When you grow up in the desert and your dad doesn’t fish, it’s not highly unlikely to see the absence of fish at the table. Maybe that’s why my older brother never liked fish. Still to this day he has a hard time with the smell of fish. But, I think it has more toContinue reading “Honeyed Rhubarb Grilled Salmon”
Tag Archives: rhubarb
Rhubarb Mint & Lime Spritzer
During the quiet hours, while one little is at preschool and the other is upstairs having her “quiet time,” I find myself sipping my second americano for the day. That second cup helps stave off the afternoon munchies. Well, unless your protruding belly is squishing your stomach & coffee sounds anything but appealing at 2:00Continue reading “Rhubarb Mint & Lime Spritzer”
Rhubarb-Lime Cardamom with Streusel Muffins
Muffins are simply cake for breakfast. My senior year of high school, Samantha would pick me up and depending on time, we would drive to a spot in town called Mostly Muffins, because they mostly had muffins there. I rarely got one, but I salivated over the one with cream cheese frosting. Like I said,Continue reading “Rhubarb-Lime Cardamom with Streusel Muffins”
Rhubarb Sandwich Cookies with Strawberry Cream Cheese Filling
Our house definitely looks “lived in” right now. Library books all around, artwork hung to dry on the mantle, and a deep freezer & other patio items inside our house as well. All the decks in our condo are being cleaned, sanded & repainted this week, which means bringing in everything or putting it in the scarce space in front of our house. Hence–a deep freezer in our living room.
There are times in life when embracing the “lived in” motif is needed. Trying to escape it, hide it, or tackle it is just adding more stress and less time for the people around us. It’s easy for me to put on my tunnel vision goggles and charge straight ahead in cleaning up without giving a second glance at the nudging of a little girl wanting her mama to dance with her, or sitting down to talk to my husband. When I think about the land of Facebook, there are some people who are proudly seated on their ‘anti-FB’ platform. I get it, really I do. Waste away hours by being sucked in. However, I propose that FB is also community, an arena for hospitality.
For instance, my friend Shelley wouldn’t have known I was making these cookies if I hadn’t put it in my update. And, she wouldn’t have had the opportunity of eating them either (because I got to drop some off to her later). Although there are many ways in which technology can suck us in and turn others out, I think if our priorities are straight, it can be a good thing.
Rhubarb Sandwich Cookies with Strawberry Cream Cheese Filling
(printable recipe)
A note about the sugars. Demerara is an unrefined equivalent to brown sugar, while rapadura is an unrefined equivalent to granulated sugar. Rapadura looks similar to sand. Since neither are refined, they have a more complex taste & smell, which is similar to caramel & molasses. If you don’t have oat bran on hand, you could pulverize (food processor) 1/4 cup of oats. The whole wheat pastry flour could be replaced with unbleached all-purpose flour as well.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/4 cup oat bran
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp freshly ground cardamom
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
8 Tb (1 stick or 1/2 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup demerara sugar
1/4 cup rapadura sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg, room temperature
1 cup medium diced rhubarb, 1/4 in
Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting & Directions
Directions: Preheat oven to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Take out your eggs & butter to get them to room temperature.
In a small bowl, add oats, oat bran, w.w. pastry flour, spices, baking soda & salt. Mix to combine and set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream on medium speed the two sugars, butter & vanilla for 1 minute. Scrape down sides and add the egg on low speed. Mix till combined and add the dry ingredients. Mix till thoroughly combined and add the rhubarb.
Using a tablespoon, scoop a leveled Tb of cookie dough on parchment lined sheets leaving 1 1/2 -2 inches apart. Bake for 12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack till cookies are cool and transfer to foil.
Put 2 tsp of frosting on one turned over cookie. Take an unfrosted cookie and sandwich it together. Makes about 20 cookies.
Poached Rhubarb
There are times when all you need is simple but good, fancy but easy, fresh but cheap. That would be poached rhubarb. Yes, I’m a little obsessed with this vegetable turned fruit; but, seriously, is there anything more wonderful than seeing these green & red stalks at the Farmer’s Market or gardens whispering, “yes–summer is coming!” You haven’t even begun to see the many uses I’ve made with this humble stalk.
