Rhubarb Shortbread Squares (2025)

FAQs

What is the best forced rhubarb? ›

Which rhubarb is best for forcing? Any kind of rhubarb can be forced, but you'll get the best results from earlier cropping varieties. These include Timperley Early, Mira, Terrifically Tasty, Victoria, Sanvitos and Champagne.

With it's tart and tangy flavor, rhubarb goes incredibly well with things like strawberries, raspberries, mint, and ginger just to name a few. To preserve rhubarb, you can freeze it, which you'll find details on in the post. This post may contain affiliate links.

Rhubarb is a truly special ingredient. With its vivid pink colour and distinctively tangy taste, it can be stewed, poached, roasted and puréed in a range of dishes as well as drinks. Use it in a comforting crumble, a classic syllabub, a fruity chutney or a zingy kebab sauce – the possibilities are endless.

Rhubarb tips and recipes

It's usually sold in bunches, but sometimes stalks are sold individually. About 8-10 stalks makes a bunch, enough to make a good dessert for a family of 4-6 people.

If you already have kidney disease, avoid rhubarb. Kidney stones: Rhubarb contains a chemical that the body can convert into kidney stones. If you have ever had kidney stones, don't take rhubarb. Liver problems: Rhubarb can make liver function worse in people who already have liver problems.

But you're better off choosing the younger, redder, thinner stalks of rhubarb; those are more tender and sweet. When purchasing rhubarb, be sure to check for leaves—most farmers or grocery stores will have already removed them. But if you see leaves, get rid of them.

While cinnamon may be a more common spice to pair with rhubarb, citrusy, herbal cardamon lends a warm, citrusy note to a dish. A big pinch of ground cardamom can be added to any cake, pie, or compote, or you can simply add a little to the whipped cream you'll be topping your rhubarb dessert with.

Rhubarb is a good source of antioxidants, vitamin K, and fiber. It's also rich in calcium oxalate, so if you're prone to kidney stones, it might be best to avoid. More importantly, the leaves are toxic and should never be eaten.

"Once you let it simmer, and it's soft, let it sit overnight. Now you have these tender ribbons that you can jar up, or you can put them on anything." Removing the first layer of skin will take away its "rubbery taste" and bring out the stalk's most appealing flavors, and the brown sugar will temper the tartness.

There is an erroneous belief that rhubarb stalks are poisonous in summer. The stalks will likely be a little tougher than those harvested in spring, but they are not poisonous. Plant vigor is the reason that rhubarb should not be harvested in summer.

Why do you put a bucket over rhubarb? ›

Forcing rhubarb – covering the crowns to prevent light reaching them – will encourage the plants to make early growth. These pale, forced stalks can be harvested for use in cooking when they are 20-30cm long and are a useful crop when there is little else in store from the garden.

Depending on the variety, they may be only 12 inches long, or as long as two feet. To pick rhubarb, hold the stalk firmly, pull and twist. Do not use a knife to cut the stalks from the plant. The knife can carry diseases from plant to plant, and the remaining stalk can be a point of entry for other pests.

Its stalks are deeper red and tinged with green, while its leaves are bright green. It has a more intense flavour and robust texture than the forced variety. Although it can be eaten raw, rhubarb tends to be too tart this way, and it's usually best when cooked with plenty of sugar.

A cup is a measure of volume while pounds is a measure of weight so a direct calculation is difficult. If we only take liquid weight into account, one cup is eight ounces and two pounds would be 32 ounces so two pounds of rhubarb would equate to 4 cups.

Forcing rhubarb

Choose an early variety, such as 'Timperley Early', and only use a strong, healthy plant. Once stalks appear, they will grow quickly so check them regularly. They can be harvested in about four weeks, by early March.

Here are some of the best red rhubarb varieties available to grow: Rhubarb 'Canada Red': rich red stems that are sweeter, more tender and shorter than others. Harvest from April to June. Rhubarb 'Champagne': a heritage variety that produces an early crop and is ideal for forcing.

Redder varieties are desirable for pies, because the color of the filling is more attractive than the grayish color of cooked green varieties. Plant stature and vigor also vary among varieties. In general, greener varieties are more vigorous and have longer stalks than red varieties.

Forcing involves preventing light from reaching the crowns of the rhubarb plants. This triggers the production of delicious pale stalks perfect for cooking. Forced rhubarb is softer and sweeter than rhubarb harvested in early summer. It's a real treat to eat fresh when spring is still on its way.