Spring is the time of year when rhubarb starts showing up in gardens and grocery stores in all of its brilliant red glory. While the Spring season started a few weeks ago, the weather has seemed more winterlike than springlike in our area in March. Yet, it was more springlike than winterlike in February! Rhubarb has not shown up yet in our local grocery stores or in my small garden, but I’m hoping it makes an earlier than usual appearance soon since I have several wonderful rhubarb recipes that I am anxious to try out this Spring!

One of the first recipes we will make with this Spring vegetable is a salad. (Rhubarb is technically a vegetable. The part we eat is the stalk of the plant. Fruits are the seed containing vessels of the plant.) Here, the rhubarb is roasted until it is softened and caramelized, then dressed and added to a bed of Spring lettuce. Goat cheese adds creamy contrast and pistachios add crunch and texture to this salad. I can’t wait for the weather to start cooperating with the calendar and bring us the beauty and glory of Spring! And some rhubarb!

Rhubarb Salad with Goat Cheese and Pistachios

Rhubarb Salad with Goat Cheese and Pistachios (adapted from realsimple.com) Total Time Required: 15 minutes, Hands-On: 15 minutes, Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces rhubarb stalks, diagonally sliced (about 1-1/2 cups)
• 1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• salt and pepper to taste
• 5 ounces mixed baby lettuce
• 2 ounces crumbled goat cheese
• 1/4 cup salted dry-roasted pistachios, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°F. Toss the rhubarb with 1 teaspoon of the oil and place it on a baking sheet. Bake the rhubarb until it is caramelized and tender, about 4 minutes.

Roast the rhubarb.

Remove the rhubarb to a bowl and toss it with the sugar. Let it cool to room temperature.

Toss the rhubarb with the sugar and allow it to cool.

Meanwhile, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, and the remaining 1/4 cup of oil in a small bowl. Season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste.

Whisk together the dressing ingredients.

Toss the lettuce with 1/4 cup of the vinaigrette and top it with the goat cheese, pistachios, and rhubarb. Serve the salads with the remaining dressing on the side.

Toss the lettuce and rhubarb with the dressing then top with the goat cheese and pistachios.

The return of Spring produce is a culinary pleasure!  ~Linda

Rhubarb Salad with Goat Cheese and Pistachios (adapted from realsimple.com) Total Time Required: 15 minutes, Hands-On: 15 minutes, Bake Time: 5 minutes, Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces rhubarb stalks, diagonally sliced (about 1-1/2 cups)
• 1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• salt and pepper to taste
• 5 ounces mixed baby lettuce
• 2 ounces crumbled goat cheese
• 1/4 cup salted dry-roasted pistachios, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°F. Toss the rhubarb with 1 teaspoon of the oil and place it on a baking sheet. Bake the rhubarb until it is caramelized and tender, about 4 minutes. Remove the rhubarb to a bowl and toss it with the sugar. Let it cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, and the remaining 1/4 cup of oil in a small bowl. Season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste. Toss the lettuce with 1/4 cup of the vinaigrette and top it with the goat cheese, pistachios, and rhubarb. Serve the salads with the remaining dressing on the side.