Rhubarb Crumb Cake

May 26, 2013 //
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Rhubarb is one of my favorite fleeting vegetables of spring—in season in New York from roughly the end of May to mid- (or sometimes late-) June, it briefly crosses over with strawberry season, inspiring countless james, pies, and cobblers (my post last year for a strawberry-rhubarb pie). Well, it’s not quite strawberry season yet but the rhubarb was out yesterday in all its pink-red-and-green glory. What’s a girl to make?

It seemed each person I passed as I approached the farmer’s market was toting a bagful of just-picked rhubarb. (I should’ve asked what they were planning to make!) I was cruising Smitten Kitchen blog for ideas and came across a recipe for a rhubarb “snacking” cake: a layer of cake batter under a layer of rhubarb under a layer of crumb. Moist and not too sweet. And no strawberries required.

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Rhubarb Crumb Cake

I tweaked Deb’s recipe by reducing the sugar; substituting greek yogurt for sour cream; and reducing the flour in the crumb. And I had leftovers of the rhubarb mixture so I sautéed for five to ten minutes and plan to use it on top of plain yogurt or vanilla ice cream.
Note: I found the cake needed the full sixty minutes for the crumb on top to brown.

Cake
1 1/4 lb rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 1/2″ pieces
1 c sugar, divided in 2
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 c (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
2 large eggs
1 1/3 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/3 c plain greek yogurt

Crumb
3/4 c all-purpose flour
1/4 c light brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
4 tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, just melted

To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Coat the bottom of a 9 x 13″ baking pan with butter. (Optional: you can line the pan with parchment paper.) Stir together the rhubarb, lemon juice, and 1/2 c sugar and set aside. Beat the butter, remaining sugar, and lemon zest with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and ginger together. Add half of this mixture to the batter, just until combined. Continue, adding half the yogurt, the second half of the flour mixture, and the remaining yogurt, mixing between each addition until just combined.

Spread the batter evenly over the prepared pan. Pour the rhubarb mixture over the batter in a single layer.

To make the crumb: Whisk the flour, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon together, then stir in the melted butter until crumb-size pieces form. Spread evenly over the rhubarb layer. Bake the cake for 50 to 60 minutes and the crumb is golden on top. Cool completely.

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Categories Brooklyn, Desserts, Farmer's Market, Spring

Pick-Me-Up, Italian Style

May 14, 2013 //
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I love tiramisu. Made of mostly mascarpone and eggs it’s light and satisfying and surprisingly easy to make. The strong coffee gives it its name, which means “pick-me-up” in Italian. I got a craving yesterday so I biked to the Park Slope Food Coop where Vermont Creamery mascarpone is only $3 for an 8-ounce container (you need two of those for this recipe).

I made tiramisu back in March for my birthday with the very simple, straightforward recipe from The Silver Spoon. (Ingredients: eggs, sugar, mascarpone, lady fingers, coffee, chocolate. That’s it.) I liked it but found the lady fingers weren’t spongy enough, it was a little too sweet, and it lacked the taste of a liqueur like rum or cognac. I rarely have liqueur in my kitchen so I used vanilla extract which isn’t quite the same but was an improvement. I’ve tweaked the recipe here and am pleased with the results.

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Tiramisu
Serves 8

2 egg whites
4 egg yolks
2/3 c powdered sugar
16 oz mascarpone cheese
7 oz lady fingers
1 c freshly brewed strong coffee, cooled
2 tbsp rum or cognac, optional*
2 oz unsweetened or semi-sweetened chocolate, grated
cocoa powder, for dusting
*If you don’t have any you can also add up to 1 tbsp good quality vanilla extract.

Brew the coffee and make sure it is room temperature or colder. Stir in the rum or cognac if you’re using. Set aside.

Whisk the egg whites in a grease-free bowl until they form stiff peaks. In a separate, large bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until pale and fluffy.

Place the mascarpone in a separate bowl and whisk with a fork until it’s a little lighter and fluffier. Then fold the mascarpone into the egg-yolk-and-sugar mixture. Then gently fold in the egg whites.

In a small rectangular or square serving dish (8 x 8 inches is good, or thereabouts) place a layer of lady fingers and soak with half the coffee mixture. You can spoon or brush the coffee on. Spoon on a layer of the mascarpone mixture then sprinkle with the grated chocolate. Place another layer of lady fingers on top then soak with the remaining coffee. Add another layer of the mascarpone and finish by dusting with cocoa powder. Chill in the refrigerator for at least a few hours before serving.

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Categories Brooklyn, Co-op, Cookbooks, Desserts, Entertaining, Spring

Spring Breakfast with Ramps—yes, please!

May 5, 2013 //
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What better way to celebrate spring than waking up early on a Saturday morning, going to your nearest farmers’ market, and buying up a big bundle of fragrant ramps?

I think because of their popularity the price of ramps have gone up since last year. Now, instead of $3 a bunch, which was about 1/4 pound, they are $15 per pound at the Fort Greene farmers’ market. C’est la vie. It’s one of those times I feel a wee bit silly as a New Yorker—paying for over-priced seasonal vegetables at the market, because, well, that’s the only way I can get them. Well, not the only way—last year my friend picked them wild upstate and I made this ramp butter. The year before I gave you a recipe for linguine with ramps.

This is the second weekend I’ve bought ramps at the market and I imagine they’ll be around for at least one more week, making it to next weekend’s market for perhaps the last time this year.

This year inspired in part by David Tanis’s article in the Times on fried eggs and ramps, I wanted to keep it simple. So last night I made bulgogi with whole sautéed ramps eaten in lettuce leaves with Sriracha and thinly sliced cucumbers. This morning for brunch I made a quick omelette with sautéed ramps, this time chopped up not whole, and a salty sheep’s milk cheese from Turkey (beyaz penir), similar to feta. Use the entire ramp—stem and leaf—just remember to clean the ramps thoroughly and chop off the roots.

Omelette with Ramps and Feta

Serves 2

4 eggs
2 tbsp milk
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 pound ramps, cleaned and trimmed
2 ounces beyaz penir or feta, crumbled
salt and pepper
Sriracha, to serve
Cucumbers, thinly sliced, to serve

In a medium bowl, whisk four eggs with the milk. Add a little bit of salt and pepper. Set aside. Heat the olive oil in a small oven-proof skillet.

Turn the broiler of your oven on (on low if you have the option).

Chop the stems of the ramps into small slices and set aside. Chop the green leafy tops into small ribbons. When the pan is hot toss in the chopped stems of the ramps and lower the heat, sauteéing for one or two minutes. Add the ribbons of leafy greens to the pan, sauté for another minute, then add the eggs. Sprinkle the crumbled cheese on top. Do not stir or scramble, just let the bottom of the eggs cook for about two minutes undisturbed.

Transfer the skillet carefully to your oven (or underside of your oven if that’s where your broiler is) and cook the top of the eggs for three to five minutes, until it just starts to brown and puff up. It’s quite a beautiful thing!

Serve with spicy Sriracha and sliced cucumbers.

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Categories Breakfast, Brooklyn, Farmer's Market, Feta, Ramps, Savory
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