Rhubarb season is approaching, so it’s good to have some recipes in your back pocket to be ready to make use of this early spring bounty. Why not try Rhubarb Orange Butter? When I first made this tangy yet subtly sweet spread after moving to the Urban Cottage in 2015, it was a new twist on rhubarb for me. This post was originally published then, when the blog was still named Life Through the Kitchen Window, as you can see from the photos.
Apropos of Nothing …
When I bought my new house, I noticed there were no screens on almost all of the windows. Not to worry, I thought, they’ll be in the basement or the shed. Oh, you know where this is headed, don’t you? Yup, you’re right. There were no screens to be found. Did I mention that I’m a fresh air freak? Oh yeah, I like my windows open.
A couple weeks ago I found a place that makes screens, and glory be, today a wonderful fellow came and installed them. As I write this post, I’m sitting beside my wide-open office window. There’s a breeze wafting in, and it’s carrying — no kidding — the scent of lilacs and birdsong. It’s a zippittydoodah moment over here.
Celebrate Spring with Rhubarb
I’m celebrating not just fresh air and another step toward making this charming century cottage my home, but also spring’s bounty. Today is all about the rhubarb. When I was growing up on the farm, there was a 20-foot long bed of rhubarb running alongside the garage. I have no idea what Mom did with all of it (I think a lot went unharvested), but I do remember my brother and I dipping stalks in a dish of sugar to offset the rhubarb’s mouth puckering powers. There may have been some dares involved.
Rhubarb Orange Butter
A couple of years ago I made apple butter for the first time, and in researching that discovered there’s a whole range of fruit butters just waiting to be made. I filed that away for future reference, and then this week inspiration struck in the form of a post by Meghan Telpher for a rhubarb butter made with apple. That got me in recipe development mode, and I checked out this strawberry rhubarb butter on the blog Simple Bites, too. And then of course I made my own variation.
Do you remember the rhubarb compote I made three years ago? Oh, yes, I thought it was indelibly etched in your memory. That was the first time I tried the combination of rhubarb, orange and vanilla, so I converted that recipe into today’s Rhubarb Orange Butter. Okay, I know there’s nothing particularly springlike about oranges, and they certainly aren’t local to where I live, but this combination is a heady elixir indeed. There’s almost a floral quality to the flavour, and there’s just the right balance of tanginess and subtle sweetness. The texture that results from long simmering makes this butter versatile for a variety of uses. And, oh, the aroma while it was cooking!
I’ve been enjoying this fruit butter spread on toast, topping a plain vanilla and almond milk chia seed pudding (just leave out the raspberries from this recipe), and straight off a spoon. And I have more ideas, people, lots more ideas!
So. Good. So. Spring. Rhubarb Orange Butter is the taste equivalent of a breath of fresh air.
- 1 lb rhubarb (3 cups, chopped about 1/2″ thick)
- 1 orange, supremed (i.e., sectioned, with as much of the pith and membrane between sections removed as possible — you can find how-to guides out there on the internet)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste, or vanilla extract (I like the contrast of the dark flecks of vanilla bean in the paste)
- pinch of kosher salt
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Place the orange segments (and any juice squeezed from the membranes) and the chopped rhubarb into a blender and puree until smooth. Working with fruits isn’t an exact science in terms of measurements, but I ended up with about 3 cups of puree and it was surprisingly liquid.
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Pour the puree into a heavy medium saucepan. Stir in the honey, vanilla bean paste and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil and then turn the heat to a simmer. I didn’t use the lowest setting on my stove; rather, had it slightly above a simmer to effect a gentle bubbling. (Just to be clear, don’t put a lid on the pot, as the idea is to evaporate the juices. I used a splatter screen just to be on the safe side, to avoid having a mess to clean up.)
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Stir every 5 minutes or so, until the butter has reduced to the point where it’s thick, the bubbles are sticky looking and the colour has intensified. I cooked mine for 45 minutes. A couple of times when I let it go a little longer between stirs it felt a bit sticky on the bottom of the pan, but it didn’t burn. Still, it’s best to keep a careful eye on it as the sugars in the fruit and honey could easily burn. I stayed in the kitchen during this time to avoid forgetting to check on it.
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The original puree reduced by half, to 1-1/2 cups. The butter was thick and still a bit juicy, but suitable for spreading on toast. The next time I make this I just may let it simmer a full hour and see what the difference is.
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I decanted the final product evenly into two small mason jars that I had sterilized with boiling water. Because I’ll be using the rhubarb butter up in the next week or two I just stored them in the fridge, but for longer storage you can preserve it through canning. I read somewhere that you can also freeze fruit butters, although I haven’t tried that yet.
Let’s Do More with Rhubarb!
There are so many things you can do with über tangy rhubarb. If you like to drink your rhubarb, you might want to check out my Rhubarb Syrup and how I use it in two cocktails. Then you could have rhubarb for breakfast in these Rhubarb Bran Muffins, followed by rhubarb on your ribs with this Rhubarb Barbecue Sauce. Pucker up!
First Published 2015 05 28
Republished 2020 05 14
Looks really good.
you brought some memories with the rhubarb dunking in the sugar and making punker face… that receipe looks tasty….
love your screen story…
Eating that sour rhubarb was a rite of passage growing up! I’m glad this brought back the memories, Suzanne.
Thanks again coming soon for rhubarb…
Yes, it won’t be long!
Well, I think this combination must be just wonderfully flavored! I haven’t made any fruit butters yet, so I’ll keep this one in mind for sure:) xx
Thanks, Barb! I’d love to hear what you think of it if you try your hand at fruit butter.
I love rhubarb (also used to dip it in sugar; a trick my grandmother taught me) but my husband hates it. I’ll bet he’d eat this, though. It’s the general slimy consistency he dislikes. Turning it into “butter” is a brilliant idea!
Thanks for the idea!
Funny, the texture of rhubarb has never bothered me, but that’s very personal thing. The ‘wrong’ texture can be hugely off-putting! Maybe this ‘butter’ will get your husband on the rhubarb bandwagon!
I’ll have to find some rhubarb. I think the season might be over here. Maybe up in New Hampshire there is still some (we’re heading up there on Thursday).
[…] « Previous / Next » By Marlene Cornelis / May 31, 2015 / Life Inspired / Leave a comment […]
[…] there’s one thing that’s important to me, it’s having my windows open, but in weather like this I’m willing to trade off fresh air (not that you could call the […]
[…] This Rhubarb Orange Butter is just the thing! I’ve also spread Rhubarb Compote on baked goods; it’s great for baking. I may try using some in those muffins sometime, along with the chunks of rhubarb. It freezes well, too. Strawberry Rhubarb Jam is another classic and I’ll be making some more soon; you can see some pretty pictures of it on my blog and I point you in the direction of the recipe that I used for it. […]
[…] Just like English, culinary terms don’t always seem based on common sense. “Butters” might have butter in them, but they might not! Here are a few more spreads to illustrate that point: Chocolate Almond Spread, Orange Maple Butter and Rhubarb Orange Butter. […]
I love rhubarb! We used to have it in the back yard when I was a child. I used to pick it and suck on the raw stems for a treat that made you pucker up.
I have fond memories of my Mom’s rhubarb patch And, lot of rhubarb recipes. Stay tuned!