The Mighty Rhu

Rhu Barbarum - Rhubarb

Rhubarb, a gift from the barbarians beyond the Vogue River (Rha River).  
Get it?... Rha Barbarum.  Initially, only the root was used and uses date back to 2700 BC where it was grown and used in China for medicinal purposes.  It is thought to have made its way to America in the late 1700’s.  

Today, a look around any old farmhouse or homestead will locate the perennial rhubarb plant that brought vitamin C and other vitamins, and a fresh new season of food to families each spring.

Rhubarb grows in stalks from underground rhizomes.  It multiplies readily and it is easy to share a portion of your plant with a friend.  That’s where I got mine and I have since shared forward to several others. What a great plant!

Many people think of rhubarb as only a spring plant, however, if you pick and use the rhubarb regularly throughout the growing season, it will continue to produce into the fall.  Be sure to quickly cut off any bloom stalk that appears too.  The stalks are the edible part.  The leaves contain oxalate, which is toxic even in small quantities and should not be consumed.  Nutritionally speaking, rhubarb is a great addition to the table.  Detailed nutritional data can be found at http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/2056/2

Rhubarb is thought of as a fruit, but it is actually a vegetable.  It can be used in both sweet and savory dishes.  So far I’ve only used it in sweet dishes but I plan to experiment in the coming season with a savory use for this healthy vegetable.  In this post, I’ll share several of my favorite rhubarb recipes:

Rhubarb Crisp

1 1/2 pounds of rhubarb make about 4 cups diced

A top favorite with my family, this is a simple and delicious rhubarb crisp.  Even people who say no thank you to rhubarb pie will ask for seconds.

4 cups of rhubarb stalks cut lengthwise and then into ½ inch pieces (about a pound and a half)

Sauce:
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla
 

Combine the crust ingredients

Crust:
1 cup flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick butter, melted

Pour the sauce over the rhubarb

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
2.  Cut the rhubarb
3.  Combine the sauce ingredients in a small pan and bring to a boil - turn off and set aside.
4.  Combine the crust ingredients in a medium bowl and mix with a fork until blended

5.  Place half the crust mixture in the bottom of an 8x8 or 9x9 pan or similar.
6.  Spread the rhubarb evenly over the crust.
7.  Pour the sauce over the rhubarb and finish with the rest of the crust mixture

Rhubarb Crisp!

 




Bake for 1 hour and serve warm with vanilla ice cream or at room temperature with some whipped cream.

Next up is a recipe that I’ve only recently adapted from The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen.
 
This is quite a bit more work, but produces a very tasty tart.

 

Rhubarb Custard Tart

Rhubarb Custard Tart
Ingredients:
Pie crust
1 ½ pounds of rhubarb diced (4 cups)
1 cup sugar - divided
1-2 tablespoons orange liqueur and or 1 ½ teaspoons of finely grated orange zest
3 large eggs
3/4 cup heavy cream
pinch of salt

The day before, or 5-6 hours before, prepare a flaky pie crust from your favorite recipe and chill.  Wash and dice about 1 ½ pounds of rhubarb into ½ inch pieces (4 cups).  Toss with ½ cup of sugar and refrigerate over night or for 4-5 hours.

Drain the sugary juice from the rhubarb

The next day, drain the rhubarb in a colander set over a skillet.  Allow it to drain while you prepare the crust.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Roll out the crust and place in your pan.  Put the pan into the freezer for a few minutes until you are ready to put it into the oven.  Prick the bottom and weight it down with pie weights or dried beans on top of aluminum foil.  Bake the crust on the bottom rack of the oven for 10-12 minutes.  Remove the foil and weights and bake another 5-7 minutes until it is just golden.  Let it cool to room temperature.

Boil the juice to reduce to a very thick syrup

While the crust is cooling, boil the rhubarb juice in the skillet until it is thick and syrupy and reduced to just a few tablespoons.  Remove from the heat, stir in the rhubarb and the orange liqueur/orange zest and allow it all to cool to room temperature.

Set the oven temperature to 400 degrees.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, remaining ½ cup of sugar, and pinch of salt.  

Distribute the rhubarb mixture evenly over the bottom of the tart shell and pour half the custard over and let it settle, then pour the rest of the custard.

Ready for the oven

Bake the tart until the custard is puffed and golden brown, about 30-35 minutes.  Allow to cool completely before serving.  Serve at room temperature with a dollop of vanilla whipped cream.

 








Now you must be ready for my final rhubarb discover!  

