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I want More Rhubarb

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Rhubarb - How to Eat, Cook, Grow and Buy More Rhubarb

RHUBARB Jam is such a treat in Christmas cookies! It'll be a great surprise for your friends and family to revisit the taste of spring while celebrating Christmas in mid-December!

Here you'll find Rhubarb recipes, learn how to eat the rhubarb stalks - raw - right out of the garden, links to great Rhubarb resources, Rhubarb growing tips, and where to buy rhubarb to eat, and where to buy rhubarb to plant.

Rhubarb brings togehter bitter and sweet into a wonderful yin-yang experience. Rhubarb - raw or in strawberry rhubarb pie or rhubarb jam - harkens to the joys of Spring.If you've had Rhubarb, you know its intoxicating effects. If you've never had Rhubarb, no explanation will suffice.

By the way, Athena. took this picture of a lovely rhubarb pie & posted it here on Flickr. She and her friend actually made this rhubarb pie (it's beautiful!) - and she posted the recipe here on her blog.

eating rhubarb

Eating Rhubarb Raw
a.k.a. Being a Kid Again

How to Eat Rhubarb

Oh sure, you can cook it up into pie or jam.
But kids know how to really eat rhubarb - RAW!

Some of my favorite childhood memories are of picking rhubarb from the huge rhubarb patch that grew (ever larger) at the edge of my grandmother's yard. Then, we'd go inside, clean and cut it up, get out the plate of sugar, and play Boggle. Now, that's a great childhood!

Here's what you do:
  1. Buy it (the leafy tops should already be cut off because they're poisonous), or
  2. Grow it & cut off a few stalks (and cut off the tops & throw into the compost pile)
  3. Get a plate - paper plates work just fine on a table, or a real plate if you're going to sit with it on your lap on the warm summer grass, or
  4. Get a bowl - bowls are good too, but you can't roll it as easily in the bowl
  5. Peel the tough outside of the stalk with a paring knife, if you want. Of course, kids never do this
  6. Wet the bottom inch (a reasonable bit-size) of the stalk by putting it in your mouth
  7. Then, dip & roll it in the sugar
  8. Then bit off that section & smile, pucker & chew all at the same time.
  9. Ahhh, summertime!

COOKING RHUBARB

a.k.a. rhubarb recipes

How to Cook Rhubarb

Okay, so what if the other adult(s) in your family don't truly appreciate the magic of childhood by eating rhubarb raw?

Well, they can still enjoy the magical flavor of Rhubarb! Just cook it up into a Strawberry-Rhubarb pie or jam (my 2 favorites). Or, you can try the Southern favority - Rhubarb & Custard. A creamy treat.

These 3 Rhubarb books are my recommendations (hand-picked, no global searches here!) - they are the Rhubarb go-to basics & classics.

Enjoy introducing your family to the puckering sweetness of Rhubarb!

Also, see below for an Emeril Lagasse Rhubarb pie recipe and a Video on how to make Strawberry-Rhubarb pie!
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How to Make Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

[Go to the 8-minute marker] Angela does a great job demonstrating how to make Strawberry Rhubarb pie!

Complete with wonderful crumb topping instructions & total strawberry & rhubarb preparations!
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Emeril Lagasse's version of Rhubarb Strawberry Pie

From FoodNetwork.com
Rhubarb and Strawberry Pie with Almond Crumb Topping Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2000
Show: Emeril Live
Episode: Emeril's Farmers Market

7 tablespoons butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
1 lemon, juiced
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour
2 pounds fresh rhubarb, trim root end, peel and cut 1/4-inch thick
2 pounds strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/4 cup rum
1 cup sliced almonds
1 unbaked 10-inch pie shell
8 scoops of Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a large saute pan, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter. Add the sugar, 1/2 cup of the brown sugar, lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of the flour. Stir the mixture for 1 minute, to dissolve the sugars. Add the rhubarb and cook for 4 to 6 minutes. Add the strawberries and continue to saute for 3 minutes. Add the rum and carefully flame the mixture. Saute for 1 minute. Mix thoroughly and remove from the heat. Cool the mixture. In a mixing bowl, combine the remaining butter, brown sugar, flour and sliced almonds. Using your hands, blend well, until the mixture resembles a crumb-like texture. Pour the rhubarb and strawberry filling into the pie shell. Sprinkle the crumb filling evenly over the fruit filling. Place the pie in the oven and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the pie from the oven. Let the pie cool before serving, about 10 minutes.

