Some of you were fortunate enough to grow up having a mother, aunt, or grandmother who grew rhubarb in their gardens. And just the mere sight of anything rhubarb more than likely evokes memories of the first time you tasted a homemade rhubarb dessert. My first taste of rhubarb didn't come until I moved out east and lived in a small coastal, historic, bucolic town where almost everyone had a garden. Lucky for me my neighbor Sheila had a large patch of rhubarb growing in her abundant garden. Having a piece of her rhubarb pie not only opened up my eyes and taste buds to rhubarb's tart-sweet deliciousness, it turned me into a rhubarb lover.
Quite possibly one of the most anticipated vegetables to arrive in late spring is rhubarb. Yes, rhubarb is technically a vegetable in spite of often being thought of as a fruit due in large part to both it's tartness and culinary uses. With recipes for this pie, this rhubarb strawberry crisp, these strawberry rhubarb hand pies, and this ginger cardamom rhubarb compote already posted to the blog, we now have a recipe for this lovely Rhubarb Spoon Cake. One inspired by the self taught chef, restauranteur, and author Erin French.
Spoon Cakes have been described as a cross between a spoon bread, pudding cake, and a biscuit. It's an unfussy, homey, scrumptious dessert best served warm, maybe lightly sprinkled with some confectionary sugar, and served with some freshly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Serving Rhubarb Spoon Cake at the end of a casual weeknight dinner or fancy dinner party is akin to giving your family and/or guests a big, huge bear hug. And considering the events of the past year, the return of hugs may be one of those things at the top of many new normal checklists. It's definitely high on mine.
The return of hugs and the return of rhubarb season is cause for celebration with some cake.
The Rhubarb Spoon Cake is made up of two components: a rhubarb compote and a cake. The compote needs to be made first. As little as less than an hour before assembling the spoon cake or a day or two before.
Three cups of rhubarb equates to three-quarters of a pound. But when buying rhubarb, I would encourage you to buy at least a pound as any green leaves need to be removed. After cutting the rhubarb into one inch pieces, they are combined with the sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, cornstarch, and Kosher salt. When cooked over medium heat in a heavy bottomed saucepan, the rhubarb compote comes together in five to seven minutes. Transferring the rhubarb compote to a bowl will help it cool down faster as well as help stop the cooking process.
The dry and wet ingredients for the cake are mixed together first before they are gently combined to create the batter. Honestly, this may be one of the easiest cake batters to assemble.
After generously buttering and flouring a ten inch cast iron pan, two-thirds of the rhubarb compote is evenly spread on the bottom. Next the cake batter gets spooned on over the compote. After smoothing it with an offset spatula, the remaining compote is dropped in dollops and gently swirled into the batter.
The pan goes into a preheated 400 degree (F) oven. Baking time is somewhere between 22-25 minutes (my baking time was closer to the 25 minute mark).
While the Rhubarb Spoon Cake is baking, made the freshly whipped cream. Instead of the whipped cream, you could also serve it with some vanilla ice cream. You can't go wrong with either option.
A light dusting of confectionary sugar on a piece of warm Rhubarb Spoon Cake is a just the right amount of sweet finishing touch.
From the tart-sweet rhubarb compote puddled on the bottom and swirled in the moist, buttery cake, every bite of this Rhubarb Spoon Cake is pure delight. A generous dollop of freshly whipped, lightly sweetened billowy cream is not just delectable, it takes this rather simple dessert to a most extraordinary level.
And here I thought rhubarb season couldn't possibly get any better. However, one bite of this spoon cake let me know just how wrong I was. If you are lucky enough to have rhubarb growing in your garden or a friend is willing to share some of their bounty, you won't need to immediately rush out to check to see if it's available in your grocery store. Because you really do need to make this scrumptious spoon cake. Especially if you consider yourself a rhubarb aficionado.
Recipe
Rhubarb Spoon Cake
Serves 8 (best served warm but still good room temperature if there are any leftovers)
Ingredients
Rhubarb Compote
3 cups (3/4 pound/342g) fresh rhubarb, cut into 1 inch pieces
2/3 cup (166g) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 1/2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch
Pinch of Kosher salt
Rhubarb Spoon Cake
1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, melted, cooled slightly, plus more for the pan
1 cup (132g) all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 large egg, room temperature
1/2 cup whole milk
1/4 cup (58g) sour cream
Whipped Cream
1 pint (473 ml) heavy whipping cream
2-3 Tablespoons confectionary sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Optional: Confectionary sugar for dusting finished rhubarb spoon cake
Directions
Rhubarb Compote
1. In a medium sized heavy duty saucepan, combine the rhubarb, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, cornstarch, and Kosher salt.
2. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly until the rhubarb becomes tender and sauce like (approximately 5-7 minutes).
3. Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl, and let cool to room temperature. (The compote will keep covered in the refrigerator for up to a week.)
Rhubarb Spoon Cake
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (F). Generously butter a 10 inch cast iron pan. Dust with flour and shake out any access. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, baking powder, granulated sugar, and Kosher salt. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, milk, butter, vanilla, and sour cream. Whisk until blended.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Gently stir using a spatula until ingredients are just blended.
5. Spread about two-thirds of the rhubarb compote evenly in the prepared pan.
6. Spoon the cake batter over it, spread evenly, then dollop with the remaining compote over the top.
7. Using an offset spatula or butter knife, gently swirl the compote into the batter.
8. Bake until lightly golden and a cake tester comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake (approximately 23-25 minutes).
9. Serve while warm with the freshly whipped cream.
Whipped Cream
1. In the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the whipping cream, confectionary sugar, and vanilla.
2. Whip until soft peaks form.
Notes: (1) This is an ever so slightly modified version of chef and author Erin French's Rhubarb Spoon Cake recipe. If you would like to learn more about Erin French's story, would highly recommend you read her newly published book "Finding Freedom: A Cook's Story; Remaking a Life from Scratch". (2) The rhubarb compote would also be delicious served over ice cream. So consider making a double batch.
Lake Michigan view from Bailey's Harbor, Wisconsin (April 2021)
