I recall my mother’s rice pudding with much fondness. It was a creamy pudding with raisins and a nice cinnamon flavor. Although, as a kid, raisins didn’t really appeal to me, they seemed to belong in this pudding. My father was a ‘meat and potatoes’ kind of man with an inherited love of sweets. I rarely ever remember my mother preparing a meal that didn’t end with some kind of dessert. It didn’t have to be anything elaborate. To this day, I still think a meal isn’t complete without a little sweetness at the end. Not a good thing as we get older.
Rice puddings are found in nearly every corner of the world. Milchreis is the German version, made by cooking short grain rice on the stove top in milk with sugar, cinnamon and vanilla.
Due to the mildness of this pudding, you can change the flavor significantly by just making a few changes such as nutmeg or cardamom instead of cinnamon, adding fresh or dried fruits and/or nuts.
That brings me to rhubarb — I love everything about the plant — how good it tastes, the beautiful huge foliage in the garden and how it can keep on producing all season long. The uses of rhubarb are endless, both sweet and savory.
Bordering one side of my mother’s large country garden grew six or eight rhubarb plants. I can’t even remember all the things she made with it but one thing still remains and that’s my love for it.
Today, January 22, our family celebrates the birthday of my sister, Marilyn. Birthdays were always made to be special as we were growing up. Not so much as to gifts but in regard to the family acknowledgement of ‘your’ day especially food wise.
For something I think holds a special nostalgic memory and to mark the occasion even if we can’t be together, I have prepared a German rhubarb crumble rice pudding.
BRION & I ARE THINKING OF YOU MARILYN & SEND OUR LOVE & BIRTHDAY WISHES.
Print Recipe
German Rhubarb Crumble Rice Pudding
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
|
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
Instructions
Rice
Place the milk, rice & sugar in a heavy bottomed pot on medium heat & bring to a simmer. Cook 45-55 minutes on medium low, stirring occasionally so bottom doesn't scorch, until it reduces by about half.
When thickened, remove from the heat, let it cool. Pour into a bowl or 4-6 individual custard cups you will serve from. Pudding can be served warm or cover & refrigerate.
Rhubarb Compote
Add rhubarb, sugar & ginger to a small pot. Over medium heat, cover & bring to a simmer. Cook 5 minutes at a simmer until rhubarb has softened but still keeps its shape. Set aside to cool.
Crumble
-
In a bowl mix all the ingredients & bring it together with your fingers or a fork. When fully mixed, spread it on a lined baking sheet & bake for 15-20 minutes, until browned & crispy. Remove & cool.
Serving
Spoon a generous portion of the rhubarb compote on top of the pudding, followed by a generous portion of the crumble mixture.
ENJOYING SHROVE TUESDAY!
Shrove Tuesday is a day of feasting and celebration before the 40 days of fasting known as Lent. Celebrated by Anglo-Saxon Christians, participants would attend confession in order to be ‘shriven’ (forgiven for their sins). A bell rang to call everyone to church. This bell came to be known as the Pancake Bell and is still rung today.
Pancakes got their start as a breakfast food around 1100 AD, when Shrove Tuesday (sometimes called Pancake Day) became a traditional way to use up eggs, sugar and fats before the fast, and making pancakes was the perfect way to do it! The ingredients of pancakes also symbolize four pillars of the Christian Faith. Flour for sustenance, eggs for creation, salt for wholesomeness, and milk for purity.
Before the 1800s, it wasn’t uncommon to use snow (which contains ammonia) in place of baking soda in the batter, and until the 1800s, brandy or wine was often used in place of milk or cream! The name was changed from flapjack to pancake in North America in the 1870s, and maple syrup became the topping of choice in the 1880s. Then in 1931, Bisquick was introduced, and home cooks began making even fluffier pancakes with less time and effort.
This oven pancake is made similar to a Dutch or German pancake except instead of putting the filling on after its cooked, its baked right into it. This oven method also eliminates having to cook pancakes individually on a griddle which is more time consuming when everyone is hungry!
Print Recipe
Strawberry Rhubarb Oven Pancake
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
|
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 425 F.
In a large bowl whisk together eggs, melted butter, milk & vanilla. Add flour, sugar, baking powder & salt & mix well to combine. Try to whisk out most of the lumps, but it's ok if some remain.
Melt 2 tbsp butter in an 8- or 10-inch ovenproof skillet (such as cast iron) over medium low heat. Swirl to cover the bottom & sides of the pan. Add the sugar & cinnamon. Stir. The mixture will look dry at first but will loosen as the sugar melts.
