During last summer’s CSAs and farm visits, I ended up with some rhubarb. I knew I didn’t want to make cobbler or pie. So, I decided to freeze it and save it for sauce at a later date.
I washed the rhubarb and cut it into 2 inches chunks. I froze it in 3 quart bags.
Monday, I decided was the day to make sauce. I had purchased some ham loaf from Fresh Fork CSA a few weeks back and I thought that honey rhubarb sauce would be good with ham loaf balls.
- 7:30AM get out crock pot, add 3 q.t bags of rhubarb, 2 qt. homemade tomato sauce, turn crock pot on low
- 7:50AM add one cup of chopped onion from the freezer
- 8AM leave for JCC
- 12:30PM stir
- 1PM stir
- 1:15PM add one cup honey from The Gyette Family. It’s local, but definitely not my favorite kind. Stirred in 1 cup of cider vinegar
- 3PM used the immersion blender to make the sauce smooth
- 3:05PM added spices 4 t garlic, 2 t mustard powder, 2 t Worcestershire sauce, 2 t salt, 2 t smoked paprika
- 3:10PM left lid off and cooked on high
- 4PM stirred in 2 T molasses
- 4:40PM added 2 cans of tomato paste
- 5PM added 1 t ancho chili pepper
- 6:15PM Stephen comes home from work and says it’s good
- 8:45PM I went to bed and left it on warm
- 7:40AM Tuesday morning, I added 1 t liquid smoke and 1 t mustard
- 8AM covered and turned up to low and left for the JCC again
- 12:00PM tasted it – yum. turned off crock pot and ladled into jars
- 1PM cooled, topped jars and put in fridge
The entire ingredient list:
- 3 qt. chopped rhubarb
- 2 qt. home made tomato sauce (it was kind of thin)
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 cup honey
- 1 cup cider vinegar
- 4 t garlic
- 3 t mustard powder
- 2 t Worcestershire sauce
- 2 t salt
- 2 t smoked paprika
- 2 T molasses
- 2 cans of tomato paste
- 1 t ancho chili pepper
- 1 t liquid smoke
If I were to make the sauce again, I’d add everything except the liquid smoke at the beginning and I’d only use 1/2 cup of vinegar to start.
The recipe made about 2 1/2 quarts. It can not be canned per se since I just made this recipe up on the fly and have no idea what the pH values would be. I’ll probably share some with a friend, freeze some, and use some with the ham loaf.