Fresh Rhubarb - From my garden to my martini glass - In just two hours
Even if you don’t particularly feel like a cocktail, if you commit the time needed to prepare the Rhubarb Martini, trust me, you’ll want a drink. In hindsight, I wish I had doubled, maybe even tripled the recipe.
Before I start complaining, I need to offer some hope and inspiration by saying that this is a truly outstanding martini. If you’re a fan of both rhubarb and vodka martinis, investing yourself in this laborious recipe will be worth it.
If you’re not appreciative of the palatable complexity of rhubarb then don’t waste a perfectly good afternoon juicing rhubarb. Welding your own paperclips would be time better spent.
Lucky for me, I am a big rhubarb fan. I appreciate its unique, intricate, tart flavor, for which there is no acceptable understudy. I love the sound a serrated knife makes when slicing through juicy rhubarb stems and the bright, tangy aroma that disperses. Rhubarb holds a special place in my heart, being the first spring harvest that I can measure in pounds rather than ounces. Above all, Rhubarb evokes more nostalgia for my childhood and my family than anything else growing in my garden. A sweet rhubarb dessert always has lots of company.
Rhubarb reminds me of my grandmother and the wonderful rhubarb tapioca pudding that she made by the gallon when family descended upon her Maine homestead during the summer months.
Rhubarb reminds me of my Mom and how I missed being her little shadow in the vegetable garden after her and my Dad separated when I was nine. Her garden quickly reverted to a hay field, but that rhubarb hung on in the same spot for years. She gave me many sweet rhubarb pies even when she wasn’t there.
Rhubarb reminds me of my (purportedly plant-savvy) sister and what she didn’t have when making a pie the first spring in her new house. A homemade pie crust, 50 minutes, and two slices later, she came to the realization that the large coarse-leafed plant in her new garden was in fact burdock and not rhubarb. I’m still giggling.
I’m on a mission this season to transform as many garden products as I can into original cocktail recipes. I had never heard of a rhubarb cocktail, but decided I was up for the challenge. (A google search proved that it could be, and had been done.) Wanting to honor its complex, tart flavor, a simple martini seemed like the perfect direction to head.
THE RECIPE:
Prep Time: About 2 long thirsty hours. Makes only 2 – 6.5 ounce martinis. Seriously.
STEP ONE: MAKE RHUBARB JUICE
Combine 3 cups of sliced fresh rhubarb stalks and 1 cup of water in a covered saucepan. Boil for about 1 hour, or until mushy and ugly. Drain off the liquid through a fine strainer or cheese cloth. Pray for at least 6 ounces of juice. Add sugar to sweeten to your taste. I recommend about 3 tablespoons, which will still leave the juice surprisingly tart. Cool completely.
STEP TWO: MIX THE MARTINI
1 ounce fresh squeezed lime juice
6 ounces rhubarb juice
6 ounces Grey Goose Vodka
Combine in a martini shaker with ice, pour into chilled martini glasses, and enjoy.
The flavor is delicate and subtle so don’t expect this to taste like rhubarb pie in a glass. A good vodka is essential so that it doesn’t overpower the flavor of the rhubarb.
I also tried a Strawberry Rhubarb Martini substituting one ounce of the rhubarb juice for one ounce of fresh squeezed strawberry juice (an even bigger pain to extract than the rhubarb). Though still tasty, the strawberry flavor completely overshadowed the rhubarb. I think that in order to truly appreciate the rhubarb martini, the rhubarb needs to stand alone.
This anonymous reviewer gave the Rhubarb Martini two thumbs up
My husband, a devoted beer drinker, gave his approval so I’m deeming the Rhubarb Martini a success. If any of the three people still reading this blog have enough time on their hands to try this recipe for themselves, please offer up some feedback and other ideas! Jenny, you can let us know how the burdock martini turns out.
That is one great looking martini. How did you juice the rhubarb? Can’t wait to hear about the next concoction!
