Goodness… it’s been almost three months since I last posted!
Hope everyone’s been keeping safe and well.
It’s just been one of those Springs.
Very late in coming and then, overnight, it seemed to turn into summer.
The rhubarb in my garden just came alive in a huge rush.
It’s time to make use of them while they’re still fresh and crisp.
These recipes work best with fresh rhubarb.
If you’re new at using fresh rhubarb, don’t panic.
About 2 to 3 stalks will give you 1 1/2 cups diced rhubarb.
A little more or less will be just fine.
Fresh rhubarb can be chopped and refrigerated, or frozen, for future recipes.
Frozen rhubarb gets soft and watery. If you’re using frozen rhubarb thaw and drain it thoroughly before using to prevent excess moisture from affecting the recipe.
When ready to bake, be sure your ingredients are at room temperature for best results, especially the eggs and milk.
If you don’t have buttermilk add 1 tablespoon lemon juice to 1 cup milk, stir and use.
Muffins are so handy.
They can be served as a light breakfast or as a dessert.
They’re also easy to pack.
There’s so much you can do with rhubarb - cakes, puddings, pies, pavlovas, and, of course, muffins.
Enjoy!!
Hints:
About the Rhubarb Muffins …
You can serve them as they are, or with a dab of butter, or with honey or maple syrup.
Store in an airtight container.
About the Rhubarb Cheesecake Squares …
Don’t have enough rhubarb? Add strawberries!
Store leftover squares in fridge.
About the Rhubarb Cream Cheese Bars …
For extra warmth add a sprinkle of cinnamon to the rhubarb layer.
For a citrusy twist add lemon zest to the cream cheese layer.
About the No-Bake Rhubarb, Ginger & Oat Crumble Bars …
Sprinkle chopped crystallized ginger or almonds or pecans on top of the crumble before chilling.
Add a tablespoon of honey or maple syrup to the rhubarb mixture for a slightly sweeter filling.
About the Rhubarb Crumb Bars With Buttery Oat Topping …
The old-fashioned rolled oats gives this dessert a definite texture. If you have a different type of rolled oats (not instant), no problem.
Rhubarb Muffins
Grease two 12 cup muffin pans or line them with cupcake wrappers.
Place in a small bowl
1 Tablespoon melted butter
1/3 Cup white sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Stir together.
Dice into 1/4 inch pieces
1 1/2 Cups fresh rhubarb
Place in a medium bowl
2 1/2 Cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Stir together.
Place in a large mixer bowl
1 1/4 Cups brown sugar
1/2 Cup oil
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Cup buttermilk
Beat with an electric mixer until smooth.
Add the dry ingredients and stir until blended. Do not over mix.
Add
the diced rhubarb
1/2 Cup chopped walnuts
Stir just until blended.
Preheat oven to 350° F
Spoon the batter into the prepared cups, filling almost to the top.
Sprinkle about a teaspoon of the sugar mixture on top of each muffin.
Bake about 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans and transferring to a wire rack.
Rhubarb Cheesecake Squares
Cut into 1/2 inch pieces
5 Cups fresh rhubarb
Line a 9 x 13 inch pan with parchment paper.
Place in a dutch oven
the chopped rhubarb
3/4 Cup sugar
1 Tablespoon water
Over medium heat, simmer for 8 minutes.
Stir in
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
Cook 2 more minutes.
Set aside to cool.
Place in a medium bowl
1 3/4 Cup flour
1 Cup oats
3/4 Cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 Cup butter
Blend together.
Spread half of this mixture in the prepared pan and press firmly.
Add to the remaining half
1/2 Cup chopped walnuts
Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350° F
Place in a large mixer bowl
16 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 Cup confectioner’s sugar
1 egg
Beat together until smooth.
Gently spread cheese mixture on top of the crust.
Spread the rhubarb mixture on top of the cheese mixture.
Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture evenly over the top.
Lightly press down.
Bake 30 minutes, until topping is golden brown and cheesecake is set.
Place on wire rack to cool.
Cool completely before slicing.
Rhubarb Cream Cheese Bars
Cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 Cups fresh rhubarb
Grease a 9 x 9 inch pan
Place in a saucepan
the prepared rhubarb
1/3 Cup sugar
2 Tablespoons water
Cook over medium heat until the rhubarb softens and thickens, about 10 minutes.
Place in a medium bowl
1 1/2 Cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup unsalted butter, melted
Stir together to combine.
Spread the mixture into the bottom of prepared baking pan.
Set aside.
