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Published: July 22, 2008 08:44 pm
Versatile vegetable
Rhubarb good for savory and sweet dishes
By Bev Davis
Register-Herald Senior Editor
In conjunction with the Rhubarb Tour scheduled Aug. 12 at the West Virginia State Fair, some area groups teamed up to sponsor a cookoff featuring the vegetable that thinks it’s a fruit.
The National Institute for Culinary Arts at Mountain State University, Tamarack, and Beckley Renaissance collaborated with the Friends of Public Broadcasting in arranging the event.
Organizers weren’t sure what kinds of entries to expect, so they planned to give prizes in sweet, savory and youth categories.
“All of the entries were in the sweets category, so we went with a winner and two honorable mentions and an overall winner,” said Tina Bailey, wife of the Institute’s director Chef Leonard Bailey and a judge for the event.
In preparing for the event, Tina Bailey did some rhubarb research
“Rhubarb can be used in savory dishes, similar to the way that celery is used. It can be used in slaws, relishes, chow chows, salsas or chutneys. Rhubarb can also be used in warm dishes, like casseroles, soups, and stews. It’s also good just seasoned, breaded and fried. Chopped rhubarb can also be used when roasting or sautéing meats, the same way that you would use onions, shallots and/or garlic,” she said.
Foods such as tomatoes, onions, corn and carrots make the best accompaniments for savory dishes.
In sweet dishes, rhubarb is best paired with pineapples, apples, berries and raisins.
Bailey also turned up these fascinating facts:
- Rhubarb is a vegetable indigenous to Asia and was introduced in the United States in New England during the 1820s.
- It is a perennial plant with stalks that grow back year after year.
- Early civilizations mainly used rhubarb for medicinal purposes, and it has also been used to make wine.
- Although rhubarb stalks are edible, it’s leaves and roots are toxic. Once you’ve cut and discarded the leaves from the stalks, wash your hands immediately.
The leaves are so poisonous they have killed livestock such as goats, sheep, llama and alpacas.
Thelma Neal of Gauley Bridge took first place with Thelma’s rhubarb/strawberry pie.
Honorable mentions went to Marie Newcomb of Beckley for her Way Above Average Strawberry Rhubarb Cake with Rhubarb Coulis and to Sharon Lilly of Daniels for her innovative Rhubarb sherbet.
Other participants were:
- Jane Meador of Hinton — Grandma Jane’s no frills, no nonsense rhubarb cobbler
- Charlotte Taylor — spiced rhubarb soup
- Wilma Rodes-O’Brien of Beckley — rhubarb glazing sauce
- Wilma Lilly Rhodes of Jumping Branch — rhubarb bread pudding with hard sauce
- Dena Cushman — rhubarb almond coffee cake
- Nancy Forsberg — easy rhubarb cake with cream cheese icing
Here are winning recipes.
Thelma’s rhubarb/strawberry pie
4 cups diced rhubarb
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1 large box strawberry gelatin
2 cups sliced strawberries
1 large graham cracker crust
Cook rhubarb, sugar and water on low heat until rhubarb is completely cooked. Remove from heat.
Mix gelatin into boiling rhubarb.
Stir until gelatin is dissolved. Put strawberries in the crust, pour rhubarb mixture over strawberries. Refrigerate until gelatin is set. Serve with Cool Whip or ice cream.
Graham cracker crust
2 cups cinnamon graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup melted butter or margarine
Combine all ingredients. Press into bottom and sides of large pie pan that has been sprayed with a non-stick spray. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven 8-10 minutes. Cool thoroughly.
Way Above Average Strawberry Rhubarb Cake with Rhubarb Coulis
For cake
Unsalted butter for pans
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
6 large whole eggs, plus 4 large egg yolks, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup vegetable oil
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 9-by-2-inch round cake pans; set aside. Into a large bowl sift together flour, cornstarch and nutmeg; set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, combine the whole eggs, egg yolks, granulated sugar, salt and vanilla. Beat on high speed until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl as necessary.
Add flour mixture to egg mixture. With mixer on low speed, beat until just combined. Add oil in a steady stream, mixing until just combined. Remove bowl from mixer. Using the whisk, fold mixture several times.
Divide batter between pans and smooth. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until the cakes spring back and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean — about 30 minutes.
Immediately invert cakes onto a wire rack. Then re-invert cakes and let them cool completely top sides up. Split each layer into two layers using a serrated knife.
For compote
4 cups 1/2-inch thick rhubarb slices
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons water
16 ounces of fresh strawberries, washed and sliced
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Combine rhubarb, sugar and water in heavy medium saucepan. Bring just to a boil.
Reduce heat, cover and cook just until rhubarb is tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; mix in berries and vanilla. Chill until cold. Can be made a day ahead if kept chilled. Makes about 3-1/2 cups.
For coulis
2 cups chopped fresh rhubarb
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup cold water
1 teaspoon cornstarch
Place the rhubarb in a heavy, non-aluminum saucepan. Add remaining ingredients and stir until cornstarch dissolves. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Turn down and simmer until the rhubarb is tender, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Strain the sauce through a fine strainer or sieve, pressing on rhubarb to drain all the liquid. Discard pulp.
Topping:
1-1/2 cups chilled whipping cream
6 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine whipping cream, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla in a bowl. Beat to stiff peaks.
To assemble cake:
Place one cake layer, cut-side up, on platter. Spread with 3/4 cup compote, then 1 cup whipped cream. Repeat, layering with two more cake layers, compote and cream.
Top with last cake layer, cut-side down. Chill one hour. Can be made 6 hours ahead and kept refrigerated.
Before serving, dust with powdered sugar, drizzle plate and cake with coulis.
Rhubarb sherbet
1/2 cup stewed rhubarb
(recipe below)
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 cup chilled milk
1 teaspoon granulated gelatin
1 tablespoon cold water
1/2 cup heavy cream, whipped stiff
To the unmashed cold, stewed rhubarb, add lemon juice, salt, sugar and corn syrup. Blend carefully but thoroughly with the milk. Then add gelatin soaked in cold water for 5 minutes and dissolved over hot water.
Mix well and chill.
Fold in the stiffly whipped heavy cream and freeze until mushy. Stir from bottom and sides, beat 1/2 minute, then continue freezing until solid but not too hard. Serve either chilled in sherbet glasses, orange cups or cantaloupe halves which have been chilled.
Stewed rhubarb
3 cups diced rhubarb
1 cup strawberries
1 cup boiling water
1 cup sugar
One 2-inch stick cinnamon
Cover the rhubarb with boiling water and let stand 5 minutes, then drain. Make a syrup with the cup of boiling water, sugar and cinnamon.
Add the drained fruit and cook gently until the fruit is tender but not broken.
— E-mail: bdavis@register-herald.com
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