SOMETHING SIMPLE: Honey-Roasted Rhubarb Salad

I think rhubarb is a bit mis­understood. To start, it’s a vegetable. People often mistake it for a fruit thanks to its frequent appearances in pies, crumbles, jams, and other sweet treats. Tart and vegetal, rhubarb is genuinely too acidic to be eaten on its own — it needs some sweetness or fat for balance, which is one reason it’s a common ingredient in American desserts.

That tart flavor comes in part from oxalic acid, a natural compound also found in other vegetables, including beets, spinach, and potatoes. Rhubarb leaves contain so much oxalic acid that they’re considered toxic to humans (but don’t be afraid — you’d have to eat quite a lot of the leaves to experience symptoms).

Even though the stalks are totally safe to eat, the leaves understandably put people off. Why bother with a sour celery that seems to want to poison you, when so many sweeter, more tender vegetables beckon from the produce section during rhubarb season?

I’ll tell you why: Because rhubarb is the unsung hero of springtime vegetables. It’s usually among the first produce ready for harvest, so when those pretty crimson stalks (which may also be pink or light green, ­depending on the variety) appear at the farmers’ market, you can be sure we’re truly leaving winter behind.

After months of carting home knobby root vegetables and bunch after bunch of hearty leafy greens, getting a few juicy stalks of rhubarb makes me feel like I’m breaking through the soil too, awakening from the winter and turning my face toward the sun. At this time of year, as the world around me is coming alive again, I can’t get enough of rhubarb’s tart, punchy flavor. When paired with a bit of sugar, it really is like nature’s candy.

Except, of course, it’s so much better for you. Rhubarb is an excellent source of dietary fiber, which is crucial for maintaining optimal digestion and gut health. The root and rhizome are even used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for constipation and other gastrointestinal issues.

Rhubarb is high in vitamin K, which plays a key role in bone health and blood clotting (here’s what you need to know about vitamin K). And it’s rich in anti-inflammatory antioxidants, including anthocyanins, which are responsible for rhubarb’s red hue and may offer protection against blood-vessel damage and certain types of cancer.

Given rhubarb’s impressive nutritional profile, it’s a shame that most people tend to think of it as a “pie plant.” Sure, it adds a lovely sour dimension to lots of sweet dishes, but it’s good for so much more — and resisting the urge to drown it in sugar can allow its natural flavor to really shine.

I love treating rhubarb like a vegetable and including it in savory recipes, like this salad. Roasted with a bit of honey to balance its tartness, the rhubarb is slightly softened but still maintains much of its sour edge, which pairs beautifully with creamy feta cheese and toasted pistachios.

Rhubarb season also feels special to me because it doesn’t linger. Since it thrives in cool weather, fresh rhubarb is typically available only until early summer, depending on your location. It’s often available frozen year-round, but I rather like the fleeting window when I can get it fresh at the farmers’ market or my local grocery co-op. It only comes around once a year — so I know I have to make the most of it while I can.