Place in a large mixer bowl
16 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 Cup confectioner’s sugar
Beat until smooth.
Stir in
1 teaspoon vanilla
Gently fold in
1 (8 oz) tub whipped topping
Spread the cooled rhubarb mixture over the crust.
Spread the cream cheese layer evenly on top.
Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight to set.
Slice into bars and serve chilled.
No-Bake Rhubarb, Ginger & Oat Crumble Bars
Cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3 Cups fresh rhubarb
Line an 8 x 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
Place in a dutch oven
the chopped rhubarb
1/4 Cup sugar
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
Stirring frequently, cook over medium heat for 8 minutes.
Stir in
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
Cook 2 more minutes.
Set aside to cool.
Place in a medium bowl
1 1/2 Cups rolled oats
1 Cup flour
1/2 Cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
Combine, then stir in
1/2 Cup unsalted butter, melted
Stir until the mixture is crumbly.
Press about 2/3 of the crumble mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan.
Spread the rhubarb filling evenly over the crumb base.
Sprinkle the remaining crumble mixture on top of the rhubarb filling.
Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or until fully set.
Slice into squares or bars and serve chilled.
Rhubarb Crumb Bars With Buttery Oat Topping
Cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3 Cups fresh rhubarb
Line an 8 x 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
Place in a dutch oven
the chopped rhubarb
1/2 Cup sugar
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
Stirring frequently, cook over medium heat for 8 minutes.
Stir in
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
Cook 2 more minutes.
Set aside to cool.
Place in a large bowl
1 1/2 Cups flour
1 1/2 Cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 Cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Mix together, then pour in
3/4 Cup unsalted butter, melted
Stir until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs.
Press about two-thirds of this mixture into the bottom of the pan to form the crust.
Preheat oven to 350° F
Spread the rhubarb filling over the crust evenly.
Sprinkle the remaining oat mixture on top.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until the top turns golden and the filling bubbles up.
Allow it to cool in the pan, then refrigerate for at least an hour before cutting into bars.
Old-Fashioned Rhubarb Cake
Cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 Cups fresh rhubarb
Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.
Place in a small bowl
1/3 Cup flour
1/3 Cup brown sugar
1/3 Cup rolled oats
1/4 Cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Mix until crumbly.
Set aside.
Place in a medium bowl
1 1/2 Cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Whisk together.
Place in a large mixer bowl
1 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup unsalted butter, softened
Cream until light and fluffy.
Add, one at a time
2 large eggs
Mix well after each addition.
Stir in
1 teaspoon vanilla
Making 3 dry and 2 liquid additions add to the mixture
the flour mixture
1/2 Cup milk
Mix until just combined.
Gently fold in the chopped rhubarb.
Preheat oven to 350° F
Spread the batter evenly in the prepared baking dish.
Sprinkle the streusel mixture evenly over the batter.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Place on wire rack to cool.
Cool completely before slicing.
German Rhubarb Almond Cake
Grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan
Cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 Cups fresh rhubarb
Place in a medium bowl
1 1/2 Cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Whisk together.
Place in a large mixer bowl
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 Cup sugar
Cream until light and fluffy.
Add, one at a time
2 large eggs
Mix well after each addition.
Stir in
1 teaspoon vanilla
Making 3 dry and 2 liquid additions add to the mixture
the flour mixture
1/2 Cup plain yogurt
Gently fold in the chopped rhubarb.
Preheat oven to 350° F
Spread the batter evenly in the prepared baking dish.
Sprinkle over the batter
1/4 Cup sliced almonds
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Once cooled, dust the top with confectioner’s sugar before serving. (optional)
~~~
Back in 2002 in another broadcast of our CKUW radio program ‘2000 & Counting’ we talked about our gardens.
Our show was hosted by seniors who’d had a variety of homeowner experiences.
Well, this had been ours by the time we were in our early fifties…
A few weeks ago you talked about your farm and how much you enjoy tending it. I'm impressed. Really. Fourteen years ago Paul and I, former New York City kids, moved to a 35 by 100 foot suburban plot and the bloom is definitely off our rose.
We've tried. The house was only two years old and a blank canvas. The first couple had installed a lawn. Local gossip had it that the wife had planted a small tree, the husband had yanked it out and then they filed for divorce. Well, we Ullrichs were united. We were going to have plants. We zipped down to the nursery and picked up three lilacs, three cotoneasters, two Swedish aspens, two chokecherry trees, six evergreen ground covers and three michaelmas daisies. They were the cutest little things - Paul was taller than the aspens. How big could they get, right?