Last year I harvested over 72 pounds of rhubarb from my 4 plants.  What in the world was I going to do with all that rhubarb?  I mostly put it in my pot and made rhubarb juice.  I used the juice to make my granddaughter’s now favorite jelly.  It makes a delicious, delicate pink jelly.  I'm not planning to post that recipe here but if you need it, send me a message.

I wanted to make something else with my juice, so I made rhubarb tea and rhubarb lemonade.

Hummingbird Cocktails

Hummingbird tea (left) Hummingbird lemonade (right)

Rhubarb Juice - we also call this Hummingbird Juice (not to be given to hummingbirds)

Wash, trim, and chop up rhubarb stalks into 1 inch pieces. 
Put into a pot and just cover with water. 
Simmer the rhubarb until it breaks down into a mush.  This doesn’t take long, maybe 10-15 minutes.
 

Rhubarb ready to simmer

Allow it to cool to a working temperature or room temperature.
Strain the juice through a colander over a large bowl or clean pot.  Allow time for it to drain completely, do not press or force the rhubarb through the colander.
Strain the juice one more time through a fine mesh strainer.  (If you are going to use the juice to make jelly, I strain it through a cheese cloth draped over the strainer for crystal clear jelly.)

Strained rhubarb juice

Once you have your strained rhubarb juice, to make the “hummingbird juice” I add about 1/4 cup of sugar per full cup of juice.  I don’t bother with partial cups as this is plenty sweet.  Make sure the sugar dissolves completely.  You might need to warm the juice a little to get the sugar dissolved.  Then refrigerate the juice.

To make my Hummingbird Cocktails, I add crushed ice to a glass, add about 1/4-1/2 rhubarb juice and top that off with green tea or lemonade.  Give it a little stir and serve with or without a garnish.  

I’ve never been a vodka drinker, but someone left a partial bottle here sometime ago.
  This sis knot soooo badd wit ah tittle splosh a vodka tooo.

Enjoy!

Caramel Apple Upside Down Cake

Caramel Apple Upside Down Cake

My husband could eat butter cream icing from a bowl with a spoon any day of the week, but it is the main thing that I don’t like about cake.  I’ve found a delicious way around dealing with icing and that is the old fashioned upside down cake.  I’m going to give you two versions of this cake so that you will be free to experiment with any fruit you like.  It seems like such a great answer to never having to deal with icing again.  I make them frequently with whatever fruit I have on hand or that is in season.

I make a version of this cake with my frozen Flathead cherries that is beautiful and delicious too.  If you’re using frozen fruit or canned fruit, be sure to drain the fruit before using it in this recipe.  There are just 2 basics steps to this recipe.  The topping, which goes into the pan first, and the cake.

Upside Down Cake

Begin all cakes with a generous spray of Pam or similar vegetable spray on the 9 x 9 x 2 inch deep square pan or a pan that will accommodate the cake.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Heat the butter, sugar, and vanilla to make a sauce.

The topping:
4 Tablespoons butter
3/4 cup brown sugar (for caramel apple) OR 3/4 cup white sugar (for other varieties)
1 teaspoon of vanilla (for caramel apple) OR 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice (for other varieties)

Melt the butter, sugar, and vanilla or lemon juice in a small sauce pan over low heat until the sugar melts and the mixture bubbles.
Pour into the prepared pan and coat the bottom of the pan.

Layer the fruit on top of the sauce.

2-3 Apples or fruit of your choice
Add a layer of apples or any fruit to cover the bottom of the pan.  (Apples, cherries, peaches, pears, apricots, and pineapple of course) Fresh apples like I used can have a double layer or overlap significantly as they do shrink.  Other more moist fruit won’t shrink.

 



The cake:
1 stick butter
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup of milk (or use apple cider for the apple cake)
1 ½ cups sifted flour
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

Sift together the dry ingredients into a bowl and set aside.
Cream together the butter and sugar.  After this becomes light and pale, add the eggs one at a time and then the vanilla.

Continue beating adding ½ the dry ingredients, then the milk, and follow with the other half of the dry ingredients.
Spoon the batter onto the top of the fruit and bake until the cake is well risen and golden brown.  At around 45-55 minutes, the cake will be firm to the touch, a tooth pick inserted into the center will come out clean, and the cake will begin to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Apples shrink so add twice as many as you think.

Have a plate or platter ready to receive the cake.  Run a knife around the edges to make sure it is free.  Immediately upon removing it from the oven, invert it onto the plate.  Leave the pan inverted for a few seconds, up to a minute and then gently lift it off.  Should any of the fruit have stuck to the pan, you can quickly transfer it back to the cake.

Allow the cake to cool and serve with a little whipped cream.  You won’t miss the icing.