CCE serving up fresh treats

PHOTO BY ROB PRICE Jon Sterlace, a Cornell Cooperative Extension nutrition educator, offers a sampling of rhubard bread pudding at the Extension's booth in the Wednesday farmers' market in Bath's Pulteney Park.

BATH - Wednesday in Bath means taking a stroll through the park to smell the bright flowers and gather some fresh produce in your basket.

Now, Cornell Cooperative Extension has staked out a tent in the middle of the vendors to bring together both the agricultural and nutritional worlds in an educational forum.

Chef Jon Sterlace, an Extension nutrition educator, selects a seasonal product from one of the market vendors and prepares nutritious samples of recipes using that product.

Horticulture educator Stephanie Mehlenbacher provides information on growing that product. On their first outing of the season last week, the Extension team featured rhubarb. Using Phil Glosick's honey and a Master Gardener's donated rhubarb, Jon whipped up Rhubarb Bread Pudding and Iced Rhubarb Yogurt (see recipes below). The recipes were chosen because they are low in fat, sugar and salt and high in nutrients.

Nutrition Team Leader Loree Symonds says the Farmer's Market Nutrition Program fits two of Cooperative Extension's initiatives.

The Eat Smart New York program helps people stretch their food dollars while eating healthy food, and the agriculture initiative encourages people to buy local produce.

The Market also supports Farmer's Market coupons for WIC recipients and senior citizens. The Extension educators cross promote Farmer's Market at their WIC and senior educational programs.

Stephanie prepared a plant description and profile for rhubarb to hand out to Market visitors. "Rhubarb is one of the simplest vegetables to grow because it's a perennial, and it is vigorous and strong," she said.

She describes rhubarb as a vegetable with a tart flavor, so it should be served sweetened and cooked. Only the thick red and green stalks are edible. Select rhubarb that has a bright, vivid color and feels dry, firm and crisp. Avoid stalks that are limp or wilted or have brown areas.

Rhubarb can be refrigerated in a plastic bag up to one week. It should be washed well before using. After the leaves or root ends are removed, slice or chop the stalk as desired. Then it is typically stewed or added to recipes for baked goods. Rhubarb will react with metal, so it should be cooked only in non aluminum pots.

This vegetable is not eaten raw. It can be served paired with sweeteners in sauces, baked goods and desserts. Strawberries and rhubarb are frequently used together since they ripen in the same season. When cooked, rhubarb provides Vitamins C and K, calcium, and fiber.

When planting rhubarb, it will work best in full sun, but can tolerate partial shade. It needs well-drained, fertile soil, but requires little fertilization after planting. The plants are placed one to three inches deep and two to three feet apart, and then it will grow year after year. It is relatively pest free, except for rhubarb curcurlio, potato stem borer, mites, slugs, and crown rot disease. Stephanie reminds gardeners to only harvest the stems and not the leaves. Never harvest rhubarb after a hard frost or freeze.

Stephanie also fielded questions from gardeners on tent caterpillars and when to fertilize your lawn while she was at the Market. The Master Gardener hotline is open every Tuesday and Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to noon for garden-related questions at 607-664-2307.

Jon served over 100 samples at the Farmer's Market on Wednesday. People usually responded to the word "rhubarb" with a positive "Mmmmm" or with a negative holding up their hand in front of their face. He found only one out of ten did not like it. He then tried to encourage them to sample just a little. He said the rhubarb bread pudding was made with whole wheat bread to incorporate fiber, and the iced rhubarb yogurt included nonfat plain yogurt to promote June as dairy month.

Jon is planning tasty recipes using spinach and green onions and strawberries for the next Cooperative Extension market samples. Stephanie says a plant division demonstration was very popular last year, and she plans to do that again this year at the market. Visit them at the Market on June 18 and 25. And for much more information on buying local, eating healthy and improving your family's lives, visit www.putknowledgetowork.co m.
Recipes
Rhubarb Bread Pudding
Makes 6 servings
4 bread slices
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
3 Tbsp. margarine or butter
3 cups rhubarb cut in 1"
pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1. Spread each slice of
bread with 1 tsp. of butter; cut
buttered bread into 1/2 cubes
2. Combine sugar and
cinnamon.
3. Arrange half of rhubarb

in the bottom of a greased 8"
baking dish.
4. Top with half of bread
cubes and half of sugar mixture.
Repeat.
5. Dot with remaining
butter.
6. Cover and bake in
375°F oven for 20 minutes.
7. Uncover and bake 20
to 25 minutes more until lightly
browned.
Iced Rhubarb Yogurt
Makes about 12 1/4 cup
servings
2 cups stewed rhubarb
1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt
3 Tbsp. granulated sugar or
honey
2 Tbsp. orange juice
1. Steam rhubarb until it
is soft.
2. In food processor,
puree rhubarb until smooth.
3. Blend in yogurt, sugar
and juice.
4. Freeze in ice cream
maker according to instructions
or cover and freeze in a
shallow metal pan 3-4 hours or
until almost firm.
5. Break up mixture and
process in food processor until
smooth.
6. Freeze in chilled airtight
container for 1 hour or
until firm.
Article provided by Cornell Cooperative Extension