It's rhubarb season!
This sour, tangy and partially poisonous vegetable pops up once a year for some seriously good desserts. Rhubarb crisp, strawberry-rhubarb pie, rhubarb buckle, rhubarb tart, the list goes on...
Rhubarb looks like "red celery" and it's leaves are poisonous (don't worry, they aren't sold along with the stalk). The extremely tart and tangy taste of rhubarb is usually counteracted with sugar and butter to mellow it out. According to Self Magazine, rhubarb is a good source of magnesium and a very good source of dietary fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, calcium, potassium and manganese.
My grandmother loves rhubarb and I have grown to as well! You will only see it pop up in grocery stores from March through around May but I recently found it in the frozen section - I have yet to cook with the frozen stuff but I have a feeling it'll be pretty good.
Below are a few recipes that I have made where rhubarb steals the show.
Rhubarb Crisp
Ingredients
Filling
5-6 cups rhubarb cleaned and cut into 1/2 in pieces
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp corn starch
Crisp Topping
6 tbsp butter, cold, cubed
1 cup old fashioned or quick cooking oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp flour
1 tsp cinnamon
Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Prep a 9x9 baking dish with cooking spray
Mix together rhubarb, sugars, cinnamon and corn starch in a bowl and add evenly into the baking dish
In a separate bowl, mix together the cubed butter, oats, sugar, flour and cinnamon with your fingers until the butter is fully combined and the mixture looks crumbly
Spread evenly over top of the rhubarb filling
Bake for 25 minutes or until rhubarb is soft
Cool for 15 minutes and serve with vanilla ice cream!
Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie with Crisp Topping
Ingredients
Pate Brisee (pie dough)
340 g unsalted butter, cold, large cubes
550 g AP flour
5 g salt
8 g sugar
125 g cold water
50 g egg
Pie Filling
3 cups sliced rhubarb (1/2 in pieces)
2 cups quartered strawberries
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup corn starch
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp butter, cubed
Crisp Topping
6 tbsp butter, cold, cubed
1 cup old fashioned or quick cooking oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp flour
1 tsp cinnamon
Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Start by measuring out dry ingredients (flour, salt and sugar) for the pate brisee into an electric stand mixer. Slowly add the butter and mix until you have a coarse meal texture (you should still be able to see chunks of butter about the size of a quarter). Next, add the egg and water slowly until dough holds together. Divide the dough into two balls and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
Roll out the dough to make two even 10-inch circles. You can use flour to help roll, but not too much! Line two 9-inch pie pans with the dough and make sure it is fully pressed up against the sides. Trim the crust and crimp at the edges.
Par-bake your crust by covering it with parchment paper and placing pie weights or dried beans inside to weigh it down. Bake for about 10-15 minutes or until light golden brown.
In a large bowl, mix together rhubarb, strawberries, sugars, corn starch, butter and salt until just combined
Add the mixture to the par-baked pie crust evenly
In a separate bowl, mix together the cubed butter, oats, sugar, flour and cinnamon with your fingers until the butter is fully combined and the mixture looks crumbly
Sprinkle the mixture atop the strawberry-rhubarb filling evenly and bake for 30 minutes or until crust and crumble are golden brown and the fruit is soft. Let cool, then enjoy!
Rhubarb Buckle
I got this recipe from the Geoffrey Zakarian's Food Network show The Kitchen! https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/geoffrey-zakarian/strawberry-rhubarb-buckle-5237308
Ingredients
Crumble Topping
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup (5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
Strawberry-Rhubarb Buckle
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups strawberries, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
Partially Poached Rhubarb, recipe follows, drained
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, for serving, optional
Partially Poached Rhubarb
2 cups chopped rhubarb (1/2-inch pieces)
1 cup granulated sugar
Method
For the crumble topping: Combine the granulated sugar, flour and cinnamon in a bowl and mix to combine. Add the butter and cut in with a fork or pastry cutter until the mixture is crumbly in texture. Set aside.
For the strawberry-rhubarb buckle: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch spring form pan or round cake pan with butter.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the butter and granulated and brown sugars. Mix on medium speed until well creamed, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and mix until fully incorporated. Add the lemon zest and vanilla extract. Continue to mix until well blended, about 1 minute.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg and whisk to blend. Turn the mixer to low and slowly add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and mix until well blended, about 1 minute. Fold the strawberries and Partially Poached Rhubarb into the batter with a rubber spatula.
Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Top with the crumble topping. Bake until the crumble is golden brown and the cake is cooked through, 40 to 50 minutes. Allow the cake to cool to room temperature.
Remove the cake from the pan and transfer to a serving plate. Slice and serve topped with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, if desired.
Partially Poached Rhubarb: Combine the rhubarb, granulated sugar and 1 cup water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Once it reaches a boil, remove from the heat and let cool in the pan with the juices, about 45 minutes.