Rubarb Mistake

Oddly, some of my favorite recipe ideas have come from mistakes. of course, some mistakes have just yielded inedible messes. Over the weekend, I got lucky. there was a flourish of rhubarb in the garden as part of the jungle that all thse rain has produced. I sawed off--a bread knife works well--a few handfuls of stalks discarding the poisonous leaves. I washed them, cut out the nasty bits and trimmed off the root ends. I cut the stalks in one-inch pieces and put them in a pot with sugar, mixed them up and set them to cook. In the meantime, I went back to the computer and forgot my rhubarb. By the time I remembered, the mess was a medium brown and I had to poke and scrape to get the caramelized bits off the bottom and out of the corners.
I was about to discard it when I stuck a finger in and took a small taste. To my shock and delight, it was cara melized and delicious. Consequently, I have made it into a recipe. It's worth trying. Stir and be a bit more careful than I was. it makes a great dessert with a splash of coconut milk.

1/2 pound rhubarb, about 4 cups
3/4 cups sugar

Put rhubarb and sugar in a six-inch saucepan. Stir thoroughly. Stir over medium heat until the rhubarb gives off juice and the sugar is dissolved. If you are nervous about it scorching, add a half cup of water. Stir and cook at a slow boil for about forty-five minutes stirring from time to time. If there is a lot of liquid--there should be some--boil to dy slightly.
That's it and makes one and a half cups which should be enough for six people. It is very intense.
If there is trouble cleaning the pot, try scouring it with coarse salt-an old navy trick.