Strawberry Rhubarb Pie with Streusel Top

I still have a few packages of strawberries in the freezer from last year. I figure we'll use them up just about in time to start picking fresh ones next month. Meanwhile, they go great with the rhubarb that is ready for harvest in my garden now. If you don't have strawberries, you can make a straight rhubarb pie that is also delicious - just be sure to add more sugar unless you like a rather tart pie. Either way, this is excellent with good quality vanilla ice cream.

If you are using frozen fruit, let it thaw entirely and then drain off the excess liquid if you want to avoid having an extremely juicy pie; you may wish to add another cup or so of fruit if you are doing this as it will be denser in volume.

1 9-inch pie shell
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into chunks
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup all purpose or white whole wheat flour
Dash of cinnamon
7 cups combined strawberries and rhubarb cut into 1-inch chunks
3/4 cup white sugar
3 Tbsp cornstarch
Dash of salt

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Shape the crust in a pie pan and prick all over with a fork, then stash it in the freezer while you prepare the topping and filling.

Using a pastry cutter or food processor, cut the butter, sugar, flour, and cinnamon together until well combined and crumbly. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the fruit, sugar, cornstarch and salt and stir until well combined.

Take the pie shell out of the freezer. Place the fruit mixture into it, evening it out, and then top with the streusel topping.

Bake for 45-60 minutes, until the crust is nicely brown and the pie is thoroughly bubbly. Let cool before serving.

Makes one 9-inch pie in a relatively deep dish.

Sweet Rhubarb Quick Bread

I always save some strawberries in the freezer for this time of year, when the rhubarb is ready to pick but the strawberries aren't. But rhubarb is great on its own, too. Make this recipe as written, or, if you like, substitute some strawberries (mash partly first).

Rhubarb in the garden

3/4 lb rhubarb stems, stringed and cut into 1/2-inch lengths
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 eggs, beaten
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan.

Place the rhubarb in a microwave proof bowl with a small splash of water and cover with plastic wrap or a plate. Steam on High for 1 minute, stir, then cook for another 1 minute and stir again. The rhubarb should be quite soft and will exude a good bit of liquid. If needed, steam for another 30-60 seconds. Set aside.

Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl and stir.

Combine the eggs, sugar, vanilla, and oil in a large bowl and stir well. Stir in the rhubarb with its liquid. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until thoroughly combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50-55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean.

Makes 1 loaf.

Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler

I guess this is sort of a cross between Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp and Strawberry Shortcake.  Another delicious variation on a theme.  Under no circumstances should you skip the whipped cream.  The cobbler topping is the cream biscuits recipe from Alice Water's The Art of Simple Food, and it's the best I've had.

6-7 cups combined whole strawberries and rhubarb in 1-inch chunks
1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp white sugar
1 1/2 cups + 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp cold butter, in small pieces
1 pint heavy cream
1-2 Tbsp confectioners sugar

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Butter an 8x8-inch baking dish.

Combine the strawberries and rhubarb in a mixing bowl with 1/2 cup white sugar and 2 Tbsp flour and toss well to coat.  Set aside while you make the dough for the topping.

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the butter and cut in with a pastry cutter or two knives until it is peas-sized or smaller.  Add 3/4 cup cream and stir with a fork until the dough just comes together.  If it's too dry, add more cream a little drizzle at a time until you can form the dough into a rough ball in your hands.  Transfer it to a lightly floured surface and press it out with your hands until it is a size that will more or less cover the baking dish.

Pour the fruit into the baking dish and place the dough over it (it should be contained within the dish, not hang over).  Bake for 45-55 minutes, until the dough is cooked through and golden brown, and the fruit is bubbling.  Let cool on a rack.

While the cobbler bakes, whip the rest of the cream with the confectioners sugar and refrigerate until ready to use.

Serve the cobbler warm or room temperature with a generous helping of whipped cream on top.

Serves 6-8.

Rhubarb Cobbler

Strawberry season may be over, but rhubarb is still going strong in my garden and it's quite good on its own. The cobbler topping is the same recipe I use for shortcake dough; if you like, you could cook the rhubarb on the stovetop and serve it over individual biscuits with whipped cream as a variation.