I needed to make desserts for a banquet of 80+ people this past Saturday. I knew rhubarb would be the star. However, when given full range of what I could make for a dessert is like telling a child they can have any toy in a toy store, but just one. Seriously! Only one of the many calling my name. Options are limitless (well, not quite–there was a budget & time constraints, but you understand–right?!)! I ended up making a deconstructed white chocolate cheesecake with gingersnap crust topped with poached rhubarb.
There are a couple things I love about this poached rhubarb:
- It holds its lovely shape, not being cooked down to mush.
- It’s lightly sweetened maintaining that perfect tang we know as rhubarb.
- You can dress it up or down (reminds me of the sales lady at the Gap telling me why the boot cut jean was perfect for the same reasons).
- You can eat it for breakfast & dessert and no one will ever bat an eye.
- It doesn’t take that long to make.
Poached Rhubarb (printable recipe)
This recipe was inspired by Tartelette. I am in awe of her photography, many variations of macarons & desserts I salivate over. It’s an art form. I have found serving directly on top of plain yogurt to be completely satisfying.
Ingredients:
3 cups sliced rhubarb, 1/2 inch slices
juice of one lemon
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons honey
1-2 tablespoons demerara sugar
Directions: Place water, lemon juice & honey over medium-high heat. Stir to dissolve honey. Once it boils, add rhubarb. Stir around and allow rhubarb to poach for about 4 minutes. You’ll want to be near the stove to keep an eye on it. Don’t allow it to cook too long. Once the red parts turn pale and a fork can pierce through (but not mushy through), remove rhubarb from liquid and place in bowl. It will cook a bit longer.
Add demerara sugar to liquid and cook liquid down to a syrup if you’d like, or simply until the sugar dissolves. I think I prefer it to be less syrupy. Top on ice cream, yogurt, cheesecake, or by itself.
Rustic Rhubarb Cake
Although I promise to give you a recipe, allow me to ramble a bit. About the weather, glories, & redeeming the times (and later some rhubarb cake). I’ve been loving this weather we’ve been given in Bellingham of late. It makes being a mama so worth it, along with the dreary months in winter. The sun in full swing, slight breeze, dirt-painted toes in sandals, happy little girls in search of flowers or climbing towers too high for their hands to reach–blissful. The backdoor is open, while the girls run in and out.
It’s days like this that I’m reminded of how glorious creation is & my homebody nature sheds off. I become more aware of the little things, birds singing, breeze wisps my hair, the hues of golden & red in my youngest hair. It’s lovely! It reminds me of how grand the universe is and how little I am. This is a verse from the song, ‘Lovely,’ by the band Waterdeep:
Lord when you sing your song
all of creation will know
Lord when you show your strength
let justice and righteousness flow
when we see your holiness
every tongue confess–You are lovely
God continues to bring me back to him, while he tells me I’m valued, treasured, & I can feel free to cry or laugh in his presence. I hear the birds singing praise. The trees lifting their hands to worship. And feel the breeze dance over me, enrapturing all of me–hushing the fear & empowering the dreams–his Spirit. Today I’m melancholy with joy. Maybe it’s hormones. Although I’m breathing in the beauty of the day, I’m exhaling like an asthma sufferer. My heart is thinking of the marriages dying in this world, the mother who cannot feed her children, the very real fear of war standing outside the door. And then, I glanced and saw this verse popping out:
He will rescue the poor when they cry to him; he will help the oppressed, who have no one to defend them. he feels pity for the weak and the needy, and he will rescue them. he will redeem them from oppression and violence, for their lives are precious to him.–Psalm 72:12-14
No matter how much I can get sucked into the pit of despair (for myself or others), I have to remind myself of this verse. It’s when life can’t seem to get any worse–it does, but I remember telling Ben in the midst of one of those moments, “I have to remain hopeful, because Jesus still sits on the throne & he’s capable of redeeming the least hopeful of situations or people.” So maybe you’re having a melancholy day, or a simply wonderful, singing on mountaintops sort of day. You could easily make this cake. It’s one of those “one-bowl” wonders sort of cakes. Plus, you could pass it as breakfast too.
