Rhubarb - where it all started.

Celia Celia with one of the first batches of rhubarb sherbet
Celia Celia with one of the first batches of rhubarb sherbet

Celia with one of our first batches of rhubarb sherbet, circa 2010

Where to start? You might think an ice cream cookbook would start with vanilla. But we’re going to our company’s beginning, rhubarb. While this chapter focuses on rhubarb, you can adapt any of the recipes below to citrus fruits like lemon, lime, and grapefruit.

Rhubarb Roots

When our daughter Celia was seven years old, our local arts council decided it would be a good idea to host a “farmer’s market,” despite there being only one farm in Juneau. The council wanted to highlight goods that were grown and made here in Juneau. As you can imagine, almost every table in the market was filled with local berry jams and jellies. But Jessica had recently bought me an ice cream maker at a garage sale, and I was on an ice cream making tear. I decided it would be fun to make and sell raspberry sherbet at the market and a good way for Celia to practice her math skills making change for customers.

We harvested raspberries from the yards of indulgent neighbors and made sherbet throughout the week on our tiny ice cream maker, saved it up in the freezer, and sold it on Saturday mornings. Brisk sales soon exhausted the neighborhood’s limited supply of raspberries.

In a moment of inspiration, Celia and I decided to adapt the sherbet recipe for rhubarb, a plant happily growing on its own initiative in our small backyard. And the rhubarb flavor was even a bigger hit than the raspberry. The sherbet let the fresh, tart taste of rhubarb shine, balanced by the small amount of cream in the mixture. We knew then that we had tapped into the local palate, where rhubarb triggers memories of youthful moments dipping rhubarb stalks in sugar on a brilliant summer day

On and off for the next several years, Celia and I would make rhubarb sherbet and sell it at various markets and events, culminating in a booth at Juneau’s Fourth of July festivities in 2013. On that bright sunny day (one of only two holidays celebrated in Juneau’s early mining history), people lined up for our sherbet by the dozens.

So when it came time to open our shop, we knew we had to feature our rhubarb sherbet. The landlord of our building wanted to put in a coffee shop. We agreed to sell coffee, but only if we could sell ice cream, too, and especially our rhubarb sherbet.

Rhubarb Sherbet Recipe

If you can’t find rhubarb in your area, you can substitute lemon or lime juice for rhubarb juice in the next two recipes. Just use one third the amount of juice and add back the balance in water. And throw in a little lemon zest to enhance the lemon flavor. If using grapefruits, use three cups of juice and 1 ¾ c sugar. For orange, use three cups of juice and 1 ½ c sugar.

INGREDIENTS

  • 8 c rhubarb, frozen (roughly 8 stalks, leaves removed)

  • 2 c sugar

  • 1 ⅓ c heavy cream

  • ⅛ t kosher salt

  • 1 T vodka or vegetable glycerin

  • 1 t lemon juice

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Chop frozen rhubarb stalks into chunks and thaw overnight in refrigerator in non-reactive bowl or container that captures liquid.

  2. The next day, thaw rhubarb completely. Press rhubarb through strainer or colander into bowl, being careful to save all the juice captured overnight. If rhubarb is woody and somewhat dried out, you may need to process more rhubarb. You will need three cups of juice to complete this recipe.

  3. Combine three cups rhubarb juice with sugar in medium saucepan.

  4. Heat over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves. Add salt, vodka or glycerin, and lemon juice.

  5. Set sweetened juice in refrigerator until cooled.

  6. Whip cream in mixer until soft peaks are formed. Pour in sweetened rhubarb juice until just combined (you want to retain as much whipped air as possible).

  7. Transfer mixture to ice cream machine and churn until mixture has consistency of thick milkshake and color lightens, 15 to 25 minutes.

  8. Cover, and freeze for at least 4 hours (preferably overnight)

Rhubarb Sherbet

Where it all began.

7/15/20243 min read