Rhubarb
8 cups rhubarb, in 1-inch chunks
1 cup sugar
3 Tbsp white flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Dough
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
4 tsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp cold butter, in small pieces
3/4 cup heavy cream

Toss the rhubarb in a large bowl with the sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Set aside while you make the dough.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter and cut it into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter or two knives until it is the size of peas or smaller. Pour in 3/4 cup cream and mix with a fork until the dough just hold together. If it's too dry, add more cream a tiny bit at a time. Form the dough into a rough ball with your hands.

Spread the rhubarb mixture into a 7x11-inch baking pan. Tear off pieces of the dough and roughly cover the rhubarb. It should be mostly covered but with a few small spots open.

You may want to place the baking dish on top of a cookie sheet or similar pan in case the juice overflows. Bake for 35-40 minutes, then cook on a rack. Serve warm. Nice with ice cream or whipped cream.

Serves about 6.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Sauce

Mmm, first rhubarb of the season! Straight from our garden. Strawberries from the freezer, picked last summer at Upinngil Farm - I always save a couple bags for early spring when the rhubarb is ready but fresh strawberries are still two months away.

I made this sauce to go over homemade cheesecake, and it was excellent. It would also be great over vanilla ice cream. Not to mention pancakes, waffles, or French toast!

2 cups whole strawberries (frozen is fine)
2 cups chopped rhubarb (strings removed if desired)
1/3 cup sugar

Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan with a small splash of water. Cook over medium heat for 5-10 minutes, then simmer over low heat for 30-45 minutes, until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat and puree if desired, then cool. Serve at room temperature.

Make about 1 1/2 cups.

Savory Rhubarb Lentil Dal

This is slightly adapted from a Mark Bittman recipe published in the New York Times. It is the only savory rhubarb recipe I've seen (not that I have hunted exhaustively). The rhubarb lends a lovely sour note to the curry, something that might otherwise be achieved with keffir lime leaves. I thought this was fantastic, but my husband didn't like it that well, alas. Try it for yourself and see what you think. Serve this over brown rice.

3 cups rhubarb pieces (1-inch lengths), peeled first
1 1/2 cups red lentils
1/4 tsp cardamom
3 whole cloves
1-2 whole dried chili peppers
1 1/2 Tbsp mustard seeds
3 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
Salt to taste
Plenty of coarsely ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and add water to cover everything by about 1 inch. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat until the lentils and rhubarb are very soft. Remove the chili peppers and cloves (if you can find them). Stir the dal quite a bit so that the rhubarb and lentils both sort of disintegrate.

Serves 4-6.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Strawberries will not be in season locally for another couple weeks, probably, but I had one bag in the freezer from last year and could not resist the temptation to combine it with the plentiful rhubarb in our yard. Frozen berries can be used directly without thawing first. This pretty much demands to be accompanied by vanilla ice cream.

4 cups rhubarb pieces (about 1-inch lengths), peeled first
2-3 cups strawberries (fresh or frozen)
2 Tbsp corn starch
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour or whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
5 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, in small pieces, plus some for the baking dish

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter an 8x8-inch baking dish.

Toss the rhubarb, strawberries, corn starch, and white sugar together in a bowl.

In a food processor, combined the flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter and pulse until the butter chunks are pea-sized.

Place the fruit in the baking dish and pour the flour mixture over it. Bake for about 30 minutes, until topping is browned and fruit is bubbly.

Serves 6-8.

Stewed Rhubarb

Rhubarb season is in full swing, and it's the closest thing we've got to local fruit until the strawberries start coming in next month. We have it in our yard, as do many folks, but you can also find it at the farmers market. If you have somehow made it through life without cooking rhubarb before, you should know that the leaves are poisonous, so if you are harvesting it yourself, be sure to cut them off and just use the stalks.

This is a super simple recipe that my grandmother used to make, and my dad still raves about it and gets my mom to make it. He eats it straight, sort of like you might do with applesauce, but you could also dress it up as a dessert with some whipped cream or vanilla ice cream on top (or, conversely, serve over ice cream).

Rhubarb goes famously well with strawberries, of course, and once they come into season I'll post some recipes using them together.

6 cups chopped rhubarb stalks (peeled first if you like)
1/2 - 1 cup sugar, according to taste
1/4 - 1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

Combine rhubarb, sugar, and cinnamon (if using) in a large saucepan with a very small amount of water. Simmer until very soft.