Rhubarb Fool

This is one of those easy peasy recipes that is just totally sublime. Now that I've discovered how amazing it is, it will be one of my go-to-recipes! 

3 lbs rhubarb, cut into 1" chunks (fresh or frozen)
1 1/2 C sugar
1/4 C orange juice
2" ginger root, peeled, grated (using a microplane)
2 C heavy cream
7 oz ginger snaps, crushed
1/3 C Cointreau or Stone's ginger wine (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Layer the rhubarb in a baking dish, and spoon over the sugar and orange juice. Evenly distribute the grated ginger in between the chopped rhubarb.
Cook for about 40 minutes and then set aside to cool for about 10 minutes.
Strain the rhubarb—but be sure to save the gorgeous gingery, rhubarb syrup for serving later! Also, reserve about a dozen pieces of rhubarb to decorate the dessert later.
Blitz the rest of the rhubarb in a blender or food processor and set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk the heavy cream until thick and fluffy, and then gently fold in the rhubarb pureé.
To assemble the dessert—first layer the bottom of a trifle dish with the crushed ginger snaps. Drizzle the Cointreau or ginger wine over the cookies (optional), and then pour on the rhubarb pureé. Top with the reserved pieces of rhubarb and chill until you're ready to serve.
After serving in individual bowls, drizzle with a few tablespoons of the reserved rhubarb and ginger syrup.

This dessert is absolutely divine. I think it has to be one of my all time favorites!

Fresh from the Garden

There's nothing like picking your own fruit and vegetables. This morning we had a bumper crop of radish, rhubarb, lettuce and asparagus. I've been trying out different asparagus recipes. This asparagus soup was lovely, although I think next time instead of using a stick blender in the cooking pot, I'll blend the soup thoroughly so that it has a gorgeous velvety smooth texture.
I'm looking forward to making another strawberry and rhubarb pie later, and perhaps tomorrow I'll make a rhubarb fool.

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie, part 2

I have become totally obsessed with strawberry rhubarb pies this summer. I think I've made about six or so! They're quick to make, super tasty, and a hit with everyone.

This recipe was given to me by a good friend who has been testing and tweaking it for years. I don't think you can get any better than this!

Filling:

2 C rhubarb, washed and cut into 1 1/2" chunks

2 C (about 1 lb) strawberries, washed and halved

2 T minute tapioca

2 eggs, well-beaten

3 T flour

1 1/2 C light brown sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Pastry  (Fannie Farmer recipe):

2 C flour, sifted

2/3 C butter, chilled, grated
1/4 C ice water, or more as needed

1/4 tsp salt

Butter/sugar glaze:

1 T butter, melted

1/2 tsp cinnamon mixed with 1/2 tsp sugar 

Mix the chopped fruit gently together in a large bowl, and add the other filling ingredients. Set aside while you make the pastry.

Make the pastry (or use store-bought, but it's so quick to make from scratch why bother?):

Sift the flour into a large bowl, add the grated butter, then rub it in until you have a breadcrumb texture. Add add the ice water bit by bit, to make a dough. 

Pull it together so that it makes a ball, and then cut in half. Roll the first ball out so that it's slightly larger than your pie dish. Carefully lie the pastry in a ten inch pie dish taking care not to stretch it, and allow to chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes. 

Meanwhile heat the oven to 425 degrees F.

After the pastry has chilled pour in the fruit mixture and top off with the second half of the rolled-out pastry. If I have any extra little bits of pastry I like to decorate the top of the pie, before adding a few little steam vents and crimping the sides!

Brush on the melted butter, and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar.

Bake for 30 minutes at 425 degrees, and then reduce the heat to 350 and cook for another 30 minutes until the pie has browned. If the pastry begins to brown too quickly you can always add a little foil to protect it.

This pie is superb with vanilla ice-cream or with a big dollop of whipped cream. In fact I've had it with ice-cream and whipped cream together, and that might just be the best of both worlds! Let me know what you think!

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

There's nothing quite like a strawberry rhubarb pie. It's not quite as sophisticated as the French raspberry tart, or as traditional as American apple pie, but there's something so fresh and rustic about this combination, that it really deserves a special status.
A good friend of mine gave me his personal recipe, which he has fine-tuned for several years. Unfortunately I was sworn to total secrecy, so I'm not able to share the recipe with you, but here are some photos to help you taste the flavors and hopefully share a little of the joy that I experienced!