Rhubarb Fool with Strawberries

Spring is doing its thing — the slow, uncertain thing that Nebraska spring does, where one day is sixty degrees and the next is thirty-two and the trees are confused and the flowers are brave and the weather is a conversation between winter and spring that neither is willing to concede. I love it. I love the uncertainty of Nebraska spring because the uncertainty is honest — the world does not owe us warmth, the warmth is earned, day by day, degree by degree, and the earning is the season.

Tyler has been accepted into the diesel technology program at GISH — a CTE track that starts sophomore year, which means he will start next fall as a freshman in the general program and can enter the diesel pathway the year after. This is Tyler's future taking shape, the future I could see when he was twelve and handing Dave wrenches at the truck stop, the future that was always there, waiting in the grease under his fingernails. He told Dave, and Dave's face did the thing Dave's face does when he is overwhelmed with pride: it stayed exactly the same, except his eyes got wet, and the wetness was the whole speech Dave would have given if Dave gave speeches.

Easter is next Sunday. I am planning the dinner — ham, scalloped potatoes, green beans, deviled eggs, rolls. The full spread. The first full Easter since the pandemic began, with all seven of us in the same room, at the same table, without masks, without distance, without the screen door between us and Gayle. The screen door is open now. The screen door is open and Gayle is walking through it, and the walking-through is the resurrection that matters most this Easter.

I made a big batch of deviled eggs for practice. Twenty-four eggs, halved, filled. The filling is the Novak filling: mayo, mustard, sweet pickle relish, paprika on top. The relish is controversial. I do not care. The relish is Gayle's, and Gayle's deviled eggs are the only deviled eggs, and I will defend the relish the way I defend everything Gayle has given me: fiercely, without apology, with paprika.

With the deviled eggs settled and the ham already on the list, I wanted something for the end of the meal that felt as honest as Nebraska spring — tart and sweet and a little uncertain, the way the best seasons are. Rhubarb is the first brave thing to come up out of the ground every year, and that felt exactly right for an Easter where Gayle walks back through the screen door and all seven of us are finally in the same room again. This Rhubarb Fool is simple enough to make without ceremony and bright enough to end a meal that means everything.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 30 min (plus 1 hour chilling) | Servings: 6

Ingredients

3 cups fresh rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (optional)
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
Fresh strawberry slices and mint, for garnish

Instructions

Stew the rhubarb. Combine rhubarb, granulated sugar, and water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10–12 minutes until rhubarb is completely soft and broken down into a thick, jammy compote.
Add strawberries. Remove from heat and stir in the sliced strawberries and vanilla extract. Add ground ginger if using. Let the mixture cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until fully chilled, at least 1 hour.
Whip the cream. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar together on medium-high speed until soft, billowy peaks form. Do not overbeat.
Fold together. Gently fold the chilled rhubarb-strawberry compote into the whipped cream in two or three swooping motions. You want ribbons of pink and cream — do not fully combine. The swirl is the point.
Serve. Spoon into individual glasses or a large serving bowl. Garnish with fresh strawberry slices and a sprig of mint. Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 2 hours before serving.

Nutrition (per serving)

Rhubarb Fool with Strawberries — The Easter Table Has Room for One More Thing Beautiful