Give spring a little zing

Rhubarb is an old-fashioned favorite. It gives and gives. The leaves are toxic, but the stalks lend themselves well to desserts. It can be chopped and frozen in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic and stored in the refrigerator crisper drawer. Enjoy the first fruit of the season with the following recipes.

Easy Rhubarb Cake

1 yellow box-cake mix
3 cups rhubarb
1 cup sugar
dash of cinnamon
2 cups whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix cake as directed on box, using a 9-by-13-inch pan. Mix rhubarb, sugar and cinnamon together and place on top of prepared cake. Pour whipping cream over the top of cake. Bake 40 to 45 minutes. — Startingover, e-mail

Rhubarb Blueberry Crunch

Fruit:
3 cups rhubarb
3 cups blueberries
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour

Topping:
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup oats
1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup vegetable shortening

Cook’s note: Any fruit can be used. The amount of fruit is an approximation. Add sugar to taste depending on the tartness of your rhubarb and blueberries.

Preheat oven to 375 F. Combine rhubarb, blueberries, sugar and flour. Place mixture in a greased, oven-safe pan. Combine brown sugar, oats, and flour. Cut in butter/margarine and shortening until crumbly. Sprinkle mixture over fruit. Bake for 40 minutes. — Skip, Kentucky

Rhubarb Pie

3 cups rhubarb, chopped
1-1/2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
dash salt
4 eggs
1/2 cup cream (or milk or half-and-half)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 unbaked pie crust

Mix all ingredients together and put into the unbaked piecrust. No top crust. Bake at 400 F for 50 minutes. — Cab54, Michigan

Rhubarb Crisp Cake

2 cups sugar
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
4 cups diced rhubarb
1/2 cup butter
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk

Topping:
2 cups quick or rolled oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter/margarine, melted

Preheat the oven to 350 F. In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon flour. Add rhubarb and toss to coat; set aside. Melt the butter in a 2-quart casserole dish or other deep baking dish. In a large bowl, whisk the remaining 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and baking powder. Stir in milk until batter is smooth. Pour the batter over the melted butter and spread gently so that butter stays on the bottom. Arrange the rhubarb in an even layer on top of the batter. (This is easier said than done. It’s not a big deal if some of the butter comes up over the cake batter, because it will — the cake still turns out OK — just try not to mix the two layers too much.)
Mix the oats, brown sugar and melted butter/margarine in a small bowl until blended. Using your fingers, crumble the topping over the rhubarb, leaving open areas of rhubarb so the cake batter can rise up through between areas of topping. You could even get creative with this and make a design with the topping and open areas. See what the cake batter will do when you give it room to rise.
Bake in the preheated oven until batter has risen up through the fruit and the top is golden brown, 50 to 60 minutes. Test with a long skewer to see whether cake is cooked through. Let cool before serving. — Sue. Michigan

photo by simply carolina dreamz

Posted by Sara Noel on April 21 2010. Filed under Frugal Cooking.
Sara Noel owns Frugal Village, LLC and is a nationally syndicated columnist with Universal Uclick. Bio, Follow me on Twitter, Join us on Facebook