A Beautiful Plate deserving of Your Rhubarb Pie

You grew it, you cooked it, and now you're serving it. Do it in style. Add to your guests amazement of the truly remarkable Rhubarb experience.

Or, you bought the rhubarb pie filling, put it in a pie shell, and are about to sit out on the deck and dig in. As Mom used to say, "use a plate!" And a good one at that, because after all, in the North, summer only happens for a short time, once a year. Live it to the fullest!
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growing rhubarb

Growing Rhubarb

How to Grow Rhubarb

Get the best advice straight from the expert - Marion Owen - a masterful gardener in Alaska who grows her own Rhubarb - and teaches you how you can grow Rhubarb too! [That's right, she grows Rhubarb in Alaska!]

She too shares the love of Rhubarb. And you'll find out all about how to grow Rhubarb, along with a couple of her favorite recipes, at her Rhubarb pages.

Be forewarned, she recommends that if you live in the South, your best bet to home-grown Rhubarb is to convince a relative or friend in the North to grow Rhubarb for you and ship it to you.

So, if you live in the Northern half of the U.S. (and you know who you are - we usually have soil made of a variety of rocks, boulders and maple tree roots), or even points farther North, check out Marion Owen's Rhubarb pages and start growing your own source of the magical fruit known as Rhubarb today!
Marion Owen's Plantea.com Rhubarb Pages
Marion Owen is an inspirational Alaskan Gardener who also loves Rhubarb. Truly a delight of a Rhubarb (and gardening) site!

Where to Buy Rhubarb plants

to grow rhubarb in your garden

Rhubarb grows from a root, called a rhizome (not from a seed). This link will take you right to the Rhubarb page.
Raintree Nursery - Rhubarb page
Order yours now. Plant in the Spring. Eat in the Summer. Oh yeah!

Rhubarb Books for Gardeners

Ok, you've gotta grow the rhubarb before you can make the pie. Now, don't get me wrong. If you don't have the inclination to grow anything, you can certainly buy your rhubarb from your local farmer's market or supermarket (but rhubarb is getting more and more difficult to find in the supermarket these days). But, if you enjoy having a little garden, or a few plants, or even a big veggie and flower garden, then you'll want to know the lovely secrets of growing the unique-ness that is Rhubarb!

Rhubarb is super easy to grow in the northern half of the US. And, fear not! It need not take over your garden! You can either stop it from spreading - OR - as I do - you can grow it in containers!

Now, if you're in Texas, your rhubarb probably won't thrive, so there's a veggie gardening book in here for you too, as a consolation. Maybe you can reach out to someone in the Guestbook and see if they can send you some of their home-grown rhubarb!
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Plantea.com - Rhubarb Pages

How to Compost & Feed Your Rhubarb

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The Rhubarb Compendium

The Rhubarb Compendium
Its title says it all - Rhubarb's botanical info, history, festivals, mail order sources, growing instructions, propagation, culinary uses, recipes & medicinal uses! All in an outlined format :)

already made rhubarb

How to Get Home-Made Rhubarb Jams & Pie-filling & More

Gotta Have Rhubarb Jam Now!

Idea: Rhubarb Jam for your Christmas cookies!

Barry Farm (Bill & Linda Barry) has been doing us all a service for many years - growing good food without chemicals - and then harvesting, cooking, and providing it to us in the yummy homemade jam flavors that we love - especially Rhubarb!

All at your fingertips right here!