Add the diced rhubarb to the pan and cook, stirring with the sugar until rhubarb starts to become soft. Add diced strawberries & cook for another minute.
Spread the fruit out into an even layer & add the batter mixture. Turn the heat off the pan & move the pan to the oven. Bake for 15 minutes.
Lower the oven temperature to 350 F. & bake for an additional 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Flip the pancake by running a knife around its edges to loosen it from the pan & placing a plate larger than the pan on top of it. Use an oven mitt & flip in one smooth motion. The pancake should release from the pan easily.
-
I enjoy to make miniature versions of food whether its sweet or savory. I’m not sure where that ‘obsession’ came from. It could be that having worked in the commercial food industry for many years, you always prepared food in large quantities or maybe because now its just for the two of us. Whatever the reason …. its fun! I’m sure you are probably quite familiar with the Dutch Baby or German pancake. I have featured them on the blog numerous times over the years.
A cross between a pancake and a crepe, a Dutch baby begins with the thin pancake-like batter which is poured into a hot skillet or an oven proof dish. When the edges of the pancake are brown, it is ready to come out of the oven. The center is perfect for adding sweet or savory ingredients.
The recipe is a basic, universal one that can be adapted in a number of different ways:
- Add berries or other fruit to the batter
- Add different spices such as cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, chai spices, or switch up the extract to use almond, lemon or orange.
- Top with whipped cream, mascarpone, whipped maple butter, jam, peanut/almond butter or a fresh fruit compote.
- To make a savory version, omit sugar & vanilla and add veggies & herbs.
Brion & I are having mini rhubarb Dutch baby pancakes today. Should be good!
Print Recipe
Mini Rhubarb Dutch Baby Pancakes
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
|
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
Instructions
Rhubarb Sauce
-
In a saucepan, combine rhubarb, brown sugar, flour & spices. Stir until combined. Roast in oven, uncovered, for about 25 minutes or until tender & thickened. Remove from heat & keep warm.
Dutch Baby Batter
In a blender, combine pancake ingredients & blend well until frothy. Leave in blender while you prepare muffin tins.
Preheat oven to 425 F. Place a 12-cup muffin tin in oven.
When the oven is heated, melt the second 2 Tbsp butter. Remove hot muffin tin from oven & quickly brush bottoms & sides of pan with melted butter. Turn blender on for a few seconds to re-mix batter, then quickly pour into hot muffin cups, dividing equally between 12 cups, filling about 1/2-2/3 full.
Place in oven & bake for 15-18 minutes, or until puffy & deep golden color. Remove from oven (pancakes will quickly deflate). Place pancakes on serving plates & spoon warm rhubarb sauce in them. Top with a bit of either whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Rhubarb is one of those flavors that signals the coming of spring. A staple crop for every Canadian homesteader, in the 1800’s, as it thrives specifically in cool climates. The focus was initially on function, not flavor and was used as a medicine due to it’s perceived benefits for the digestive system. The tartness adds kick to it’s character causing it to be adored and despised with equal vigor.
Rhubarb ‘fool’ is a traditional English dessert that was popular throughout the 19th century on both sides of the Atlantic. It generally consists of a pureed fruit folded gently into a light, custard. Today’s recipe is a take on that idea using custard, pureed rhubarb and some mini donuts for ‘dunking’.
Print Recipe
Rhubarb Custard with Mini Donuts
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
|
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
Instructions
Donuts
-
Preheat oven to 350 F. In a bowl, whisk together milk, egg, oil & lemon juice. In another bowl, combine flour, sugar & baking powder. Stir wet ingredients into flour mixture until combined in a smooth batter.
-
Brush mini donut pan with butter. Fill each cup about 1/2 full; bake for about 4-5 minutes or until they test done. Place some sugar in a shallow dish. Remove baked donuts from oven; while still warm coat with sugar. Set aside.
Rhubarb Sauce
-
Cut rhubarb into small pieces. In a saucepan, add rhubarb, sugar & water; bring to a boil & simmer, covered, gently for 10 minutes. Remove lid & stir, then remove from heat when it reaches a jam consistency.
Custard
-
In a saucepan, bring milk & vanilla to a boil. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks, sugar & cornstarch together. Add the hot milk to egg mixture slowly whisking as you do so. Return the mixture to the saucepan & bring slowly to a boil, whisking constantly until thickened.
To Serve
-
Divide custard between 4 custard dishes; place a spoonful of sauce on top. Serve the mini donuts on the side, ready to be 'dunked'.
