Embracing the tart!

Each year, I forget about all the little things that early Spring brings as a sort of peace offering after the long dark winter. I still get excited to see all of the nettles continuing to explode from moist forests and ditches and am quite giddy with the site of bright green asparagus shooting up from the earth, but oh, how the bright red stalks and Jurassic-size leaves of rhubarb stop me in footsteps and mental ramblings to give thanks for Spring.

Rhubarb's flavor is refreshingly tart and its presence is a constant reminder that its common companion, the strawberry is just around the corner (or just beneath the surface of the Earth).
So, below, are a few ways that I have introducing rhubarb madness to our household:

Easy, Delectable, Baked Rhubarb

3-5 stalk of rhubarb (sliced into chunks)
1 bosc pear (chunked)
1/2 c. of sugar (or 1/4 c. agave syrup)
1/2 c. water plus 1 TBS. apple cider vinegar
1 vanilla pod (split down the middle)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add everything to casserole dish and stir.
2. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through.
3. Serve over yogurt or ice cream.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Slump
adapted from Local Vegetarian Cooking by Debra Daniels-Zeller

"What the heck is a slump?" one might ask.
I did.
A slump is a New England dessert in which fruit is simmered in a deep skillet with sweet biscuit dough dropped onto it like dumplings.
yum.

I am lucky enough to still have strawberries that we picked last summer--lucky, or out-of-control when it comes to opportunities to pick endless amounts of fresh berries and fill an already loaded and tiny freezer. Either way, its nice to put these strawberries to good use before fresh ones are ripe for the picking.
If you don't have access to strawberries yet, you can use straight rhubarb. Simply double the amount of sweetener.

Filling:
3-5 stalks of rhubarb chopped
2 c. of strawberries
1/3 c. of water
1/2 c. sugar
1 TBS. arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)

Dumplings:
1/3 c. milk
1 TBS. apple cider vinegar
1 c. of whole wheat flour
2 TBS. sugar
2 TBS. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 TBS. coconut oil or butter

1.Combine all of the filling ingredients in a heavy skillet and simmer for 5 minutes, while you prepare the dumplings.
2.Combine milk with vinegar and set aside. Combine all of the dry ingredients and, then, cut in the coconut oil until the mixture is like corn meal. Add milk and stir until a batter forms.
3. Drop heaping spoonfuls into the simmering liquid starting from the outer edge of the pan and working your way inward. Cover for 40 minutes and letter the mix simmer and cook the dumplings.
4. Serve with yogurt or ice cream!