Rhubarb ready for the stove Credit: Hannah Palmer Egan

When I was little, my grandmother would make this tart rhubarb (no strawberries) compote and give it to me as a treat with ice cream. I believe she canned it, and she’d leave the excess in a bowl in the fridge. I would sneak in there, standing in the fridge with the door open (the light never worked), and suck down spoons full of the stuff.

I had kind of forgotten about it until recently, but today I made something similar, with some stems I grabbed from River Berry Farm in Fairfax. Guess what? It’s super easy — takes less than 15 minutes to make, from start to finish…

I ate it for lunch, parfait style, and it was as lovely as I remember it — quite tart and a little sweet, and perfect with super-smooth vanilla bean ice cream from Strafford Organic Creamery and a few strawberries from Adam’s Berry Farm. 

Tart meets sweet with rhubarb and vanilla Credit: Hannah Palmer Egan

Spiced Rhubarb Compote
Makes about 2 cups

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups rhubarb, cut to 1-inch pieces
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 2-3 allspice berries
  • 1/4 cup ice cider or apple juice
  • 2 generous splashes white balsamic or plum vinegar

Preparation:

  1. Place the rhubarb and sugar in a medium saucepan. Mix thoroughly and let sit a few minutes until the rhubarb begins to release some of its water. 
  2. Add the remaining ingredients, stir well and heat over medium-low heat. Cook uncovered for 5 minutes, stirring now and then, until the rhubarb begins to puff up but not disintegrate. 
  3. Remove the solids and reserve in a jar. Simmer the remaining liquid another 5-10 minutes until it thickens enough to coat a spoon; place this in another jar, cover and throw into a cold water bath so it cools quickly (mostly because you’ll want to eat it right away!)
  4. Place a quarter cup (more if you like) of the warm rhubarb mixture in the bottom of a bowl; top with a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream, and drizzle the cool, syrupy liquid over top. 
  5. Garnish with fresh strawberries, if you’ve got them.
Credit: Hannah Palmer Egan

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Hannah Palmer Egan was a Seven Days food writer from 2014-2019. She was a 2017 James Beard Journalism Award finalist for her coverage of Vermont's food and agriculture industries, and received food writing awards from the Association of Alternative Newsmedia. She lives in northeast Pennsylvania with her family, where she works in the outdoor lifestyle and adventure tourism industry.