In my last post I mentioned that the recipe for rhubarb-almond cake yielded a beautiful byproduct: rhubarb syrup. I’ve been putting mine to good use, particularly in a pair of vibrant seasonal cocktails and a refreshing non-alcoholic spritz.
If you don’t want to whip up the actual cake, you can still make the syrup as follows:
Rhubarb Syrup
In this case, the beautiful byproduct is macerated rhubarb, which you can store in a jar in the fridge and spoon onto yogurt, ice cream, or buttered toast.
¾ cup water
¾ cups sugar
¾ pound rhubarb, diced
In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil. Immediately lower heat and add sugar. Stir to dissolve, add rhubarb, cover, and simmer 5 minutes. Meanwhile, place a strainer over a bowl. When rhubarb has cooked, carefully drain through strainer, reserving the macerated fruit for another use. You can mix a little of the syrup back into the rhubarb if it doesn’t seem jammy enough. You could also reserve the rhubarb until you feel like making the cake.
(This seems like a good time to mention that all my recipes are free to everyone on the Life, Death & Dinner homepage for three weeks after I post them. After that, only paid subscribers can access them through the Recipe Index/Archive.)
Rhubarbarita
Makes 1 cocktail
1½ ounces blanco tequila
1 ounce rhubarb syrup
1 ounce lime juice
Lime slice for garnish
Add ingredients to a shaker filled about halfway with ice, and shake vigorously. Serve straight up, strained into a stemmed cocktail glass, or in a rocks glass over ice. Either way, garnish with a slice of lime.
Rhubarb Begonia
You can lighten this up by serving it over ice and topping it with a splash of seltzer. Served straight up in a stem glass it gives Cosmo vibes. If you like your cocktails more sour than sweet, consider upping the citrus.
1½ ounces vodka
1 ounce rhubarb syrup
1 ounce lemon juice
Seltzer (optional)
Lemon slice for garnish
Add ingredients (except seltzer) to a shaker filled about halfway with ice, and shake vigorously. Serve straight up, strained into a stemmed cocktail glass, or in a rocks glass over ice—with or without a splash of seltzer. Either way, garnish with a slice of lemon.
Rhubarb-Divino N/A Spritz
Roots Divino Aperitif Bianco is a Greek zero-proof spirit with notes of citrus, rosemary, thyme, and wormwood. It’s terrific over ice with tonic and lemon, and it gives mixed non-alcoholic drinks a sophisticated layer of flavor. Having said that, if you don’t have it and don’t want to buy it, just leave it out and adjust the proportions of your drink as you please. You might consider adding some n/a sparkling wine.1
1 ounce rhubarb syrup
1 ounce Roots Divino Aperitif Bianco
¾ ounce lemon juice
3 ounces seltzer
Lemon slice and an herb sprig (mint, thyme, or rosemary) for garnish
Place a few ice cubes in a wine or highball glass. Add rhubarb syrup, Roots Divino, lemon juice, and seltzer. Garnish with a slice of lemon and an herb sprig if you like.
Needless to say, if you’re not abstaining from alcohol you can doctor this drink with whatever else you choose. Sparkling wine and/or a good “sipping” white vermouth like this one from Klocke Estate would be great here.