Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcake

For me, shortcake is an essential summer staple.  You start the season with strawberries, then move on to blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, and peaches.  You can leave the rhubarb out if you want (but might need to splash in a little more soy milk), but it does add some nice flavour.  Frozen rhubarb would work well here as well--just let it thaw a bit so you can chop it up.

INGREDIENTS
- 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 5 tbsp coconut oil
- 3/4 cup finely chopped rhubarb
- 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 3/4 cup non-dairy milk, plus more for brushing
- sugar for sprinkling

METHOD
1. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.  Cut in coconut oil with knives or a pastry cutter.  Place bowl in the freezer to cool down the coconut oil.
2. Add the vinegar to a 1 cup measure (the kind that has markings for other measurements as well).  Fill to the 3/4 cup mark with non-dairy milk (almond works very well) and mix.  Place in the freezer as well.
3. Heat oven to 450 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
4. When the oven is almost heated, add chopped rhubarb to the dry ingredients, then mix the liquid ingredients in to make a wet dough.  Transfer to a floured surface, lightly flour top of dough, and press into a rectangle with your fingers.  Use a pastry scraper to fold like a letter.  Rotate 90 degrees and repeat.
5. Press/roll into a larger rectangle and cut into squares.  The size of the pieces, and the thickness of the dough, is up to you.  Transfer to the prepared baking sheet.  Brush with non-dairy milk and sprinkle with sugar.
6. Bake for 12-14 mins, or until golden. Cool on a wire rack.

Rhubarb Syrup

This post may be too late for all y'alls in the US, but up here it is rhubarb season and we have it coming out of the wazoo. Every year I make stewed rhubarb (not photogenic, but tasty) and the kids always balk at first but end up bolting it down with gusto. This year I did something different: I strained off most of the juice (making the stewed rhubarb thicker, like an applesauce) then boiled it into a syrup. It is absolutely wonderful in lemonade (as pictured) or in a glass of ginger ale.

You can play with the proportions, depending on how much rhubarb you have on hand. Here is what I did:

INGREDIENTS
- 10 cups chopped rhubarb
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup sugar (or to taste)
- 1 cup homemade strawberry jam
- 2 tbsp lemon juice

METHOD
1. Combine all ingredients in a large stock pot and bring to bubbling. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 mins, or until rhubarb is cooked down and falling apart.
2. Strain rhubarb through a fine sieve (I use a spoon to stir/mash it a bit), taking a much liquid as you want (you now have tasty stewed rhubarb).
3. Put the liquid in a stock pot that can hold about 3 times the volume of the liquid. Bring to bubbling over high heat (it will foam up like cray, so use a large pot). Stir rapidly, until foam goes down, then cook and stir for about 5 mins, until liquid has become glossy.
4. Cool and store in the fridge, adding to drinks as you see fit. Pour the syrup down the back of a spoon to get the funky look pictured above.

Rhubarb Walnut Bread

I throw this one out as a recipe/idea you can play with. I was thinking of ways to use up the rhubarb that is growing like crazy in the backyard. After a few rhubarb crisps I thought I would try to make a rhubarb bread. I really liked the end result: a dense but moist bread with that trademark rhubarb tang. And, because it has whole grains and rhubarb, there is enough fibre to totally clean your clock. I based the recipe on Peter Reinhart's whole wheat cinnamon bread, so I apologize for the wonky mix of measurements.

INGREDIENTS

Rhubarb Mix

- 2 1/4 cup chopped rhubarb

- 1/4 cup water

- 2 tbsp minced ginger

- 2 tbsp sugar

Dough

- 18 oz whole wheat flour (plus up to 1 cup more)

- 6 oz oat flour

- 1 tbsp instant yeast

- 2 tsp salt

- 1/3 cup brown sugar

- 3/4 cup oat bran

- 1/4 cup vital wheat gluten

- 6 oz soy milk, warm

- 1/4 cup oil

- 2 tbsp ground flax seed

- 1 cup chopped walnuts

- 1 cup dried cranberries (soaked in hot water for 10 mins, then fully drained)

METHOD

1. Place ingredients for rhubarb mix in a saucepan and bring to bubbling. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 15 mins, until rhubarb is very soft and mushy. Remove from heat and let cool down to room temperature.

2. Place rhubarb mix in a large bowl and add all other ingredients (except the extra 1 cup of whole wheat flour). Bring together into a dough with your hands or with a stand mixer. Let sit for 5 mins (the bran will soak up some water and firm up the dough). Add in as much of the extra flour is needed to make a soft and slightly tacky dough. Knead of a floured surface for 10 mins, until smooth.

3. Place dough in a large, clean bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for about 90 mins, until doubled (or as near doubled as you can get it).

4. Divide dough in half and shape into loaves. Place in lightly greased loaf pans, cover, and let rise until loaves crest the top of the pan.

5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place loaves on the middle shelf of the oven. Reduce heat to 325 degrees and bake for 20 mins. Rotate pans 180 degrees and bake for another 25-30 mins, until loaves are a nice golden brown and sound hollow when thumped on the bottom. Let cool on racks.