Ingredients:
3-4 rhubarb stalks, trimmed and washed, sliced into half inch pieces
1/4 cup of water
1/4-1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cardamom
1 tsp of vanilla extract
5-7 strawberries halved
(optional 1 tbsp of coconut oil)
Instructions:
Combine ingredients in a heavy saucepan and cook gently until the rhubarb is tender and partial broken down. Keep slightly chunky for texture and variety. You can serve this compote warm, room temperature, cold. You can mix it with yogurt, put it on toast with some nut butter, put on pancakes or waffles, or simply eat right out of the jar with a spoon. Mmmmmmmm.
Food as Medicine:
Rhubarb is super high in Vitamin K and C as well as minerals such as Maganese, Calcium, and Potassium. Besides being great for digestion and relieving constipation rhubarb has also been used to aid in weight loss, stimulate bone growth and repair, stimulate production of red blood cells, and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. It may also help with preventing Alzheimers, cancer, and macular degeneration. Note: The leaves of rhubarb should not be eaten as they are high in oxalic acid and can cause severe illness in people.
Strawberries are high in vitamin C, potassium, and folic acid, an fiber just to name a few. Only one cup of strawberries has 160% of your daily vitamin C at only 50 calories! They also contains the mighty antioxidants anthocyanin, ellagic acid, quercetin, and kaempferol, which have all been shown to have protective effects against certain types of cancer. They can also be helpful in the treatment of high blood pressure, diabetes, constipation, and depression as well as the prevention of heart disease, cancer stroke, and allergies/asthma, (assuming you’re not allergic to strawberries themselves).