Rustic Rhubarb Cake (printable recipe)
This recipe was given to me many years ago, but I am greatly indebted to the source. I turn on the oven, spray my pan, & throw everything in the bowl to mix & pour into the pan. I’ve changed some things up a bit. I used Rapadura sugar, but you could use granulated sugar. Instead of hazelnuts, change it out with what you have. And instead of using whole wheat pastry flour, use all-purpose.
Ingredients
2 cups chopped rhubarb
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup Rapadura sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp kosher salt
For Topping:
1/2 – 3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup chopped hazelnuts
Directions: Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9×13 pan. In a medium bowl, combine cream, eggs & sugar and mix to combine. Add flour, baking soda, salt & rhubarb to the bowl and stir until combined. Pour into prepared pan.
Sprinkle with brown sugar and then the hazelnuts. Bake for 28-30 minutes. If you’re using Rapadura sugar, then you’ll really start to smell it at which point use a toothpick to check to see if it’s done. If a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean–take it out.
Serve it warm, room temperature, dollop of whipped cream, yogurt, for brunch, ice cream–whatever you fancy.
Rhubarb-Strawberry filled Lime Cupcakes
Have you noticed how many cupcake shops have popped up in the past five years? I have loved baking ever since I was little. My true love for the art came in my first Home Economic class in sixth grade. True to any first year Home Ec. class, you learn a plethora of introductory level crafts. I still remember learning plastic canvas, where I made a tissue box cover of penguins designed for my mom, due to her love of the cute little creatures. But seriously, although my mom heaped words of praise upon my creation–do we really need tissue box covers lining the aisles of Goodwill (a lost craft that should remain lost)?
I made a pillow cover, did at home projects of our choice, created various items in the kitchen & decided that I would undertake the largest size duffle bag (think body bag) while all my peers were a bit more sensible & chose the smallest one. Little did I know that the duffle bag scenario would be a metaphor for my life.
Biting off more than I can chew. My vision of what I can accomplish and what I will actually tackle are two different notions. But in some ways, I like how this transfers to my baking. I’m all for simple desserts & baked goods; however, I plain ole’ love creating something a bit more time consuming to have a wonderful end product. Sometimes this is hard with some of my perfectionist sensitivities, because I would rather not attempt something & fail than attempt it at all.
It reminds me of the pie crust portion of Home Econonics. Mrs. Haile, my teacher, showed us how to cut the butter into the flour, add just a little ice cold water, lightly combine it, chill, roll & transfer to the pie plate. This terrified me. The idea of transferring to have it split, crack, tear or crumble did not look appealing in the slightest. And although I had Kitchenaid mixer on my wish list since 11 years old, it wasn’t until I was 20 years old that I began to overcome my fear of the pie crust and make pie after pie.
I’ve realized that baking is like that (as well as cooking). We all have flops. In fact, as I was making this recipe, I was trying to make Neoclassic Buttercream (cook the sugar, add said sugar mixture to egg yolks, mix & mix, cool, add butter). What was the end result–pieces of chewy sugar/caramel dispersed throughout a 1/2 pound of butter. Sad yes–defeated no. I will go back and tackle it again, same as the pie crust. Do I make a perfect pie crust with no flaws? No. Julia Child approached the culinary arts with embracing the flaws & going with it. That’s how I began to see the pie crust and so many other baking adventures.
But, when we do have monumental food successes–they make up for the 1/2 pound of butter that got ruined (actually–I’m going to use it for some frosting still), flavorless muffins, or burnt dinner. So, as with the advent of the cupcake shops, culinary triumphs & 2+hours of baking with a 5 second eating party–meet the cupcake who will convert even the die hard chocolate lover.
