Honey-Rum Roasted Rhubarb

Last year Molly from Orangette wrote about her variation on Canal House's Roasted Rhubarb so convincingly that I had to try it. It was a risky move as I had never had rhubarb without strawberries, but there was reward in its sweet, tart taste. So for a while I reveled in it and then rhubarb was out of season.

Cue Spring in Richmond this year and a dearth of rhubarb. Apparently it is a Northern crop, so it isn't widely anticipated or available here the way it is in New York City. After a few weeks of searching I was resigned to not having rhubarb, then I saw it on Farm to Family's produce list! I squealed and promptly went to pick up some of the red celery-looking stalks.

Molly's original version still is great, but I've tinkered with it a bit halving the proportions, removing the refined sugar and using rum in lieu of wine. With wine you end up with a spare 3.5 cups to drink, which didn't interest me nor did cluttering the fridge with the bottle. Rum can be held for at room temperature in the pantry and it goes well with honey.

This rhubarb has more flavor and is sweeter when cold, so I recommend eating it that way although it eating it while its warm won't hurt you. Enjoy the rhubarb on its own, over plain greek yogurt for breakfast or over popovers, which convinced my mom that "stewed rhubarb" as she was raised eating it was actually quite tasty rather than the mushy, undesirable stuff of her memories.

Honey-Rum Roasted Rhubarb
Adapted from Molly at Orangette's twist on a recipe by Canal House Cooking, Volume 3.*
Yield approximately 1.5 cups

1 pound Rhubarb, trimmed (the leaves are poisonous!) and cut into 2-inch lengths
1/4 cup Honey (I used clover.)
3 tablespoons White Rum (We had Ronrico. Don't judge. It worked.)
1 tablespoon Water
1/2 Vanilla Bean, split up its center

1. Set a rack in the lower third of the oven, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Pour the honey, rum and water into the bottom of a pyrex dish (a dutch oven or other over-safe pot would work too). Add the rhubarb and stir gently to combine the ingredients.
3. Bake uncovered for 15 minutes, then remove the dish and stir the rhubarb to ensure even cooking.
4. Return the dish to the oven and continue baking it for 15 more minutes.
5. Remove from the oven, cool briefly on the counter and then place it in the fridge to cool overnight.

*It looks like David Lebovitz and Sarah Galvin at All Our Fingers in the Pie have done something similar too!

Poached Pears

The past two weekends I have prepared poached pears for friends. Poached pears smell heavenly while simmering and require very little attention; two great qualities when you know other people will be waiting and you want to pay attention to them not the food.
If served right away, they are warm and melt in your mouth. The finished pears are firm yet yielding enough to consume without a knife and are best with a spoon to scoop up the syrup. They are simple, satisfying, in season (!) and stun everyone with the end result.

I reviewed numerous recipes, mostly referring to Meg’s Joy of Cooking before deciding to use the methodology and ingredients below.

Poached Pears
4 Servings

Ingredients
4 firm pears, peeled, halved cored, stems on and bottoms cut flat (I’ve used bosc or seckel with success.)
4 cups Water
3/4 cup Agave Syrup*
1 Tbsp Vanilla Bean Paste
4 Cloves
Cinnamon

Directions
1. Place water and agave syrup into a pan deep enough to fully immerse all 4 pear halves in the liquid. Add the vanilla bean paste and four cloves. Bring to a simmer.
2. While the liquid heats, peel the pears and slice them in half leaving the stems on. Cut the bottoms flat in case you want to stand them up. Scoop out the core with a melon baller.
3. Add pears to the liquid ensuring they are fully submerged so they don’t change color. Let simmer uncovered for 20 (or however many) minutes.
4. Remove pears from poaching liquid. Bring it to a boil to reduce to a stronger simple syrup.
5. Sprinkle pears with cinnamon. Spoon simple syrup over and savor.

*I’ve been using Agave Syrup as I have had it on hand from an awesome trip to Costco just before Christmas, but it can be replaced with 1 cup of regular sugar. The pears are bound to still taste delicious though they technically will spike your blood sugar more. It’s only a matter of time before I revert to sugar as my wholesale access to Agave Nectar is gone with my parents.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble

When I made Apple Crumble a few months ago what I wanted, without knowing it, was this dish. As often is the case, good things are worth waiting for.

This my first experience with rhubarb and I wasn't sure what to expect. Raw it reminds me of something you could use to brush your teeth. I can't explain that. It is bitter and seems to have an astringent quality to it. When cooked it retains most of its shape, but breaks down into a stringy, soft texture.

When I took some of this Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble home for my parents to try, I insisted you couldn't taste the rhubarb in the final dish. My Mom who dislikes rhubarb did not agree. She did agree, however, that this was a great crumble recipe. I can't wait to make it with other fruits as they come into season.

Apple Crumble with Whipping Cream

I really wanted to make cobbler to go with my Pan-Seared Salmon with Pasta and Spinach Cream Sauce, but crumble was so much easier. The crunchy contrast of the cobbler topping with the softened apples was all I really wanted anyway.

I used Sally Schneider's Crumble recipe from A New Way to Cook, which you can find as the very last post here. My only alteration was using almond meal in place of sliced almonds. I had it on hand and was not looking for a really crunchy topping.

As you can see, maybe, the crumble had a very crumble-y texture. I was hoping for something a bit more cohesive as the topping. I plan to try a different topping recipe next time with the hope of finding what I'm looking for.