Some people like to serve pancakes with a garnish of berries. But at The Mission restaurant in San Diego, a creative cook embedded the fruit in the pancake itself.

You can do it easily:

 
No berries? Use dried fruit (dried cherries, cranberries, raisins, etc) or dice any other fruit you have on hand (apples, bananas, pears, etc.).

While the The Mission serves the pancakes with conventional maple syrup, consider these…
 
ALTERNATIVES TO MAPLE SYRUP

 
 
For plain pancakes consider:

 
You can also mix up a creative syrup; for example, honey with raisins, diced apples and/or chopped nuts.
 
 
RECIPE: CINNAMON SYRUP

This is delicious on French toast, pancakes and waffles; along with fruit salad, ice cream, un-iced cakes, etc.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

Fun with fruit, in and on your pancakes. Top: Embedded berries (photo courtesy The Mission restaurant | San Diego). Center: “Apple Pie Pancakes,” topped with sautéed apples (photo courtesy PotsAndPans.com). Bottom: Topped with peanut butter and jelly or preserves (photo courtesy Krusteaz).

2. ADD the cinnamon and lemon juice, stir thoroughly, and let cool or serve warm.

> Below is a delicious recipe for Green Salad With Roasted Rhubarb.

> Also below are links to savory recipes from sides to soups.
 
 
RHUBARB HISTORY

According to FoodTimeline.org, rhubarb is an ancient plant with different species originating in China, Siberia, and southwestern Russia. The name comes from the Latin Rhabarbarum, meaning “Rha of the barbarians.”

Rha is the Scythian name for the Volga River in Russia, the longest river in Europe. Rhubarb was cultivated by the Tatars there (“Tartars” is a misspelling), called barbarians—which referred to foreign people who were neither Christian, Greek nor Roman.

Rhubarb has been grown for millennia. Chinese rhubarb (Rheum officinale) was grown for its roots, which were ground up and used medicinally as far back as 206 B.C.E. Garden rhubarb (Rheum rhabarbarum) was grown for its edible stalks (the leaves are toxic).

It was cultivated in Britain in the 17th century and added to stews; with the advent of affordable* sugar in the 18th century, it became a sweetened filling for tarts. (Sugar, originally from India and Southeast Asia, was cultivated in the Middle East in the 12th century, then in other areas of the Mediterranean. European Crusaders brought sugar home with them. It created a stir but was a pricey import, analogous to other Eastern spices. The first printed record of sugar in English is in the late 13th century.)

Rhubarb seeds were imported to America shortly after the American Revolution. The term “pie plant” originated in the U.S. sometime during the 19th century. Rhubarb was a popular pie filling and early American cookbooks show rhubarb recipes for cobblers, conserves, sweet pies, and tarts.
 
 
RECIPE: GREEN SALAD WITH ROASTED RHUBARB

We adapted this recipe from CilantroCooks.com and added a number of optional ingredients, so you can customize it to your ideal.

Ingredients

[2] Chicken with rhubarb salsa.

[3] Rhubarb soup (photo © La Cucina Italiana).

 
For A Dinner Salad

[4] Slicing fresh rhubarb (photo © Cilantro Cooks).

[5] A recipe variation from Sumptuous Spoonfuls. Their recipe roasts the rhubarb with honey and dresses the salad with a Honey Lemon Ginger Vinaigrette.

For The Roasted Rhubarb Vinaigrette

 
Preparation

1. TRIM the tips (including all the leaves) and root ends from the rhubarb. Cut the stalks into 1-inch slices. Place in a greased (spray is fine) baking or roasting pan and roast in the oven at 375°F for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven and cool (in the fridge, if necessary); half will be used for the salad, and half for the dressing.

2. PREPARE the dressing: Place half the rhubarb and all other dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor; blend until completely smooth. Adjust the honey if you need more sweetness.

3. TOAST the walnuts: Spray a small baking sheet with cooking spray. Set the nuts on the tray in a single layer and toast on the bottom rack of the oven at 400°F for about 5 minutes, or until they are fragrant and slightly browned. Watch them carefully so they don’t burn.

4. PLACE the vegetables in a large bowl; then add the completely cooled rhubarb and the cheese and toss with the dressing. Garnish with the toasted nuts and serve.

 
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*Sugar originated in Southeast Asia. The people of New Guinea were probably the first to domesticate sugarcane, possibly as early as 8,000 B.C.E. The cane juice from the stalks was used as a sweetener. However, the extraction and purifying technology techniques were developed by people living in India, around 350 C.E.
 