Then, God help me, I read a book. It was an amazing piece of science fiction called The Postage Stamp Garden Book. I was going to be Lady Bountiful, with fresh produce by the basketful. Oh, yeah! I'd never go near the old veggies at our local Safeway again. The authors promised my garden would look like a miniature rain forest. I could grow all the food we could eat in very little space by intensive gardening techniques. Translation: ignore those cute little plant stickers and cram those suckers together.
I bought 48 tomato plants, five rhubarbs, a bag of baby onions, a grapevine, and seeds for zucchini, green beans and lettuce. I intercropped - that's planting seeds among the plants. When the seeds sprouted, they looked about as hopeful as the folks in steerage on the Titanic. And they survived about as well. The bigger plants didn't do much better. My garden looked more like a miniature compost pile than a rain forest. I trudged back to Safeway. After that fiasco I limited my garden to 12 tomatoes, five rhubarbs and marigolds.
When we became empty nesters I wanted to become one with nature. I bought a butterfly starter kit at Canadian Tire. I believed: if I plant it, they will come. I also picked up some lovely pastel pansies. Well, the butterflies came in droves and pigged out on the liatris, echinacea, sedum and rudbeckia. Funny thing… my pansies stopped flowering. Then, on a CBC radio gardening segment, I learned that butterflies lay their eggs in pansies. Basically I had created a butterfly cheap motel - they came, got drunk on the flowers, then had unsafe sex in my pansies, which their miserable kids devoured. Of all the nerve.
Do you remember when the wave petunia hit gardeners? I thought it would be a nice theme, so I bought lots of petunias - some waving, some just standing there. Either way, they were sitting ducks for the local bush bunnies. I tried to rescue 24 petunias by digging 24 alyssums out of the planter box, replacing the alyssums with the petunias and vice versa. I got a lot of exercise. So did the bunnies. They came, spotted the petunias in the planter and quicker than you could say jack rabbit, hopped up 18 inches and ate the petunias. I let our spaniel Silky out. Silky and the bunnies played hide and seek around the box, until Silky got tired and went to nap under the tree. Huh… Hunting dog, my Aunt Patootie.
But, I keep trying. A few months ago I bought four packets of seedtape - that's 60 feet of alyssum. I prepared the soil, made the rows, tore and unrolled the strips, covered and watered. Our new bichon puppy, Bobo, watched my every move. The next day, while having lunch, we were gazing out our kitchen's picture window. Bobo and our 10-year-old bichon, Popcorn, were frolicking. Ah, spring. It was a lovely sight.
It was… until Bobo raced across with long green ribbons gripped in his mouth. The ribbons were waving in the breeze. Bobo looked like a Korean ribbon dancer in a puppy Folklorama pavillion. I checked. He'd managed to dig up every tape.
I've been watching Home and Garden TV shows. They look so happy planting, hacking and building. But I wish they had a show for the gardening impaired. Somebody who'll stand there and say, You idiot! Stop doing that. The fire and police departments send people to tell us to get rid of trash and lock doors. Why isn't there someone who checks our gardens? Don't they know some of us are clueless?
When we bought our house fourteen years ago, Paul bought a hose reel. It had a short hose to attach the faucet to the reel. Okay. We thought there was a safety reason for that. Paul put the reel on the fence near the faucet, which was nowhere near the yard. He bought an extra 100 feet, for a total of 150 feet, of hose so we could get the water to where it was needed.
Last week the fence board keeled over from the weight of all that hose. I had an epiphany. We're talking water here. Why can't the reel be near the garden? We could, dare I say it, use a longer hose to attach the faucet to the reel, instead of grappling with 150 feet of hose and shlepping around half the perimeter of our house every time we had to bring the water to the greenery.
We really want to learn. A few weeks ago, I got another gardening book. Now, before you roll your eyes, the author was on a Canadian show. He promised - and I quote - we can have beautiful CANADIAN gardens with minimum toil. All we have to do is plant perennials. Real perennials, not like what I called volunteer perennials until my neighbour told me that my yard was full of weeds. They, the perennials, will come back every year. Isn't that nice? So I went and got one of just about every perennial that'll grow in zone three to replace the alyssums that Bobo danced with.
The plants are so small. I know the stickers say they're hardy and that they can grow for feet high and two feet across. But I have my doubts. I want the plants to have a fighting chance. More than my poor alyssum tapes got. So I planted them a little closer together.
What exactly do they mean by invasive?
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