Gollee–gonna have to go buy some vodka. My whole reason for growing lots of strawberries is the liquid things you can make in the blender all year long. I had considered trying something with rhubarb–and you just gave me a good reason. Thank you.
Sounds wonderful! I’d better get on out to the rhubarb patch!
Very interesting. The anonymous taste tester did give it 2 thumbs up so it cant be all the bad huh. I will have to try this, only I don’t grow rhubarb!!! LOL!
Despite burdock being entirely edible (though, not desirable) … I’m afraid I am not willing to sacrifice my lovely P3 Vodka–made in Lake Placid–for such a trial. I trust rhubarb would win.
Amazing display of patience and elbow grease! I fully expect one of these delightful cocktails in July Annie…
Is there any difference if you blend the strawberries and rhubarb in a machine, or do you have to just cook them down and then strain them?
I must run out and try this one, as Bum and Da’s rhubarb patch has survived the same reversion-to-grass process that your mom’s did. And Da always did approve of martinis! He would, even more than your adventurous bar-tending, approve of your witty prose. Rudyard Kipling, eat your heart out.
What fabulous ideas! Can’t wait to try them!
Plant Lady
This doesn’t have to be difficult or time-consuming. Just chop up a bunch of rhubarb, put it in a pan to simmer with some water, then watch the news or something. Later, strain the rhubarb, add some sugar to taste, and put the juice in the fridge to cool. When you are thirsty, shake with vodka over ice. Viola! I added a lemon twist – pretty and a hint of lemon flavor.
Carol Ann — Perhaps I should be in charge of happy hour at the Lake. (Maybe Jenny will donate her P3 Vodka.) The rhubarb gets nice and mushy when cooked so I don’t think blending it first would be of benefit. However, I did put the fresh strawberries through a food processor (which I didn’t cook at all) and that seemed to help juice them.
Nancy — Sounds like you have no excuse NOT to make yourself a martini. And thank you for the double compliment. I am honored that YOU think that DA would’ve approved:)
Ruthie — You’re right. I am exaggerating the labor involved. It is, afterall, less work than baking cookies. Next time I will make extra juice and keep it in the fridge for future instant gratification.
This is so fabulous! I never would have imagined this drink!
Love the pics ; )
So many recipies have you cook rhubarb to juice it. I have great luck just putting a little sugar over a bowl of rhubarb and letting it sit over night. It is a beautiful pink juice and the rhubarb still has plenty of flavor and texture to use in any baking recipe.
Have recently made a rhubarb wine. What I found to be very easy,(for those with patience) is to dice the rhubarb and put it in the freezer for a few months. Remove when you can’t wait any longer and press through cheeesecloth or mesh bag. The freezing process breaks down the cell walls and releases all the flavors and juices without the boil. The love of rhubarb (and experimenting), is probably a Maine thing!
We made a really interesting rhubarb cake that left us with a load of juice – as a by-product… googled “Rhubarb Martini” and found our way here – this is a 10 out of 10 martini that saw us picking more rhubarb (in the dark) as the night went on for further glasses of this pink delight – thanks for enlightenment…
Planning on serving the rhubarb martini at a BBQ on Saturday. I added a handful of raspberries, hoping to be able to eliminate the sugar. It worked, didn’t reduce the tartness too much, and made the color quite a pretty color! Can’t wait to serve this!
Delightful!! Too bad I didn’t read your recipe first and covered the rhubarb with about a quart of water.
I tried this with some modification to the rhubarb juice recipe:
I used the same ratio of rhubarb to water, cooked until mushy and ugly. I used my immersion blender to blend until smooth, and then I ran the Rhubarb puree through a very fine mesh strainer. I added approximately the same amount of sugar as above, and I added about another cup of water so the puree would resemble something closer to juice. This yielded about a half liter. The color of my martini is significantly lighter than what is pictured above, but the taste is great. And I have more than 2drinks for my efforts.
Wow, what a quality it is! Since mostly YouTube video lessons have no nice quality, except this is truly a pleasant quality video.