 

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Updated June 2026

At every party and dinner, we have a basket of crudités as a better-for-you option with pre-dinner drinks. Wen try to select veggies on the “heirloon” side to make the platter more visually arresting: lemon cucumbers, multicolor baby carrots and cherry tomatoes, purple green beans, red endive, romanesco, and watermelon radishes, for example.

Now, for fun, we’re serving up some flower power with this bouquet of crudités, inspired by Hidden Valley.

Hidden Valley serves them with their Original Ranch Dressing as a dip (recipe in *footnote).

We substituted a nonfat yogurt dip (you can use 2% or 5% yogurt as you prefer).

June 16th is National Fresh Veggies Day and June 17th is Eat All Your Veggies Day.

Below:

> Recipe #1: Bouquet of crudités.

> Recipe#2: Garlic-lime-herb yogurt dip.

> Recipe #3: Fruit bouquet with honey yogurt dip.

Elsewhere on The Nibble:

> The year’s 95+ vegetable holidays.

> The year’s 80 fruit holidays.

> The year’s 90 snack holidays.
 
 
RECIPE #1: BOUQUET OF CRUDITÉS

Use a small vase, flower pot, or planter, ideally with a block of floral foam at the bottom. The floral foam isn’t essential, but it makes your arrangement easier to style and also, easier for guests to remove the skewers.

Cut the floral foam in half and trim to fit inside the vase. Stack the two halves on top of each other, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and place at the bottom of the vase.

If using a glass container, line the container with kale leaves (see photo #2).

If you don’t have a vase or other container, you can lay the skewers on a platter.

Prep time is 15 minutes plus arranging time.

Ingredients For 6 Servings

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the dip (recipe #2 below) and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

2. WASH all vegetables and pat dry. Seed the peppers and cut jagged edges into the tops.

3. STICK the snap peas on the skewers to create the leaves. Insert the skewers through the bottoms of each pepper and put the tomato in the center as shown. Arrange in the vase.

TIP: To prepare the bouquet in advance and keep the vegetables chilled, place the skewers on a platter and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until ready to place in the vase and serve.
 
 
RECIPE #2: GARLIC-LIME-HERB YOGURT DIP & SAUCE

This recipe can be served as a dip with crudités, pretzels and other snacks, or as a topping/sauce for grilled fish, meat, poultry, even burgers. As a sauce, the one cup makes four servings.

You can also mix it with potatoes, macaroni, or shredded cabbage for a fat-free potato salad, macaroni salad, or coleslaw.

Mix and match the seasonings to the food you’re saucing.

Ingredients For 1 Cup

[2] You can do the same with fruit (photo: The Nibble).

[3] We came across these and adapted them for our veggie bouquet. Here’s the recipe. We substituted a small mozzarella ball to fill the “flower” (photo © Stacy Cravatt).

[4] Our favorite Greek yogurt (photo © FAGE USA).

 
Preparation

1. BLEND the yogurt, garlic, lime juice and ginger in small bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days.
 
 
RECIPE #3: FRUIT BOUQUET & HONEY-YOGURT DIP

Ingredients

 
Preparation

See recipe #1 about using florists’ foam in the base of the container.

1. MAKE the dip. Using recipe #2, replace the garlic with honey and the herbs with lime or other citrus zest (lightly sweeten the dip so it doesn’t compete with the sweetness of the fruit). Cover and refrigerate.

2. THREAD the strawberries (3 or more, depending on size) and 6 grapes onto separate skewers and set aside.

3. USE a melon baller to scoop out one half of the cantaloupe. Cut the balls in half. They will form the center of the pineapple flowers. Set aside.

4. CUT the remaining cantaloupe half into cubes, wedges, or a combination. Thread the cantaloupe and honeydew pieces onto separate skewers and set aside.

5. CUT flowers from the pineapple slices with a flower-shaped cookie cutter, cut out the center of each pineapple slice.
Thread onto an 8-inch skewer and then top with a a melon ball half on top of the pineapple to form the flower. Repeat with remaining pineapple. Set aside.

6. ASSEMBLE. If using a glass container, line with kale leaves. Insert the cantaloupe and honeydew skewers around the edge of the container. Next, insert the strawberries around the melon and then the pineapple flowers. Fill in with the grape skewers. If necessary, fill empty spaces with kale leaves (or create more fruit skewers).
 
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*The Hidden Valley recipe combines 1/2 cup Original Ranch Light Dressing and 8 ounces softened fat-free cream cheese, chilled until ready to serve.
 

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