rhubarb – tastebotanical

Rhubarb Crumble Cake

Easy Rhubarb Crumble Cake

This Rhubarb Crumble Cake is extremely easy to make – it is basically a simple loaf cake – but has the addition of a crumble topping. This adds a sweet crunchy layer which goes brilliantly with the moist rhubarb-flavoured cake.

I will make a couple of loaf cakes each week for my family to eat. They get sliced up and included in lunch boxes and provide my husband with a mid-morning post-dog-walk snack. I have a number of regular favourites but I am also always looking for new recipes. This recipe for Rhubarb Crumble Cake was inspired by my love of Rhubarb Crumble and by a seasonal over-supply of rhubarb from the rhubarb plant in my garden which seems to get larger every year.

In praise of rhubarb

I have learned to love rhubarb in recent years. It is a great, versatile ingredient. Even if you do not have space to grow-your-own, it is very cheap when it is in season. However, it is also very easy to grow if you have a bit of space in your garden. You literally have to do nothing to it once it is established. It is a perennial plant which produces stalks from late February on into the summer. All you need to do is just cut off the stalks when you need them. It also freezes very easily. Simply cut off the stalks, wash them, cut them into 2 cm lengths and put in a bag in the freezer until you want to use them.

What you need to know about Rhubarb Crumble Cake

It is an extremely easy cake to make. It is a basic loaf cake recipe so it cooks in under an hour and doesn’t require any icing or other decoration.
The key, as with all rhubarb recipes, is to make sure that you use the right quantity of sugar to obtain a good sweet-sour taste. You do not want a sour cake. Cooking the rhubarb with sugar before adding it to the cake means that you can taste it and, if necessary, add a bit more sugar if it is too sour.
It will keep for several days, wrapped in foil, in a cake tin.
It is easy to freeze so you could make two cakes and freeze one of them. If you want to freeze it, just allow it to cool completely after it comes out of the oven then put it in a freezer bag and pop it in the freezer. When you want to eat it, allow it to defrost completely at room temperature.
You can make it without the crumble topping. It is still a great cake.
It is pretty versatile and I have been known to serve it for dessert, with cream, custard or ice cream, when I have had unexpected guests.

What else can you make with rhubarb?

I use rhubarb in all kinds of dishes. In addition to Rhubarb Crumble Cake, I also make lots of other rhubarb recipes including, Rhubarb Crumble, Rhubarb Gin, Rhubarb Fool, Rhubarb Compote, Rhubarb Roulade, Rhubarb and Rose Ice Cream, Rhubarb Jam and Rhubarb Curd.

Other loaf cake recipes

I am a big cheerleader for loaf cakes. They are quick, easy, versatile and do not require any extra icing or decoration (unless you want to do it). If you want a basic everyday cake, look no further than a loaf cake. They are also a great base for experimenting with flavours which is a big reason for me to love them! Here are some of my favourites.

Rhubarb Crumble Cake

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Author: Tastebotanical
Prep Time: 15
Cook Time: 60
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield: 1 loaf cake (Serves 6-8) 1x
Category: Cake
Method: Baking
Cuisine: English

Print Recipe

Description

This quick and easy Rhubarb Crumble Cake is filled with juicy fruit and has a delicious crunchy topping.

Ingredients

Scale

For the rhubarb:

1 stem of fresh rhubarb
2 tablespoons of caster sugar

For the cake:

125 g butter
175 g caster sugar
2 eggs
175 g self-raising flour
4 tablespoons of milk
Vanilla extract

For the crumble topping:

