Rhubarb has a sharp, tart taste, but only the stalks are edible; the leaves are poisonous. Rhubarb is usually considered a vegetable, but in 1947, a New York court in the United States ruled that it counted as a fruit for the purposes of regulations and duties. (Tariffs were higher for vegetables than fruits).

RECIPES BELOW COMPILED FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS

STEWED RHUBARB
When rhubarb first comes into season it is small, tender and of a bright red color. When stewed, it makes a very pretty dish. The red rhubarb should be cut into little pieces about two inches long. Very little water will be required as the fruit contains a great deal of water in itself. The amount of sugar added depends entirely upon taste. The stewed rhubarb should be sent to table unbroken, and floating in a bright red juice. Serve very cold.

BAKED RHUBARB
Peel rhubarb stalks, cut into inch lengths, put into a small stone crock with at least one part sugar to two parts fruit, but not one particle of water. To prevent burning, the crock may be set in a pan of boiling water. Bake until the pieces are clear, then flavor with lemon or it is good without. It is a prettier sauce and takes less sugar than when stewed. When done and while yet hot, beat up the whites of two eggs and whip into the sauce. It makes it very light and very nice.

RHUBARB COBBLER
For the crust: two cups of flour sifted with two teaspoons of baking powder and one-half teaspoon of salt. Rub in two tablespoons of butter. Beat one egg very light and add it to three-fourths of a cup of milk. Mix with the other ingredients and line the sides of a baking dish. Take one quart of chopped rhubarb sweetened with three cups of sugar, and fill the dish with the rhubarb. Roll out the remaining crust, cover the top of the dish and bake one-half hour.

RHUBARB PUDDING
Put four dozen clean sticks of rhubarb into a stewpan with the peel of a lemon, a bit of cinnamon, two cloves, and as much moist sugar as will sweeten it. Set it over the fire, and reduce it to a marmalade. Pass it through a hair sieve, then add the peel of a lemon, half a nutmeg grated, one-fourth pound of good butter, the yolks of four eggs, and one white, and mix all well together. Line a pie dish with good puff paste, put in the mixture, and bake it half an hour. This will make a good spring pudding.

RHUBARB SHERBET
Boil six or eight sticks of clean rhubarb in a quart of water, ten minutes. Strain the liquor through a hair sieve* into a jug, with the peel of a lemon cut very thin, and two tablespoons of clarified sugar. Let it stand five or six hours, and it will be fit to drink.

*hair sieve – a strainer with a wiry fabric bottom usually woven from horsehair.

RHUBARB TAPIOCA
Soak overnight two-thirds cup of tapioca. In the morning drain, add one cup water, and cook the tapioca until it is clear. Add a little more water if necessary. Then add a cup and a half of finely sliced rhubarb, a pinch of salt and one-half cup sugar. Bake in a moderate oven* an hour. Serve warm or cold and eat with sugar if liked very sweet.

*moderate oven – about 350-400 degrees Fahrenheit.

RHUBARB MERINGUE
Beat the whites of three eggs to a stiff froth, add three-quarters of a cup of granulated sugar, and pour over the rhubarb. Set the pudding dish in a pan of hot water in the oven and bake ten or fifteen minutes. Test with a broom straw; when it comes out of the meringue clean it is done. Serve cold with cream.

RHUBARB PIE
First, cut up one bundle of rhubarb in pieces about an inch long, wash them in plenty of water, and drain them in a colander or sieve. For the crust, have one pound of flour, six ounces of butter, lard, or dripping, half a pint of water, a pinch of salt, and ditto of baking-powder. Place the flour in a pan or on the table, make a hollow in the middle with your fist, place the salt and the baking-powder in it, pour in the water to dissolve them, then add the butter. Mix all together by working the ingredients with the fingers of both hands, until the whole has become a firm, smooth, compact kind of paste. 

Put the rhubarb into a pie-dish, with eight ounces of moist sugar, and a gill* of water. Roll out the paste to the exact size of the dish, and after wetting the edges of the dish all round, place the rolled-out paste upon it, and by pressing the thumb of the right hand all round the upper part of the edge, the paste will be effectually fastened on, so as to prevent the juice from running out at the sides. A small hole must be made at the top of the pie for ventilation, or otherwise the pie would burst. Bake the pie for an hour and a quarter.

*gill – a liquid measurement; four ounces in the U.S. and five ounces in the U.K.

RHUBARB SOUP
Peel and well wash four dozen sticks of rhubarb. Blanch them in water three or four minutes and drain on a sieve. Put into a stew-pan with two sliced onions, a carrot, an ounce of lean ham, and a good bit of butter. Let it stew gently over a slow fire till tender, then put in two quarts of rich soup stock, to which add two or three ounces of bread crumbs. Boil it about fifteen minutes, skim off all the fat, and season with salt and cayenne. Pass it through a sieve and serve it up with fried bread.

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