If you knew me while I was in college, you'd know that I was not a cook. It wasn't even until after I started dating Daniel that I owned a cutting board! It's not that I didn't know anyone who could cook -- my dad is a great cook and would always make scrumptious dishes for us and my grandmother can make the most delicious desserts imaginable -- I just didn't.
Cooking was one of the things that Daniel and I did together when we would visit each other after we first started dating, and my skill and appreciation has increased from there. From time to time now, I just need to cook and spend time creating in the kitchen -- and these bars are a result of that!
The strawberry rhubarb bars were a happy mistake -- I originally wanted to make boiled peanuts, but what d'ya know, you can't find raw peanuts in the North very easily. Strawberry rhubarb is definitely a flavor profile that I came to appreciate from my time spent living in Lancaster, PA. I actually have some strawberry rhubarb jam in my fridge right now that I picked up at the Central Market from our weekend trip a few months ago!
While living in Lancaster, I did make a rendition of these bars but only with rhubarb. They were good, but not as great as I wanted them to be. I think the strawberry in the recipe this time really brings the bars over the top and I loved that both the strawberries and rhubarb that I found were locally grown in Massachusetts!
If you want to make some of the bars, find the recipe I used here! It was super easy to follow. The only ingredients I left out were the lemon zest (I put in a squeeze of lemon juice instead) and the food coloring (I didn't need it with how ripe the strawberries were). I'd love to hear what you think if you make them or if you have any other recipes that you've loved recently!