Want to learn more about the who, why and what-for about Barry Farm? Click HERE - BARRY FARM.
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Barry Farm Prepared Rhubarb for those who are Sugar-Free

They said it couldn't be done. They said rhubarb loving diabetics had to suffer and abstain. But, Barry Farm proved them wrong!

And now, to the delight of your diabetic loved-ones, you can make rhubarb (or strawberry-rhubarb) pie for desert, or toast with rhubarb (or strawberry-rhubarb) jam for breakfast - or even a midnight snack!

Oh brave new world, with such wonderful rhubarb farms in it!
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And the Joy of Barry Farm Prepared Rhubarb Continues ...

I know, I hear you saying it from way over here in NJ, what else could they do with rhubarb? Don't we have all the rhubarb bases covered already? We've got the rhubarb versus strawberry rhubarb versions, we've got the jam, and thankfully, for convenience sake, the pie filling. We've even got the sugar-free invention, in all four categories of rhubarb!

What more wonderful unique combinations lay ahead? Well, let's scroll down and find out! Look what's for dinner tonight!
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Rhubarb Pie

It's already made! Yahooo!
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Lake Wobegon U.S.A. - Rhubarb episode

(audio tapes - listen to "Rhubarb" in the car!)

Garrison Keillor's radio tales are absolutely a hysterical piece of nostalgia. And now, you can hear his "Rhubarb" story!
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Don McLean's Classic "American (Rhubarb) Pie"

[Just imagine a version of the lyrics, when, come Fall, we sing, "Bye, bye, Miss Rhubarb Pie" - such a sad event]
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Wear your Rhubarb Pride (and make someone smile & pucker today!)

Y'know, I love t-shirts. I love ones that speak to something I love or enjoy or that I do. [And, I don't like obnoxious t-shirts, but then again, I'm not an obnoxious kind of person.]

So, Rhubarb t-shirts fit that bill - they're fun, they're curious, and they speak to something I really enjoy!
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quilting rhubarb

Quilting with Rhubarb

Best Friend Quilting - Moda's "Rhubarb & Ginger" Quilt Fabric

Ooooh, these would make some lovely quilts!
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Rhubarb Patch Blog

With a name like Rhubarb Patch it's gotta be good, right? I stumbled upon this blog, and it's very wonderful "garden of knitting, quilting and baking"! Wow.

This photo is of a quilt that Anita made - in wonderful Rhubarb colors, I might add - and there's a lovely story on the blog to go with it. I agree with Anita - I love Kaffe's fabrics!

Hand-Made Amish Quilts with the color and comfort of Rhubarb

Rhubarb is about comfort - comfort food and taking comfort in the old-fashioned comforting ways of making nurturing things with love and care.

So, a perfect companion for a rhubarb lover is an Amish quilt - and what better than an Amish quilt in a rhubarb color scheme?!

By the way, in case you're wondering, YES, the rhubarb-loving quilter in your life would ABSOLUTELY LOVE a hand-made Amish quilt. A quilter is a very wonderful creative artist, who loves her/his works, but also loves the joy of the exquisite works of others - and especially loves the idea that he/she didn't have to make all those little stitches herself/himself!
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enjoying rhubarb

Enjoying Summertime
with Your Rhubarb Pie

NJ Backyard Birds - watch them while you're eating your Rhubarb Pie

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All Things Rhubarb - Table of Contents

An EZ way to get to your favorite part of this Squidoo Rhubarb lens

Whether you grow it, cook it, eat it, or just enjoy the summertime around it, you're free to enjoy Rhubarb here.

