rhubarb

The season of spring is upon us and the strawberries in Oregon are overflowing with flavor and sweetness. The rhubarb time is here and what a special time it is. Rhubarb and strawberries go hand in hand not just because of the complimentary sweet-to-sour or their matching color palate but because they ripen at the same time.

Every year I look forward with anticipation to the farmer’s market opening and that big sign that reads Fresh rhubarb sweet local strawberries! It pulls me from my tasks, from my busy, busy days it makes me pull the car over and wander around the market with basket in hand, eyes almost popping out of my head as they bounce from bountiful stand to bountiful stand.

This year I wanted something easy for breakfast with my family on the coast so I whipped up this easy little treat. It is perfect for breakfast, a little snack with tea or for a light dessert and is ready in no time at all. I love serving it in the cast iron pan you cook it in too; it brings that sweet little farmhouse charm right from oven to table. What I love is how quick and delicious this is, no crusts to make and chill then roll out and bake just a little fruit and a little flour and a lot of flavor.

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“The time has come,” the Walrus said, “To talk of many things: Of shoes–and ships–and sealing-wax– how rhubarb is the King…”
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Okay, so maybe that is not exactly what Lewis Caroll said in Alice in Wonderland but I am sure if he had to do it over, he would, especially if he had a bite of this scrumptious Gluten Free Blueberry Rhubarb Crumble. There is something magical about Rhubarb time. Perhaps what makes it special is that it is so fleeting. Now you see it, now you eat it, now you wait until next year, gosh darn it!

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My childhood is full of rhubarb tales. Memories rush in any time I take a bite, standing on a wooden stool, watching my mom carefully stir the pot of bubbling strawberry and rhubarb, its thick aroma filling the house with excitement as we waited to spoon it over ice cream. Coming home from working on the ranch in my teens, I would step off the plane tanned by the sun, with my arms full of rhubarb stalks; I would hold them tight and present them like they were a bouquet, greeting my mom with their bright tart magnificence. Then when I was older, I would take a jar of precious rhubarb preserves to college each fall. When I was homesick and feeling low, I would pop open the seal to spread some “home” on a thick slab of sourdough toast, feeling much better about the world and my place in it. Oh yes, rhubarb and I go way back.

Here is a quick, simple dish to start your own love affair with this tart little stalk. Normally, I do strawberry to make it a little sweeter but I am in love with embracing its acerbity with blueberries, trust me it’s divine. Make it now before the rhubarb time is gone!

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Strawberry Rhubarb Biscuit Bake

Gluten-Free Blueberry Rhubarb Crumble