I am utterly, head over heals, infatuated-crazy about these cupcakes. The melding of the lime cupcake with the tang of the rhubarb sauce, sweetness of the strawberry puree and creamy, richness of the cream cheese frosting (laced with strawberry puree) makes for a complete flavor profile in a dessert. I’m not fond of using the word “best” when talking about food on a blog. However, I’m about to break that vow right now as these cupcakes are absolutely superb. Dare I say it, “the best.” They’re knock your socks off good. If you have time to spare–you need to make these. But, I’m warning you if you do, you might not ever be able to eat a “so-so” cupcake again. Just saying:)
Rhubarb-Strawberry Filled Lime Cupcake & Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting (printable recipe)
The cupcake has been changed from a cupcake base found in Rose’s Heavenly Cakes Cookbook, which is a white cupcake & I have changed it to a lime cupcake. If you don’t have a scale, then I would highly recommend investing in one; as it will make your baked items a step up. I used cake flour, as it has a lower protein content versus all-purpose. This being said, you can use all-purpose with the amount in parenthesis below. You can make the cupcake the day before and assemble them the next day. More information on rhubarb is found here.
Lime Cupcakes
The total capacity of the liquid should measure 2/3 cup. Measure the milk to 1/2 cup and the rest should be lime juice.- 3 large egg whites (90 grams), room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120 grams) whole milk
- a little less than 1/4 cup (40 grams) lime juice, 2 limes
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups (1 3/4 cup if using unbleached all-purpose flour) sifted into the cup & leveled off (200 grams) cake flour
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 to 1 1/2 Tb lime zest, zest of 2 limes
- 2 1/4 plus 1/8 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter (65 to 75 degrees)
Preheat the oven: Line 14 to 16 cupcake liners in a muffin tin and set aside. Preheat oven to 350.
Mix the liquids: In a small bowl, whisk the egg whites, 3 tablespoons of the milk and vanilla until lightly combined.
Make the batter: In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, lime zest, and salt on low speed for 30 seconds. Add the butter and the remaining milk & lime juice on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Raise the speed to medium and beat for 1 1/2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Starting on medium-low speed, gradually add the egg mixture in two parts, beating on medium speed for 30 seconds after each addition to incorporate the ingredients & strengthen the structure. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Scoop batter into the lined muffin tin (it should weigh about 1.7 ounces/50 grams) filling about 3/4 full. Smooth the surface evenly with a small metal spatula.
Bake the cupcakes: Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean and the cupcakes spring back when pressed lightly in the centers.
Cool the cupcakes: Let the cupcakes cool in the pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove them from the pans and set them on a wire rack. Cool completely.
Rhubarb Sauce
- 2 cups rhubarb, 1/4 inch slices
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup turbinado sugar
Directions: Throw the chopped rhubarb, water & sugar in a small pot over medium heat. Stir every now & again. Allow it to cook down until it resembles chunky applesauce (except rhubarb). Pour into a bowl and set aside.
Strawberry Puree
- 2/3 cup hulled strawberries, cleaned
Put the hulled strawberries into a food processor and puree until no more chunks appear. Pour into a bowl and set aside.
Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 2 Tb unsalted butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 Tb strawberry puree
Put the butter & cream cheese in an electric mixer medium speed for 1 minute. Add strawberry puree and mix on medium until blended. Add one cup powdered sugar & mix for 30 seconds. Add an additional 3/4 cup to 1 cup of powdered sugar. The frosting shouldn’t be too thick, but not ultra runny.
Assemble the Cupcakes:
- Take the cupcake and cut out a cone from the center of each. Go here for instructions on this method.
- Remove the cone & cut off the bottom half (the pointed end) and save the top half (eat the bottom half).
- Put 1 teaspoon of rhubarb sauce in the cut out portion of the cupcake. Put 1/8-1/4 tsp of strawberry puree on top of rhubarb sauce.
- Place the top part of the cone back on top of the sauce & puree. Press down gently, just enough to avoid the filling coming out.
- Either pipe the frosting on top to cover the cut out area or spoon it on top.
- Eat!!!
