mash the strawberries and rhubarb to get all the liquid out.
- Refrigerate the liquid until cool.
- When ready to serve, place the strawberry rhubarb liquid in a pitcher and add ice.
- Serve with date sugar (optional for added sweetness). Garnish with a lemon slice and mint leaf.
Note: As strawberries ripen their sugar content increases from 5% in unripe fruit to 6-9% in ripe fruit. Very ripe strawberries taste much sweeter.
