Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

A person can tell what kind of day it is going to be when the strawberry rhubarb crisp they so lovingly crafted for today’s photo shoot ends up getting smeared all over the floor.  The pancakes they made to replace the crisp in the photo shoot, a recipe they have made a million times before, ends up up burning to a crisp.  Yeah, I am going back to bed.

In the meantime, you will just have to imagine a lovely blush pink filling covered by a rustic, golden brown crust.  Fortunately, I did get to taste a piece of the crisp before it hit the floor so I can honestly say it tastes very good.

• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

Ingredients

Topping:

6 TBS all purpose flour

4 TBS rolled oats

1 /4 cup brown sugar

4 TBS butter, room temperature

1/4 cup chopped pecans, optional

Filling:

1 cup  rhubarb, cleaned and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces

1 cup strawberries, hulled and halved

2 TBS sugar

3/4 tsp cornstarch

1 1/2 tsp fresh orange juice

Prepare the topping by combining the flour, oats and sugar in a bowl.  Cut in the butter with your fingers or two knives until the mixture resembles course crumbs; set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Combine the rhubarb, strawberries, sugar, cornstarch, and orange juice.  Transfer to a shallow two cup baking dish.  Dot the topping over the fruit mixture.  Bake 35 – 40 minutes or until the crisp is golden brown.

Rhubarb Pie

Only 19 more days until I go on my trip to Minneapolis with my friend, Steph. We are both big fans of the CW show, Supernatural and we are going to the very first Supernatural convention in Minnesota. I am very excited. I haven’t been on a trip in a very long time and Steph and I always have a good time no matter what we do.

The problem with going on trips is that they are expensive so I am saving every penny I can between now and the convention. This means eating at home or at a home made meal and not spend a penny more than I have to until I leave for my trip. This doesn’t mean that I have to eat nothing but ramen noodles for the next three weeks. One of the great things about being able to cook is that I can eat and eat well, even when I am strictly budgeting my money.

I can even afford to have dessert. Rhubarb is my second favorite fruit. I use it in the spring and summer when I can’t get fresh cranberries. The apartments on either side of mine have huge patches of rhubarb that no one ever uses so I got permission to use them and boy have I been using them. This pie is sweet and tangy and everything rhubarb pie is meant to be. So don’t worry, Dean. Whenever you and Sam are hunting in North Dakota there will always be pie for you.

• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

Ingredients
2 cups fresh or frozen rhubarb, thawed
2 cups boiling water
¾ cup sugar
1 ½ TBS all-purpose flour
½ tsp quick cooking Tapioca
3 TBS lightly beaten egg
1 tsp cold water
Pastry dough for 5 inch double crust
1 ½ tsp butter
Place the rhubarb in a colander; pour the boiling water over the rhubarb and allow to drain. In a large bowl, mix the sugar, flour and tapioca. Add the drained rhubarb and toss to coat. Let stand 15 minutes. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and cold water. Stir into the rhubarb mixture. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll one half of the dough into a 1/8 inch thick circle; transfer to a 5” deep pie plate. Trim even with the rim. Add filling; roll the remaining dough into 1/8 inch thick circle, slightly larger then the pie plate. Place over filling and trim, seal and flute the edges. Cut slits in the top and bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven setting to 350 degrees. Bake 40-50 minutes longer until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.

Rhubarb Cookies

This recipe is a recipe in progress. Why am I posting an unperfected recipe? I am posting it because I am totally stumped with what to do with it. Does it need frosting? A glaze? More rhubarb? Cinnamon? I just don’t know. My friends say they are just fine, quit fussing. I say they are okay the way they are but they are missing the one thing to take them from okay to great. So if you try the recipe please let me know what you think. Are the cookies perfect just the way they are or what do you think they need?

• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

1/4  cup butter, softened
6 TBS brown sugar
3  TBS lightly beaten egg
3/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
6 TBS diced rhubarb
3 TBS flaked coconut, optional

In a medium mixing bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar. Beat in the egg. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture.  Stir in the rhubarb and coconut, if using, and mix well.  Drop by tablespoonfuls two inches apart on a baking sheet coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake 12-15  minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Rhubarb Muffins

This morning I delighted to get permission from both the owner’s of the apartments next to mine to raid their rhubarb patches. HURRAY! Apparently they think rhubarb is a “noxious weed, not good for anything”. That is totally crazy, right!? I guess it works out well for me though I get all those lovely, mouth puckering, ruby red stalks to myself.

The first rhubarb recipe I tried was the rhubarb muffins from My Lady Melady. They are absolutely fabulous.

• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

Adapted from Lady Melady
2 TBS canola oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 TBS lightly beaten egg
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup plus 1 TBS brown sugar
1/2 cup plus 1 TBS flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
6 TBS fresh rhubarb

Topping
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp butter
1 TBS sugar

In a small bowl, combine oil, vanilla, egg and buttermilk. In another small bowl combine the flour, brown sugar, salt, baking soda, baking powder and rhubarb. On a small plate mix the sugar, cinnamon, and butter; set aside. Slowly add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix well. Fill greased muffin tins 2/3 full of batter. Top each muffin with a bit of the cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.