Want more Rhubarb info? Click "Favorites" or "Friend Me" above, and you'll automatically receive updates as I post them! Squidoo makes it ooooh soooo easy!
  1. eating rhubarb
  2. How to Eat Rhubarb
  3. COOKING RHUBARB
  4. How to Cook Rhubarb
  5. How to Make Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
  6. Emeril Lagasse's version of Rhubarb Strawberry Pie
  7. A Beautiful Plate deserving of Your Rhubarb Pie
  8. Are you an indoctrinated rhubarb lover yet?
  9. growing rhubarb
  10. How to Grow Rhubarb
  11. Where to Buy Rhubarb plants
  12. Rhubarb Books for Gardeners
  13. Plantea.com - Rhubarb Pages
  14. How to Compost & Feed Your Rhubarb
  15. The Rhubarb Compendium
  16. already made rhubarb
  17. Gotta Have Rhubarb Jam Now!
  18. Barry Farm Prepared Rhubarb for those who are Sugar-Free
  19. And the Joy of Barry Farm Prepared Rhubarb Continues ...
  20. Rhubarb Pie
  21. Lake Wobegon U.S.A. - Rhubarb episode
  22. Don McLean's Classic "American (Rhubarb) Pie"
  23. Wear your Rhubarb Pride (and make someone smile & pucker today!)
  24. quilting rhubarb
  25. Best Friend Quilting - Moda's "Rhubarb & Ginger" Quilt Fabric
  26. Rhubarb Patch Blog
  27. Hand-Made Amish Quilts with the color and comfort of Rhubarb
  28. enjoying rhubarb
  29. NJ Backyard Birds - watch them while you're eating your Rhubarb Pie
  30. local rhubarb
  31. Farmers' Markets (to buy local rhubarb)
  32. Where in YOUR STATE can I go to a Farmers Markets to get rhubarb?
  33. Northern NJ's Best Fresh Rhubarb Source - and Pick-Your-Own Strawberries
  34. NJ's Community Supported Garden at Genesis Farms - a Food Cooperative
  35. We want to know - your favorite Rhubarb experiences!
  36. Word of the Day for rhubarb lovers
  37. My Squidoo Lenses
  38. More Rhubarb Lenses
  39. Kids & Money - Teaching Wealth Habits to Your Kids
  40. Want to Learn More about Kids and Money?
  41. Countdown to the Kitchen Kettle Rhubarb Festival

local rhubarb

Where to Get Fresh
Local Rhubarb

Farmers' Markets (to buy local rhubarb)

These days, you'll be lucky to find rhubarb in the supermarket. You know how supermarkets are - if they're not trucked or flown in from thousands of miles away, and in super-high demand, and completely packaged, the supermarkets aren't interested in selling it.

Rhubarb deserves special attention. Heck, the Good Lord only gives us fresh rhubarb a few weeks a year. Get the good stuff. Get the rhubarb that's grown at your local farms.

[And plus, if you're an environmentalist, the gas you use in your car driving to the farmers market will be far less than the petrol used to ship the rhubarb to your supermarket.]

Of course, if you're in the Southern states, you'll probably have to settle for supermarket rhubarb. And if your supermarket doesn't have it - demand it! Start a petition! Or, petition a friend, a relative, or a gardening blogger (maybe Craig's list or ebay) to mail you some!
NJ Farmers Markets, Roadside Markets, and Pick-Your-Own farms
This NJ site is absolutely wonderful and very user friendly. Here are some tips about getting farm fresh rhubarb in NJ: (1) If there are not lots of farmers markets in your county, fear not! NJ has tons and tons of roadside stands - utilize those! There are some roadside stands near me that are on an honor system - no attendant, just the fruits and veggies and a payment cup. Gotta love rural NJ! (2) The BEST place in Northern NJ to get rhubarb is Farms View in Wayne - and it's a complete experience - see more info below. (3) Beyond rhubarb, NJ has great strawberries, tomatoes and corn. In fact in Northern NJ, we could live on tomatoes and corn for the second half of the summer. Sometimes I even carry around a salt shaker with me in the car and stop by a roadside farm stand on my way from the courthouse to the office in August and grab a tomato and just go to town!
PA Farmers Markets, U-Pick & Buy Local Info
Wow! What a wonderful resource people in Pennsylvania have in this website! It goes way beyond the list of regional farmers markets. And it's super user friendly - just check off the options that you're looking for - farmers markets, u-pick, farms, grocers, restaurants, Bed & Breakfasts - and voila!

