Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

I think I’ve mentioned several times in this blog that my husband adores strawberry-rhubarb…well anything. Given that both fruit are in season right now, and that our 5 year anniversary is coming up in a few weeks, I feel the necessity to spoil him rotten by cooking / baking all of his favorite foods. This strawberry rhubarb crumble is a perfect individual dessert that isn’t overly heavy and doesn’t leave you starved. Also, the recipe makes four crumbles, just enough to leave two in the refrigerator for later snacking. Yum!

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble

Yields 6 to 8 servings.

For the topping:
1 1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons Demerara sugar (or turbinado sugar aka Sugar in the Raw)
Zest of one lemon
1/4 pound (1 stick or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:
1 1/2 cups rhubarb, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 quart strawberries plus a few extras, hulled, quartered
Juice of one lemon
1/2 cup sugar
3 to 4 tablespoons cornstarch (some commenters found the flour option a little too, well, floury so this has been updated)
Pinch of salt

1. Heat oven to 375°F. Prepare topping: In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugars and lemon zest and add the melted butter. Mix until small and large clumps form. Refrigerate until needed.

2. Prepare filling: Toss rhubarb, strawberries, lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch and a pinch of salt in a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. (I used an oval dish this time, because they fit better in the bottom of a shopping bag.)

3. Remove topping from refrigerator and cover fruit thickly and evenly with topping. Place pie plate on a (foil-lined, if you really want to think ahead) baking sheet, and bake until crumble topping is golden brown in places and fruit is bubbling beneath, about 40 to 50 minutes.

Salmon with Strawberry and Tomato Salsa

Salmon with Strawberry Tomato Salsa

 

Summer has finally made its way to Michigan! I’m not quite sure what happened to Spring, but we went from frigid 30 degree weather to blistering heat with 90 degree weather and daily thunderstorms. This wouldn’t be so bad if we had a working air conditioning, but given that we don’t, I’ve been able to spend maximum 10  minutes in the kitchen with a hot oven/stove. This recipe is one that I’ve held onto for years (proof of that is that the original blog that I got it from doesn’t even exist any more). It’s a perfect light summer recipe that takes ten minutes to throw together and takes advantage of the delicious strawberries that are on sale right now. Happy summer!

Salmon with Strawberry and Tomato Salsa

Ingredients:

4 salmon fillets
juice of half of a lemon
salt and pepper to taste
1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and diced
1/4 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/4 beefsteak red tomato
1/4 yellow tomato
4 scallions, white and light green portion diced
1 tsp chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp olive oil
drizzle of honey
dash of salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat broiler on low. Line baking sheet with tin foil, folding edges upwards to contain mess.
Squeeze fresh lemon juice onto tops of each fillet and generously season each with salt and pepper. Place on the bottom rack of the oven (away from broiler) and broil on low to desired doneness, about 10 minutes dependent upon thickness of fillets.
Meanwhile, prep remaining salsa ingredients and combine in medium bowl. Stir to combine and let sit.
Remove salmon from oven and let rest 5 minutes. Using small spatula, remove salmon from skin (skin should stick to the tinfoil and be easy to remove) and place on plate.
Top generously with strawberry and tomato salsa and serve hot

Source: Adapted from Good Things Catered (a blog that unfortunately no longer exists)

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

 

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

I usually like to end the week with a sweet post, but given that I was post call last Friday, this post never made it to the Internet. Also, since we’re having round two of Midwest blizzard 2011, I thought a dessert post with fruit was in order to remind us that spring really will be here soon despite what the weather says (the groundhog said spring is coming, and he can’t possibly be mistaken right?).

My husband doesn’t like many desserts…in fact, he likes exactly two desserts: ice cream, and strawberry rhubarb pie. Every year, for his birthday, he asks for strawberry rhubarb pie. Easy request right? Not so much given that we live in the very cold and often snowy North where rhubarb doesn’t exist between November and March. A couple of years ago, my mother-in-law began giving me bags of rhubarb from her garden to freeze in the summer to make her son pie for his birthday, hence this strawberry-rhubarb pie post in February.

This is my tried and true recipe for strawberry rhubarb pie. I have been using it for quite a while and it makes a delicious pie that is not too sweet or too tart. Best of all? It gets the husband seal of approval.

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Ingredients

1 deep-dish 9 inch prepared pie crust (1/2 recipe of this basic pie dough)
4 cups (about 1 1/4 pounds) rhubarb, ends trimmed, cut crosswise into 1/2 inch piece
2 cups strawberries, quartered
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 tsp salt

Crumble Topping

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon of salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Directions

For the crumble topping – in a medium bowl, mix the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Work in the butter with your hands, until large moist clumps form. Cover and chill until ready to use.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack in lowest level. In a large bowl, toss rhubarb and strawberries with sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Pour into pie shell; sprinkle with Crumble Topping. Place pie on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet.
Place pie in oven; reduce heat to 375 degrees. Bake until topping is browned and crust is lightly browned, about 1 1/2 hours. (If topping or crust begins to brown too quickly, cover with foil.) Cool completely before serving.

Sources: Adapted from: Very Culinary and Baking Illustrated

Strawberry Bellini

Strawberry Bellini

Looking for the perfect way to continue celebrating into 2011? This is the a great ‘morning-after’ cocktail for January 1st. Simple and elegant, this bellini is both a crowd-pleaser for a large party or a romantic surprise for your significant other (I served it with Christmas breakfast for my husband and myself). I’m not a huge fan of strong alcoholic drinks, so my bellini had a lot of strawberry blend in it. My husband however is not a huge fan of overly-sweet drinks, so I only used one tablespoon of the blended strawberries in his and added more champagne to his.

Whether you’re counting down 3-2-1 watching the ball drop on New Years Eve or waking up on January 1st, 2011, this is a delicious celebratory drink. Happy New Year!

Strawberry Bellini

Ingredients

10 oz frozen strawberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
Bottle of champagne

Directions

Stir the sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved (approximately 5 minutes). Cool completely.
In a blender puree the strawberries with 1/3 cup of the sugar syrup until smooth.Strain through a clean fine-meshed strainer and into a bowl. Discard the seeds.
For each serving, pour 2 to 4 tablespoons of the fruit puree into a champagne flute.
Slowly pour enough champagne into the flute to fill.
Gently stir to blend. Garnish with the whole berries, as desired, and serve.

Source: Giada De Laurentiis