Pink and Green - Part 2

I am sure most foodies will relate to the joy I felt when a giant bag overflowing with freshly cut rhubarb came my way last week. It had been given to me by a friend who lives deep in the Conwy Valley where his fruit and veg grow in abundance. My fingers flicked into overdrive as I hunted through my cook books for the best use of my cache. I roasted the whole lot with plenty of sugar and orange zest and waited patiently as the sweet perfume made its way around the house. The colour of this rhubarb was stunning. So perfectly zingy and bright when raw and then softly muted and delicate once cooked. I rustled up some gingery pastry, filled it generously with my rhubarb and piped some meringue on top. Oh it did look majestic. Such proud white peaks they were. You may wonder where the photo of the finished article is...... truth is I was so excited that I forgot to take a snap!

A silly little game I have with myself is that I will never buy gooseberries (oh maybe at the church fayre once or twice). It is my single favourite ingredient and I only ever seem to have enough given to me to make one gooseberry and elderflower meringue pie and a batch of streusel squares. My goodness how I relish my little plate's worth in the knowledge that it will be another year's wait before it's baking in the oven again. I am always torn between being totally selfish and keeping it to myself  and flinging the front door wide open and sharing the lot with my friends when it's still warm and mouth-wateringly fresh.