The earliest produce to pop up in our garden is rhubarb. It seems to be one of those strange vegetables that you either love or hate.
Growing up I don’t think anyone in my family liked rhubarb. So I never even tasted it until a few years ago when I started baking it with it myself.
It’s tart and a little tough. But if you add sugar and cook it rhubarb is delicious! It is perfect for all sorts of desserts.
In the past I’ve made strawberry rhubarb upside down cake, rhubarb muffins and Dutch strawberry rhubarb pie. We have more in our garden, so I need to come up with other ways to use it.
Yesterday I made one of my favorites – rhubarb crisp. This version is gluten, dairy, nut and egg free. I used oats in the topping, but they can be replaced with other gluten free flours if you don’t tolerate oats.
The whole family gave the seal of approval for this recipe! The best part for me? It’s really easy to make. It only took about 10 minutes to get it prepared and in the oven. A simple dessert the whole family can enjoy. Perfect!
Do you enjoy rhubarb? What are some creative ways you use it?
- 3 cups rhubarb, chopped (you can also peel outer layers if they are stringy)*
- 1 cup organic cane sugar or sucanat
- 1 cup rolled oats**
- 1/2 cup coconut flour***
- 1/2 cup organic palm shortening, butter and/or coconut oil
- 1/2 cup organic cane sugar or sucanat
- Heat oven to 350*F. Grease a 9" baking pan.
- Combine the rhubarb and 1 cup sugar. Mix well and pour into prepared pan.
- Combine the oats, flour and 1/2 cup sugar in a small bowl. Mix in the fat until the mixture is crumbly.
- Sprinkle the crumble over the rhubarb.
- Bake the crisp for 50-60 minutes, until the rhubarb is soft and the topping is golden brown.
- Let the crisp cool completely before serving. This will allow it to solidify.
- Serve plain or topped with whipped cream or ice cream.
- *You can substitute chopped strawberries, raspberries or cherries for some of the rhubarb to make a sweeter crisp.
- **You can replace the oats with 1/2 cup white rice flour and 1/2 cup coconut flour.
- ***You can replace the coconut flour with 1/2 cup oat flour.
Try Strawberry and Rhubarb jam. It is delicious. My grandma always made it. We have a huge garden this year, but I haven’t been able to get rhubarb plants yet. We have a lot of other fruit things we bought this year, so it may have to wait till next year. Got to love Rhubarb!
That sounds good, Jennifer! I bet my family would love strawberry rhubarb jam.