Have you ever seen/eaten rhubarb? You know, it looks like red celery…..or at least that's what someone I know thought it was :). Beware though, you definitely wouldn't want to eat rhubarb raw like you might celery. It is very sour, but also has a great taste (you may have tried it in a pie before). Anyway, this came in my box last week, and since I didn't have an excuse to make a whole pie, I decided to make a..sort of compote with the rhubarb.

I just used

a bunch of rhubarb stalks (not the leaves!), chopped up finely
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of sugar (or honey)–you might want to make it sweeter, whatever suits you!

I put it all in a sauce pan, and cooked on medium-low until the mixture thickened. Then I pureed it with my wonderful hand blender.

I love to flavor my plain non-fat yogurt (especially Greek yogurt) with this concoction. If I had vanilla ice cream or apple sauce, I'd mix some of this in too. Try it out!

I realize that some things I get from my CSA box are quite foreign to most people. And if you don't have a CSA box, you might not be too interested in some posts “from the box”. Either way, I urge you to buy a new fruit or vegetable at least twice a month. This way, you can learn how to prepare it, and you might learn that you've just met your long-lost favorite food! Give it a shot. Besides, variety is the spice of life!

Marina Bedrossian is a Northport, NY dietitian nutritionist who helps people with holistic nutrition solutions and food sensitivities. Visit this page to schedule an appointment and don’t forget to join the private Facebook group “Ingredients For Healthy Families” more information here.