Black Currant Fig Bars

Black currants still cling to the stems of the bush-little black jewels, dangling among the green foliage. The other day, I picked deep into the center of the bush, gathering a handful of currants each time I reached in. As I parted the stems in the center of the bush, to my surprise, I noticed that someone else had grown … Read More

Pass the Black Currant Jam Please

Anticipating my impending “empty nest”, I began reducing the size of our vegetable garden a few years ago. The first year, I planted blueberry bushes in a large section of the garden. The next year, I put in black and red currant bushes. With children setting off across the globe, I no longer needed to grow food for a family … Read More

Rhubarb-New England’s First Harvest

While the New England garden lays bare in the unpredictable May weather, one plant bursts forth with much enthusiasm~Rhubarb. This past weekend, our farmstay guest asked,”What is that?” when she saw the lush plant filled with pink and green stalks in our herb garden. “Rhubarb,” my husband responds proudly, “New England’s first harvest.” That one plant that New Englander’s long … Read More

The Mystery of Rhubarb~Rhubarb Jam

Cloudy….windy….rainy…..50 degrees……seems like perfect weather to me for making Rhubarb Jam! Rhubarb remains one of those mysterious plants.  A quick google search brings up a long history of rhubarb around the world. Historically, the dried root aided in curing a number of illnesses. It seems that it wasn’t until sometime in the 1800’s that it entered into culinary dishes. Some … Read More