It's all about "Buy Fresh, Buy Local!" I found farmers markets, farms, CSAs, buying clubs and grocers in NE PA all carrying the tasty rhubarb! Wahooo!
NY Farmers Market Federation
Yet another lovely, well-planned, user-friendly farmers market website. Find NY farmers markets and farms in your area.

The one closest to us is the Warwick NY (Orange County) - just over the NY/NJ state line - Farmers Market - mid May through October, Sundays 9 am to 2 pm, in the South Street Parking Lot (as if you could miss all of the bustling activity!). Here's what the Warwick NY farmers market says: "Twenty three regional vendors supply diversified farm products such as organic, natural and traditional grown produce, artisinal cheese, breads, pastries, meats, fruit jams, wines, plants, cut flowers and prepared foods. Frequent chef demonstrations are from local restaurants using products from the market. Local organizations are present to promote their specific programs, e.g. gardeners, scouts, hospital auxillary." I'm sure fresh rhubarb, rhubarb jam, and rhubarb pies all fall under one of those categories.

While you're there buying your farm fresh rhubarb in Warwick, NY, be sure to stop in the world's best toy store - "The Toy Chest" (hours on Sunday are from noon to 4 pm) - all the good stuff (like the kind on my Squidoo Non-Electronic Gifts & Toys for Kids lens), no stupid or plastic junk.

Where in YOUR STATE can I go to a Farmers Markets to get rhubarb?

Tell us in a blurb in the guestbook & we'll add your state's farmers market guide to the list above! And, if you own, or know of, a great, farm stand that sells great rhubarb (then again, really, is there such a thing as rhubarb that isn't great?), tell us that too, and we'll add a link to it.

Northern NJ's Best Fresh Rhubarb Source - and Pick-Your-Own Strawberries

and an overall great source for farm fresh anything!

In case you're not into gardening, can't garden, or need your garden space for other "esential" items ...

Farms View in Wayne, NJ, just a couple miles off of Route 23, is an entire family fun experience. There's animals - rabbits, chickens, goats, for the kids to look at. There's tons of flowers. There's garden knick-knacks and spinning things. There's lots of berries to pick-your-own. When we picked strawberries there last June, we had a huge selection - and it was late in the season!

And of course, there's huge and tasty and tender RHUBARB. The best rhubarb to be found in Northern New Jersey, in my humble opinion.

And, there's TONS of farm fresh veggies to choose from, that are grown right there on the family farm.

What a great place!
Farms View, Wayne NJ - 973-839-1212
They open on March 13, 2008 with lots of gardening supplies and Easter flowers. The Easter Bunny will be there (weather permitting) on Good Friday and Saturday. Of course, the wonderful animals are there year-round.

NJ's Community Supported Garden at Genesis Farms - a Food Cooperative

A great place for RHUBARB & sound growing principles in action!

I am lucky enough to live withing driving distance (about an hour) of Genesis Farms, in Blairstown, NJ. I call it a food/farm coop. But, I don't think that that's the technically accurate term for it. So I'll give you a snippet from their website - they describe it better than I could because all I know is that the value per membership dollar is huge, people love it, you don't have to be part of the farming, but you can if you want to, you'll eat very healthy because you'll have tons of fresh food:

"The garden at Genesis Farm was established in 1988. The founding members were deeply concerned about safety issues around pesticide use. While their own lifestyles did not allow them to raise their own food, they responded positively to the initiative of a Community Supported Garden (CSG) at Genesis Farm and were willing to pre-buy their food in this creative new venture.

The majority of work is done by a small team of gardeners. The support of the gardeners, all of the operating costs, and the capital improvements are carried by the shareholder community. All of the abundance of the food is divided among the shareholders. Food left over after distribution hours is given to local food pantries. The farm is working toward removing itself from the inequities, injustices and ecological devastation of the present market system. It is a social as well as an economic alternative.

