If you don’t like your rhubarb adulterated by other fruit this is the dessert for you. A tart tangy rhubarb filling still hot from the oven topped with a dead simple and marvelously crispy buttery crumble topping. Add a dollop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream and the trifecta is complete.
want a little less rhubarb? try these amazing scones
want a little more rhubarb and a little less sweet? this refrigerator jam should be your jam
Crisps are fine. I grew up with crisps- brown sugar, oats, apples or rhubarb. BUt sometimes you want a crumble all crunchy butter and sugary goodness, the perfect lid for a tart spring rhubarb filling.
This recipe is a mash up and adaptation of the warm cranberry crumble tart and strawberry rhubarb crisp from the Art & Soul of Baking
Sweet and Tart Rhubarb Crumble
Ingredients
for the filling
- 3 Lbs Rhubarb (enough to just fill your 10 inch dish) Fresh or Frozen, sliced into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1/2 Cup Sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon Cardamom
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon Tapioca Flour can substitute corn starch or 2 tablespoons flour
for the crumble topping
- 1 cup (5 ounces) AP Flour
- 3/4 cup (5 ounces) sugar
- 1 stick (8 Tablespoons)salted butter cut into 1/4 inch pieces
- pinch of cardamom
- pinch of black pepper
Instructions
- Pre- heat oven to 350F and position rack in center
for the filling
- chop the rhubarb and in a large bowl toss it with the sugar, vanilla, melemon juice, and tapioca flour
- toss until throughly combined and then scrape into a buttered deep dish pie or tart pan
make the crumble
- combine flour, sugar, and spices in a large bowl ( use the one from the filling, not bothering to rinse)
- add the cold butter and using your hands, a pastry cutter, or the paddle attachment of a stand mixer (mix on medium-lomix until small clumps form (crumbles, if you will)
assemble
- evenly spread the crumble mixer over the rhubarb
bake and serve
- It’s a good idea to place a baking sheet pan or piece of foil underneath the crumble to catch any drips that may bubble over the edges.
- Bake for 40-50 minutes until the topping is just browned and the rhubarb filling is bubbling and the fruit is soft
- Serve warm topped with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or a pitcher of heavy cream to pour around the edges
Rhubarb is in my blood!! Grandma had a giant rhubarb patch. I was assigned the tending and picking of it. It’s beautiful large leaves with the striking red and pale green, sturdy stalks. It’ was easy to harvest (if you dont mind the grasshoppers leaping hither and yon!) Rhubarb has (when cooked properly) a delicate but distinct flavor. Grandma used it in all the typical recipies; pies, crumbles, cobblers, dessert bread (YUM) sometimes with strawberries, sometimes alone. But my favorite memory is Rhubarb Sauce, a sort of compote, if you will. She cooked it with enough water to keep it stirring until it was smushy soft and yes, a ton of sugar to offset it’s extreme tartness. I’m TELLIN ya, that Rhubarb sauce was always in the fridge to be used on ice cream, white cake, etc… OR… just in a sauce dish (every 50-60’s household had an ample stack of “sauce dishes” small, shallow bowl, maybe 4oz) to eat it plain (again, YUM) NO FLAVOR, some say??!?? BAH!! it’s delicious!
I say to the rhubarb haters, …just settle down. You just ain’t had it like grandma made it!!!! …or in this case Melinda!!! Yum!
Cyndee,
I love love love stories like this! Grandma seems like a woman after my own heart. Thanks you so much for sharing 🙂