Here’s a recipe for rhubarb snacking cake from the lovely Rachel Cook, a baker, chef and gluten-free baking whiz from Juicy Kitchen. It is one of those recipes that works equally well with fresh or frozen rhubarb. So if you like it as much as I do, then you can bake it year-round.
Rhubarb is a vegetable we like to think of as a fruit. It’s a relative of buckwheat and has an earthy, sour flavor. Rhubarb is very tart and needs the addition of something sweet to balance its acidity….hence it’s a perfect candidate for cake!
Cake
1 1/4 pound fresh rhubarb (or 2 packages Locavorious frozen rhubarb)
1 1/3 cup raw cane sugar, divided
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 large eggs
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/3 cup buttermilk
Crumb topping
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup raw cane sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon bee pollen, toasted and finely ground
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
If using fresh rhubarb, wash and cut into 1/2-inch lengths on the diagonal.
Next, make the cake; set oven to 350°F and lightly butter a 9 x 13 baking pan. Mix together the rhubarb, lemon juice, zest, and 2/3 cup sugar, set aside.
Next, beat butter and remaining sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and ground ginger. Gradually add the dry mixture to the butter mix. Then add the buttermilk, making sure to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl after each addition. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread into a thin, even layer. Then pour the rhubarb mixture over the batter.
Make the crumb mixture by combining all ingredients except for the butter. Then stir in the melted butter. Top rhubarb with crumb and bake cake for 50-60 minutes. Cool and enjoy!
PS – smittenkitchen.com has another version of rhubarb snacking cake with more traditional crumb topping:
