DISH-CUSSIONS

Refreshing Rhubarb Slush -

for Kids & Adults

From the Kitchen of Becky and Scott Wendroth of Hawthorne Drive By Janine Douglass

Here’s a way to take full advantage of your robust, ripened and readyto-pick garden bounty. Taking her agricultural roots seriously, Becky Wendroth, having grown up on a farm in Minnesota, raises an enviable bumper crop of produce at her Shawnee home for 5 years now, including raspberries, strawberries, lettuce, asparagus, beans and peas, serving as enticing, raw “garden snacks” with children, Abigail and Henry. But the mocktail/cocktail recipe that she shares with us and no doubt, with husband, Scott, Pathologist at Lima Pathology Associates, harvests the rhubarb from a plant brought from her own parents’ garden. Ingredients: • 8 c. cut-up rhubarb • 2 qt. water • 3 c. sugar • ½ c. lemon juice • 7-Up or strawberry pop • 1 c. vodka (optional) • 1 small package (3 oz.) strawberry jello Directions: Cook rhubarb, water, sugar and lemon juice until rhubarb is tender; drain. To the juice, add jello and vodka, if desired. Freeze in repurposed gallon plastic ice cream containers. To serve, unmold in a punch bowl, or scoop into glasses, and add 7-Up or strawberry pop. A few special notes: • Cut rhubarb to approximate 1 inch pieces • Cook rhubarb until tender over medium heat. Do NOT bring to a boil. You just want the rhubarb tender, not falling apart. • Adding vodka to the slush keeps it from freezing solid, making it easier to scoop out individual portions. If you want to omit alcohol, it will freeze solid, so freezing into smaller portions is recommended to ensure easier scooping! • Kids and adults love this summertime drink! Its beautiful color makes it even more enticing, and the huge rhubarb leaves atop the fleshy, edible stalks make fun fantasy elephant ears or jungle fans for children, reaping the benefits of making indelible happy memories. • Becky and family also enjoy a delicious rhubarb crumble made from her second generation, interstate herbaceous perennial.