The days are getting shorter and it starts to feel a bit chilly outside. So what better way to spend your lazy Sunday afternoon, than to cuddle up indoors with a good cup of tea and a slice of freshly baked cake. Nothing says autumn more to me than a still warm rhubarb cake. The sweet smell filling the house makes me forget those lovely summer days outside. Gone is the season of fresh salads and barbecue. It’s time to wrap ourselves in a blanket on the couch and enjoy the heart-warming foods of the winter season.
One of the things we try to do in our cooking, is to use as much unprocessed ingredients as possible. The easiest way of doing this, is of course to use vegetables from your own garden.
We’re not claiming to be gardening experts. It’s more a case of learning on the job. Luckily not all plants require a lot of gardening skills and one of them is rhubarb. We just found our plant a shady spot, put it in the ground and it’s been growing happily ever since.
Technically, the rhubarb is “ripe” the entire spring and summer. But to ensure that the plant stays healthy, we only harvest twice a year. The first time is at the end of spring and the second at the end of summer. That does, however, leave us with the problem of finding a use for six to ten kilos of rhubarb every year.
The “summer” rhubarb stalks are sweeter and less acidic than the spring ones. The latter are fine to make jams or beverages where you add a lot of sugar but the summer harvest is ideal for cakes and desserts.
This recipe is a great way of using up some of that rhubarb.
| Prep Time | 30 minutes |
| Cook Time | 1 hour |
| Servings |
slices
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- 750 gr rhubarb
- 50 gr custard powder
- 30 gr powdered sugar
- 150 gr flower
- 15 gr cornstarch
- 1.5 tsp baking powder
- 0.5 tsp baking soda
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 eggs
- 150 gr caster sugar
- 1,5 tsp Vanilla extract
- 100 ml vegetable oil
- 120 ml Yoghurt
Ingredients
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|
- Prepare your baking tin. I use a 25cm springmould, with baking parchment covering the bottom and a bit of oil on the sides.
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
- Cut the rhubarb into thin slices and mix with the custard powder and powdered sugar. If you're using rhubarb that's been frozen, like we sometimes use, be sure to drain off all excess moisture.
- In a mixer-bowl combine eggs, caster sugar, vanilla extract and vegetable oil.
- In a separate bowl, combine flower, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Alternating between dry ingredients and yoghurt add to the ingredients in the mixer-bowl. Mix into a smooth batter.
- Pour the mixture into your baking tin and evenly distribute the rhubarb on top. Bake at 180°C for about 1 hour until cooked through.
- After taking your cake out of the oven, place onto a wire rack for 10 minutes. Then remove the cake from the mould to cool completely.
