Rhubarb Pear Spritzer

Emma and I came up with our own concoction yesterday. She thought it was so delicious, she declared "I will never go back to lemonade again!"

Vanilla Pear Simple Syrup

1 pear
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/2 a vanilla bean
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger

1. Peel the pear. Set the peel aside and quarter the pears, removing the core
2. Combine the sugar and water in a medium sauce pan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat immediately and let simmer, stirring constantly until all sugar granules are dissolved.
3. At the lowest heat, add the pear pieces, pear peel and ginger to the pan. Slice the vanilla bean, scraping out seeds from one half and adding the seeds and the scraped bean to the pan. Let simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Remove the bean and the pear skins. Using an immersion blender, blend the pears into the syrup until smooth.
5. Pour through a fine mesh strainer and into a container. Let cool in the refrigerator.

 Mix pear syrup with rhubarb juice (we juiced ours in our kitchenaid juicer) and a splash of club soda.