Sunday, June 7, 2009

I think I hate walnuts.

I was really excited to try this recipe- I am a big rhubarb fan. I discovered after making this recipe that I am not a big walnut fan. I saw walnuts and thought, "yech... oh well, Dorie knows what she's doing." While I ate the dessert, all I could taste was walnuts. So next time I would either substitute pecans or leave the nuts out entirely. (To tell you the truth, next time I have a hankering for strawberry rhubarb, I'd probably just go with this. Because it's freaking awesome.)

Strawberry Rhubarb Double Crisp
(Dorie Greenspan)

Makes 9 servings

For the crisp mix

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup (packed) light brown sugar

3/4 cup old-fashioned oats

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Pinch of salt

Tiny pinch of ground cinnamon

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

1/4 cup very finely chopped crystallized ginger (see above)

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

For the filling

1 pound (4 to 5 medium stalks) rhubarb, trimmed and peeled

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 cup cold water

3 cups (about 12 ounces) strawberries, hulled and sliced

1 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

GETTING READY: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Put a nonreactive 9-inch square baking pan (I like Pyrex or porcelain) on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

TO MAKE THE CRISP MIX: Put the flour, brown sugar, oats, ground ginger, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl and sift the ingredients through your fingers to blend them — be on the lookout for lumps in the brown sugar. Mix in the nuts and crystallized ginger, then pour over the melted butter. Using a fork, stir the ingredients until they are thoroughly moistened.

Spoon half the mixture into the pan and pat it down lightly to form a thick crust; set aside the remainder for the topping.

TO MAKE THE FILLING: Slice the rhubarb into 1¿2-inch-wide pieces and scatter them over the pressed-in base. Dissolve the cornstarch in the cold water; set aside.

Put the strawberries, sugar and ginger in a medium saucepan and, with a fork, pastry blender or potato masher, crush the berries. Place the pan over medium heat and, stirring occasionally, bring the mixture to a full boil. Pour the dissolved cornstarch into the pan and, stirring with a whisk, bring everything back to a boil. Keep cooking and stirring until the strawberry filling is thick and no longer cloudy, about 3 minutes. Pull the pan from the heat, stir in the vanilla and pour the filling over the rhubarb. Scatter the remaining crisp mix over the filling, breaking it up with your fingers so you can scatter it evenly.

Slide the crisp into the oven and bake for 60 minutes, or until the topping is golden and the strawberry jam is bubbling up all around the edges. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool until only just warm or at room temperature.

SERVING: You can try to be neat about cutting the crisp into squares, but it's pretty hopeless; better to cut pieces in the baking pan and lift them out with a spatula or big spoon into shallow bowls. Have the crisp with ice cream.

STORING: This is best the day it is made, but if you keep it covered at room temperature overnight, you'll make a bunch of breakfasters happy the next day.

5 comments:

Jessica said...

I hate walnuts too! I think it's because my Grandma has a walnut tree and so she tries to use them in all sorts of places they have no right to appear.

Otherwise it looks really good.

Sarah said...

Do they make your mouth itchy? That is what they do to me.

Brendon said...

Walnuts should go extinct.

Jenny said...

I am so NOT a walnut fan. I ALWAYS leave them out. I rarely substitute.

Jen Fields said...

I love walnuts, but I don't strawberry rhubarb crisp needs them. So, I think it's a good call to leave them out the next time.

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