What cha gonna do, what cha gonna do with all that rhu..barb?

It's a rhubarb jungle out there! At least it is in my yard. I have a lot of rhubarb plants. During rhubarb season I sometimes question my wisdom-or lack thereof for planting so many. In my defense, many of the plants were here when we moved in.......but then I stupidly decided that I needed to add a few more-like 20....nobody needs that much rhubarb.

We love rhubarb, don't get me wrong, but thinking of new and exciting uses for rhubarb has gotten to be a challenge over the years. I mentioned in a previous post that I was going to make Blueberry-rhubarb, or 'Blubarb' jam, which, by the way, turned out fabulously delicious. I have been trying for some time to find a recipe for plain old rhubarb jam..a real recipe...not a rhubarb mixed with Jello recipe. I am sorry if I have offended anyone that goes the Jello route, but to me that is, well, fruit and Jello, not jam. After scouring the Internet and only coming up with said Jello recipes, I finally turned to my little booklet from Stringtown grocery (my favorite, OK, the only Amish grocery store within an hours drive) and found a very simple recipe for plain old rhubarb jam....using pectin...not Jello. After saying that I am wondering if my dear friend, Miss Effie, is scoffing at me for using pectin just as I am picking on the Jello people. Miss Effie goes old-school and makes real jam by just cooking her jam to perfection-no cheating with pectin for her....Miss Eff is a hard-core canner and even teaches classes on the subject.......of course Miss Effie also does something called "nearly naked canning" so sometimes we wonder about Miss Eff....she doesn't teach classes in that though. I digress.

Here is the recipe:

So, first you are going to need some rhubarb. It should be easy to find...call me.

You will also need pectin. If you are not lucky enough to have an Amish grocery store nearby then you can buy the box of pectin.
Simple, simple, simple. Rhubarb Jam

4 cups thinly sliced rhubarb

1 box pectin

6 1/2 cups sugar.

1 cup water...cause rhubarb just isn't very juicy.

Pre-measure sugar and set aside.

Mix rhubarb, water, and pectin in large kettle. Bring mixture to a full boil. Quickly add sugar and bring back to a boil and boil for one minute. Skim off foam; pour into sterile jars with tight fitting lids. Process in hot water bath for 10 minutes. Done!

I was hoping for a prettier color than what it looks like in the jar.
But out of the jar it has a lovely pinkish color. My friends reading this are probably wondering how that white bread made it's way into my house.

OK, so...that used 4 cups of rhubarb......hmmmm. I needed to find something else to do with this stuff and as luck would have it, it looks like other people have faced this dilemma because I came across the holy grail website of rhubarb uses....someone had waaaay too much time, and rhubarb, on their hands!