At present, the CSG uses approximately 51 acres of land through a 50-year lease with the Dominican Sisters of Caldwell, New Jersey, who have protected the land through farmland preservation. There are three greenhouses that extend the growing season and provide some fresh salad greens over the winter months. Over 10 acres are in cultivation with vegetables and berries. In addition there is a 256-tree orchard and hardy kiwi vines."

If you live within driving distance of Genesis Farms (produce/flower/etc pick-up is once a week, or once every other week), consider joining Genesis Farms (i.e. buying a "share" or "half-share" for smaller households). But, you've gotta do it early in the season because the membership "shares" sell out!

We want to know - your favorite Rhubarb experiences!

As a kid, visiting Grandma's backyard & picking rhubarb to bring inside to a fresh bowl of sugar.

As a big kid, making my first strawberry-rhubarb pie.

As a bigger kid, introducing rhubarb to the un-indoctrinated.

What's your favorite Rhubarb story?

  • Athena of aquatique.net May 18, 2012 @ 7:56 pm | delete
    Hi! Thank you for posting my image and crediting it and my blog post! Probably one of the loveliest mentions I've had on the web. My friend who I made this with was reminiscing about that pie. It was our first pie from scratch and since then, I've done a few more and am much better at it. I still love rhubarb and am very sad how short the season and availability of it is in Canada. I like to do mine in rhubarb crumbles. Very easy and quick and super delicious.
  • blanckj Jun 4, 2011 @ 8:31 pm | delete
    Thanks for all the rhubarb tips.
  • wordstock May 19, 2011 @ 9:02 am | delete
    I don't live up-north but have grown rhubarb. It's is my husbands favorite anything. So much great info here and it is going to take hours to read it all. Thanks!!!
  • BuildABetterMouseTrip Apr 18, 2011 @ 12:58 pm | delete
    I'm hoping to put in a couple of rhubarb plants this spring. We're getting our plants from "High Altitude Rhubarb Organic Farm & Nursery". We plan to follow the instructions on their website. See: http://highaltituderhubarb.com/Growing_and_Harvesting_Rhubarb.aspx
  • puerdycat Mar 29, 2011 @ 2:59 pm | delete
    Love FRESH-Rhubarb and FRESH-Strawberry Pie! Have waxed sentimental over the Rhubarb patches of my childhood, and this year got myself a root. Just tiny but I'm starting it inside to give it a headstart. Like, fave & rolling to my G is for Garden!
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Word of the Day for rhubarb lovers

Rhubarb lovers are smart people, and cool people, and funky people - a complex, eclectic combination of brains, creativity, and, in case you didn't notice, humility. We're always looking to grow in new and different ways.

So, here's one way to grow - learn a new word while you're inhaling the aroma and complex flavors of strawberry-rhubarb pie!
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My Squidoo Lenses

Squidoo by Tree

I've made some cool lenses about some other fun things that I love - kids and money, New Jersey backyard birds, law of attraction for kids, Champ House, and more. Stop by here and enjoy the browsing!
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More Rhubarb Lenses

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Kids & Money - Teaching Wealth Habits to Your Kids

Have you realized that you'd like to spare your children the burden of repeating your money mistakes? (or, of the poor money lessons that you were taught as a child?) Do you want your kids to learn NOW - while they're young - the money wisdom and skills that you are acquiring on the "Get Out of Debt Now" or "Law of Attraction" paths that you are (fortunately) now on?

Would you like your kids to learn Abundance and Wise Money Management now, when they're young? Would you like your kids to build strong habits that will help them save, spend and donate money wisely?

Go To The Kids' Bank Book Now to get the e-book.

Want to Learn More about Kids and Money?

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In Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (heart of Amish country), each year Kitchen Kettle knows how to really celebrate this glorious tart, fun fruit!

Countdown to Kitchen Kettle Rhubarb Festival

Kitchen Kettle Rhubarb Festival: May 20, 2011

by

TheresaMarkham

Did I mention that I love RHUBARB?!! I also love living in scenic Northwest New Jersey with my husband, Chuck, and daughter Zoe, (& we're occassionally... more »

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