Rhubarb - Tart treat pairs nicely in salads and mains

Spanishchef.net recommends these products

Rhubarb – Tart treat pairs nicely in salads and mains

The first primary use of Rhubarb was not as food but as medicine in China and Tibet, with records dating back to 2700 B.C. Its eventual appearance in European countries was due to its medicinal properties, but cooks also were intrigued enough by its tart flavour that they began growing it around 1600. Trade routes continued to shrink the globe, and by the late-1700s imported sugar became plentiful and affordable, which pretty much lit the fuse on rhubarb’s becoming more commonly referred to as ‘pie plant.’ While we tend to think of it as a fruit, rhubarb actually is a vegetable, which helps move our brains in the direction of using it in more savoury dishes, such as a Yorkshire-style pudding side dish, or in a kale salad.

Confetti Salad of Kale and Rhubarb

I love this salad. It’s gorgeous, but it also makes you feel like a superhero with all of its vitamins! Lacinato kale – a dark green variety often called dinosaur kale – provides the best colour contrast for the ruby bits of rhubarb and golden batons of cheese. The liquid from the pickled rhubarb helps make the vinaigrette. Prepare the rhubarb at least three hours before serving.

Recipe is from Rhubarb Renaissance, by Kim Ode

Pickled Rhubarb:

1 cup rhubarb, cut in 1/4-inch (.5-cm) pieces

1/3 cup (80 mL) sugar

1/2 cup (125 mL) white balsamic vinegar

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) salt

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) mustard seeds

Salad:

1 bunch (12 to 15 leaves) lacinato kale

3 tablespoons (45 mL) pickling liquid from rhubarb

3 tablespoons (45 mL) walnut oil

Hefty pinch salt

Several grinds pepper

4 ounces (113 g) aged Gouda, cut in fat matchsticks

1 tablespoon (15 mL) butter

1/2 cup (125 mL) fresh bread crumbs, preferably sourdough

1/2 cup (125 mL) candied walnuts (see below), roughly chopped

To make pickled rhubarb: Place rhubarb in a shallow heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, combine sugar, vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt (2 mL) and mustard seeds, and bring to a boil; cook until sugar dissolves. Pour mixture over the rhubarb and let sit at room temperature for at least three hours before using. The pickles flavour improves if refrigerated overnight. Any leftover pickling liquid can be refrigerated for future use.

To make salad:

Remove centre rib from kale leaves, stack several pieces, then slice crosswise into a fine julienne. You should end up with about five cups (1.25 L). Rinse kale and pat dry between paper towels or use a salad spinner.

Whisk together pickling liquid and walnut oil. Season with salt and pepper. Toss kale with dressing, then gently fold in the cheese and drained rhubarb. Place in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes so the kale softens a bit; it can chill for up to three hours.

Heat butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, then add bread crumbs, stirring to coat. Cook, stirring, until crumbs are golden and crisp. Set aside.

Before serving, toss salad again, add bread crumbs and walnuts, and toss once more.

To make candied walnuts: Place a sheet of parchment paper on a baking sheet and set aside. Combine 1/4 cup (60 mL) water and 1/2 cup (125 mL) packed brown sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Add one cup (250 mL) walnut halves and continue to stir for about five minutes, until mixture begins to thicken. Pour out onto parchment paper, separating walnuts with a fork. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cool completely. Store in airtight container at room temperature for up to a month.

Serves 6

Salted Caramel Rhubapple Pie

My daughter, Mimi, came up with the idea for this pie, thinking to blend one of her favourite flavour combinations with my need for a new rhubarb recipe. She was spot-on. A bit of salt in the caramel is a final touch. . From Rhubarb Renaissance, by Kim Ode (Minnesota Historical Society Press, 120 pages, $16.95).

Pastry for single-crust pie

1/3 cup (80 mL) walnut pieces

6 Granny Smith apples, about 2 1/4 pounds (1 kg), peeled, cored and thickly sliced

1 tablespoon (15 mL) lemon juice

1 teaspoon (5 mL) cinnamon

1 tablespoon (15 mL) unsalted butter

1/2 cup (125 mL) honey

1 cup (250 mL) packed brown sugar, divided

2 cups (500 mL) rhubarb, cut in 1-in. pieces

1/4 cup (60 mL) instant tapioca

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) kosher or sea salt

1/2 cup (125 mL) flour

4 tablespoons (60 mL) cold butter, cut in small cubes

Line a pie plate with crust and place in refrigerator while you prepare the filling. Preheat oven to 375 F. Spread walnuts on a baking sheet and toast in oven about 5 minutes, until thereâ€™s a warm, nutty aroma. Cool, then chop coarsely and set aside.

Toss apple slices with lemon juice and cinnamon. Set aside.

Melt 1 tablespoon (15 mL) butter with honey and 1/2 cup (125 mL) brown sugar in a large heavy saucepan and heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a rolling boil. Add apples, stirring to coat them with caramel. Reduce heat and cook uncovered no more than 5 minutes. Do not overcook them to mushiness.

Place rhubarb in a bowl. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the hot apples into the bowl with the rhubarb. Add tapioca and stir to combine. Let sit for 15 minutes. In the meantime, add salt to the caramel remaining in the pan and cook, stirring often, a few minutes more to reduce it to a thick syrup. Do not let it scorch. Remove from heat and set aside.

Combine streusel ingredients: flour, remaining 1/2 cup (125 mL) brown sugar and 4 tablespoons cold butter (60 mL), pinching the butter with your fingers until itâ€™s evenly distributed. Stir in the toasted walnuts.

Scrape the apple-rhubarb mixture into the chilled pie shell and drizzle with 3 tablespoons (45 mL) caramel. Spread streusel mixture over pie and bake for 30 minutes. Let cool on wire rack at least 30 minutes.

Just before serving, drizzle the remaining caramel (reheating if necessary) over the pie.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Yorkshire Rhubarb

Note: My friend Cindy Jurgenson lent me one of her old cookbooks from â€œthe good cooks of Litchville, N.D.,â€? which was full of rhubarb recipes. Most were familiar, but one was a variation on the savoury Yorkshire puddings served with roast beef. If you donâ€™t have an oven-safe pan, pour the bacon renderings into a similarly sized baking dish, then proceed with the recipe as directed. . From Rhubarb Renaissance, by Kim Ode (Minnesota Historical Society Press, 120 pages, $16.95).

2 eggs

3/4 cup (180 mL) milk

3/4 cup (180 mL) flour

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) salt

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) dried thyme, or 1 teaspoon (5 mL) fresh

2 slices bacon, cut in half-inch pieces (see Note)

11/2 cups (375 mL) rhubarb, cut in half-inch pieces

1/4 cup (60 mL) packed light brown sugar

In a blender, combine eggs, milk, flour, salt and thyme. Process until smooth. Set aside for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 F. Slowly fry bacon in a 10-inch oven-safe pan (cast iron is ideal, but see Note). Remove bacon from pan and drain on paper towels. Reheat the rendered bacon fat until sizzling, then pour the batter into the pan. Scatter rhubarb over the batter, then sprinkle with brown sugar and bacon.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until crust is nicely browned. Cut in wedges and serve alongside any roasted meat or poultry.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

If you require a high quality printout of this article, just click on the printer symbol next to ’Share and enjoy’, and we will do the rest.

Get the best website builder available anywhere –SBI! Click here for more information

Return from rhubarb to Home Page

If you want to increase your site popularity and gain thousands of visitors – check out these sites THEY ARE FREE. Spanishchef more than doubled its ‘New Visitors’ last month simply by signing up to these sites: