Tart meets sweet in rhubarb treats

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Rhubarb cake

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Four generation rhubarb pie

WHEN I was young, kids would sit on stoops dipping rhubarb stalks into bowls of white sugar, enjoying the elemental meeting of tart and sweet. This week, readers offer some grown-up takes on that experience. Mary Ann Poirer of Kenora clipped this rhubarb pie recipe a few years ago, and it has since become a family favourite. Elsie Reid of The Pas sends in a longtime family recipe for rhubarb cake.

You're lucky if you have rhubarb growing like a weed in your garden (or in the garden of a friendly, non-baking neighbour). It can be hard to buy fresh rhubarb, though farmer's markets, which are starting to open this weekend, are a good source. In a pinch you can find frozen rhubarb at some supermarkets.

Former Winnipegger Susan Cable, who now lives in Brandon, misses Sorrento's salad and is hoping someone has a similar recipe to share. If you can help with a recipe request, have your own request, or a favourite recipe you'd like to share, send an email to recipeswap@freepress.mb.ca, fax it to 697-7412, or write to Recipe Swap, c/o Alison Gillmor, Winnipeg Free Press, 1355 Mountain Ave., Winnipeg, MB, R2X 3B6. Please include your first and last name, address and telephone number.

Rhubarb cake

114 g (1/2 cup) butter or margarine

375 ml (1 1/2 cups) brown sugar

2 eggs

250 ml (1 cup) buttermilk or sour milk (see note below)

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla

500 ml (2 cups) all-purpose flour

5 ml (1 tsp) baking soda

5 ml (1 tsp) baking powder

2 ml (1/2 tsp) salt

500 ml (2 cups) diced rhubarb

60 ml (1/4 cup) brown sugar

5 ml (1 tsp) cinnamon

Preheat oven to 175C (350F). Grease a 22x22 cm (9x9 in) or 22x33 (9x13 in) cake pan. In a medium bowl using an electric mixer, cream butter and 375 ml (1 1/2 cups) brown sugar. Add eggs, beating after each addition, and vanilla. Add milk and then flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, and rhubarb. Mix and pour into prepared pan. Mix 60 ml (1/4 cup) brown sugar with cinnamon and sprinkle on top of batter. Bake for about 40 minutes. Cool on rack.

-- You can make sour milk by combining 15 ml (1 tbsp) white vinegar or lemon juice with enough whole milk to make 250 ml (1 cup). Let sit for a few minutes until it thickens.

Tester's notes: I love the carmelly taste of brown sugar in this moist, dense cake. I mixed the dry ingredients together and then alternated with the milk, but you can just mix them all in together. I used a 22x22 cm pan, but I might use the larger pan next time, because my cake's centre wasn't quite set when the edges were starting to brown. Elsie writes that the recipe can also be made into muffins: Use medium cups about two-thirds full and bake for 20-25 minutes.

Four generation rhubarb pie

310 ml (1 1/4 cups) white sugar, divided

60 ml (1/4 cup) all-purpose flour

1 ml (1/4 tsp) salt

45 ml (3 tbsp) orange juice

15-30 ml (1-2 tbsp) grated orange rind (optional)

60 ml (1/4 cup) melted butter

3 eggs, separated

625 ml (2 1/2 cups) diced rhubarb

22 cm (9 in) unbaked deep pie shell

Preheat oven to 190C (375F). In a large bowl, combine 250 ml (1 cup) of the sugar with the flour and salt. Stir in the orange juice, orange rind and melted butter, and stir to make a paste. Beat the egg yolks in a small bowl and add to the orange juice mixture. Add the rhubarb and stir to coat. In a separate medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in 60 ml (1/4 cup) sugar and continue beating until stiff, shiny peaks form. Gently fold egg whites into rhubarb mixture, taking care to incorporate egg whites without deflating them. Pour into pie shell and bake at 190C (375F) for 25 minutes. Reduce heat to 160C (325F) and bake for about 25-30 minutes longer, until pie is golden brown and the centre is set. Serve cooled, and store in the fridge.

Tester's notes: In this wonderful version of a custard pie, the creamy, orange-scented filling makes a perfect foil for the rhubarb. The egg yolks give richness, while the whipped egg whites make the filling puff up with a delicate brown crust. (If you find the pie browning too quickly, cover the top with tin foil.)

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 1, 2011 D4