25 g butter
40 g flour
25 g sugar

Rhubarb Crumble Cake

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Instructions

Set your oven to 180 degrees centigrade or Gas Mark 4.
Cover a baking tray with foil. Cut the rhubarb stem into small pieces (approximately 1 cm) and spread the pieces out on the tray. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of caster sugar.
Put the rhubarb in the oven and roast for 15 minutes. When done, remove and set aside to cool. You can taste a piece of the rhubarb and add a little more sugar if you think this is needed.
Grease a 450 g loaf tin and line the bottom with baking parchment.
Cream the butter with the sugar. (I usually soften the butter for about 30 seconds in the microwave first as it makes it much easier.)
Gradually add the eggs to the butter and sugar mixture. If it looks as if it is going to curdle, add some of the self-raising flour.
Once the eggs have been incorporated add the rest of the self-raising flour.
Add the milk and vanilla extract.
Finally, stir in the roasted rhubarb pieces.
Spoon the cake mixture into your prepared loaf tin.
Make the crumble topping by rubbing the butter and flour together by hand or in a food processor until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Then stir in the sugar. Sprinkle the crumble topping over the cake mixture.
Put the tin in the oven and bake for 45 minutes.

Rhubarb Crumble Cake

This recipe has been shared on #CookBlogShare with Recipes Made Easy and #Fiesta Friday with Fiesta Friday and Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook

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Rhubarb Crumble

Rhubarb Crumble with Star Anise

This easy Rhubarb Crumble is an extremely simple traditional English pudding. What makes this recipe special is the addition of star anise which gives it a wonderful mild aniseed flavour which goes brilliantly with the sweet-sour rhubarb.

In praise of fruit crumble

I am a big fan of fruit crumbles. They are pretty much fool-proof, can use a range of different fruit depending on the season and what is available and, like this one, it is really easy to add a unique flavour twist with a bit of spice. They are also the perfect make-ahead dessert and are very versatile as they can be eaten cold, at room-temperature or hot from the oven. Just add a dollop of custard, cream or ice-cream and you have the perfect warming, comforting pudding.

I make Apple Crumble all year around but, in spring and early summer, Rhubarb Crumble is my favourite. This is largely because I have a very large rhubarb plant in my garden. We inherited it when we moved into our current house and for many years I tried to get rid of it as it is literally in the middle of our main flower bed. Also, at that point, it was not something I particularly wanted to cook or eat. The giant rhubarb plant stubbornly resisted all my attempts to kill it and gradually I gave in and decided to try and cook with it. Now it is one of my favourite ingredients and I actively look forward to rhubarb season. In addition to crumble, I also make lots of other rhubarb recipes including Rhubarb Gin, Rhubarb Fool, Rhubarb Compote, Rhubarb Roulade, Rhubarb Jam and Rhubarb Curd.

Things you need to know about Rhubarb Crumble

As with all crumbles, it is very easy to make. You do not need to cook the rhubarb in advance. You simply wash and cut up the rhubarb stalks and add them to the dish.

A basic Rhubarb Crumble recipe is very simple to make but there are lots of ways that you can make it a bit different.

In this recipe, I add star anise to provide a bit of flavour enhancement. Other spices that you could add include cardamon (1 teaspoon of ground cardamon powder or 3 cardamon pods), ginger (1 teaspoon of ground ginger) or vanilla (1 teaspoon of vanilla extract).
Orange is also a great flavour partner to rhubarb so adding the zest and juice of a small orange to the rhubarb pieces is also a great way to enhance your crumble.
A scattering of almonds (or hazelnuts or pine nuts) on top of the crumble topping is also a very good addition. Add them five minutes before the end of the cooking time so that they will be toasted but not burnt.

What is star anise?

Star anise is a spice, shaped like a five-pointed star, which is made from the fruit of the Chinese evergreen tree Illicium verum. It is one of the most popular spices used in Chinese cooking and provides the dominant flavour in Chinese five spice powder. It is also widely used in Indian, Malaysian and Indonesian dishes. I think the star shaped seed pods are pretty but they are quite large and hard so using ready ground Star Anise powder, or grinding it yourself, is a good option. It adds an aniseed flavour to food and, in addition to rhubarb, is a good flavour partner with roast meat, especially pork and duck and in curries. In fact, it is most widely used in savoury, rather than sweet, recipes.