Rhubarb Crisp
Or in this instance, a rhubarb crisp. Okay, so I have a little bit of an infatuation with this long, sometimes slender, sometimes chunky, red/speckled red & green/green vegetable. Yes, rhubarb is actually classified as a vegetable, but heaven’s to Betsy–whatever Pioneer woman made use of this manna–I am forever grateful. While Ben and I were dating, we would be walking in some new neighborhood of Bellingham & I would stop in my tracks. Ben thinking I found something remarkable or writhing in pain, because of the deep sigh & deer in head lights stare. What? What? He’d ask. Then, I would point.
rhubarb leaves
I had a gift of spotting those huge, elephant like leaves protruding from behind a high backyard fence at least 100 meters away. In fact, as I sat gazing at some (meanwhile, Ben was probably thinking how silly it was) rhubarb, the owner of the house came out back and said hello. But also kind of wondered what I was looking at. I said I was admiring his rhubarb and then he offered me to take some. I really wanted to, but I felt like that was crossing a line.
rhubarb stalks
Rhubarb to me says Springtime. The quintessential springtime pie is a Strawberry-Rhubarb (I’ll be saving that recipe for a bit later). The house I lived in the year I was engaged had a big window looking out to the neighbors yard. I had been admiring their rhubarb plant in early April (I even inspected it for it’s bounty). When it hit May, the time at which the stalks were ready for harvesting, I walked to the neighbor’s door to ask them if they were going to use their rhubarb (that line I was fine crossing–they were college students who most likely didn’t have a clue as to a rhubarb plant being there). My prediction was correct and they didn’t know anything about it and gave me the green light.
Well, I wasn’t quite ready for pulling off the stalks as I needed some strawberries. A few days later, in the morning, I got awoken by the sound of a tractor outside my window. When I came into the kitchen, I absolutely freaked out. There was a mini bulldozer/tractor (I have girls, not boys) something or other outside my window. It was pulling up all of the ground along the side of the house and I feared for the safety of my rhubarb. They were plowing right next to my love and I didn’t know if they were alright. There was only one thing to do. I went outside in my pajamas to stop the man on the John Deere to see what he was doing and if he was aware of my bounty awaiting its fate I had planned out? And there, like a diamond in the rough lay my rhubarb–right next to plowed up ground. I didn’t hesitate and pulled them up right there on the spot, brought them into the safety of my home. Where they intoxicated me with their tangy, red smell as I cut them into slices and mixed them up with sliced strawberries. We enjoyed our first Strawberry-Rhubarb pie of the season that night.
And last night we had our Japanese Community friends over. Their names are Ayumi & Maho and I taught them how to make spaghetti from scratch & introduced them to what will hopefully not be their last taste of rhubarb. I found rhubarb at the Farmer’s Market yesterday, but strawberries are not quite in season. So, we made do & made a crisp, which to me is just as satisfying without all the primping that comes from a pie. Here’s to kicking off Spring!
Rhubarb Crisp (printable recipe)
I made this on the fly, because crisps are so forgiving & easy. It’s a humble cousin to a rhubarb pie, but I find it just as good. It reminds me of my favorite summer breakfast of plain yogurt, fresh fruit & granola, except in dessert form. And if you don’t have a food processor for the crisp, then use a pastry cutter, or a fork, or best of all–your hands.
Rhubarb Filling
4-5 cups sliced rhubarb (around 6 rhubarb)
1 cup unrefined sugar
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
Crisp Crust
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pistachio
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
6 Tb unsalted butter, cold cut into 1/4 inch squares
pinch of salt
Directions: Preheat oven to 350. Clean rhubarb stalks & slice into roughly 1/4-1/2 inch slices. Put sliced rhubarb into a medium bowl, along with 1 cup granulated sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, orange & lemon zest. Dive in with your hands and mix it all together. Dump this into an 8 or 9 inch square baking dish. Set aside.
Combine the flour, oats, brown sugar, pistachios, & salt into a bowl of a food processor. Mix to combine (3 seconds). Put in the butter & pulse 7-9 times. Some of the butter will most likely still be in whole form. Dump the contents into a large bowl. Then, use your hands & fingers to cut the butter into the dry ingredients. Don’t be bashful, imagine you’re a kid playing with play dough. At the end, your crisp part will look comparable to wet sand. Spread the mixture atop the rhubarb mixture.
Bake for 30-40 minutes. Okay, so I didn’t time it unfortunately. But what you’re looking for is a golden crust, the smell of rhubarb-spiced goodness & if you can pierce a fork through the rhubarb–it’s good to go. You can let it cool for a bit (10-15 minutes), or serve it up right away. No judgment. Top with some vanilla ice cream as any crisp always tastes better with it. And there you have a slice of Spring.
Backdoor Hospitality 