Herbal Spotight: Rhubarb With My Rustic Rhubarb Clafoutis Recipe

We are deeply immersed in Rhubarb season right now & loving every moment of it! Sadly underappreciated by many, this under-rated garden gem is a favorite in our family. It is one of the most versatile things we grow, working equally well for savory dishes as for sweets & drinks. This week, I share one of my family's favorite ways to enjoy it with my Rustic Rhubarb Clafoutis recipe --

Cultivated as far back as 2,700 B.C, rhubarb was first brought to America in the early 1770s by Benjamin Franklin. It is a hardy, perennial vegetable filled with antioxidants, vitamins C & K, calcium, potassium, & a whole lot of fiber. Its tart-acidic flavor sweetens up considerably when cooked, & can be used in both savory dishes & desserts with great success. Two of my family’s favorite ways to enjoy it are in our Cherry Rhubarb Pork Loin & in a simple clafoutis dessert where I pair it with candied ginger. A clafoutis, for the uninitiated, is a simple, baked dessert from southern France that features fruit & a custard-like batter. Cherry is the classic, but we make them quite successfully with all different fruits. They are extremely easy to make & absolutely fabulous. They can be served warm or cold, often dusted with powdered sugar & occasionally served with whipped or ice cream. ​

Of the many types we like to make, the rhubarb is decidedly a house-favorite!    [I am certain to feature other versions of clafoutis in the future….]

This recipe can be made with fresh or frozen rhubarb-- in fact, we always cube some up & pop it in the freezer during rhubarb season so that we can enjoy this clafoutis in the Fall & Winter as well. The candied-ginger is a lovely complement to the sweet-tart flavor of the rhubarb, as is the blend of vanilla/almond/lemon the Buttercup Baking Extract provides. Plain vanilla extract works well too if you do not have Buttercup on hand.

Rustic Rhubarb Clafoutis

grab buttercup extract here

• Roughly 12 oz Rhubarb, chopped into bite sized pieces 
• Roughly 1 oz Candied Ginger 
• 2 eggs 
• ½ c sugar + 2 TBS sugar [separated] 
• 5 oz milk 
• ¾ c flour 
• 2 TBS unsalted butter, melted 
• 1 ½ TBS Buttercup Extract or vanilla Extract

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare a pie or square baking dish: Butter & dust with sugar. Rough-chop your cleaned rhubarb & your candied ginger. Place the pieces in the prepared pan, spacing them evenly. In a mixing bowl, beat ½ cup of sugar with the eggs. Add milk, mix well. Slowly add the flour [sifting if desired,] stirring to incorporate. Stir in the Buttercup [or vanilla] baking extract & the melted butter. Pour your batter over the fruit; redistribute the pieces of rhubarb & ginger so they are evenly distributed if necessary.

Bake until cooked through & a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle 1 TBS sugar on top & return to the oven for an additional 2 minutes. Your clafoutis will puff up beautifully as it cooks, but will settle as it is removed from the oven -- No worries though!  It will still be delicious! Despite being crustless, slice it up like pie to serve. Serve it warm or cold, with vanilla ice cream if desired.
​Personally, I like to save a slice or two to eat cold the next morning with my tea!

I hope you give this ridiculously easy recipe a try-- Clafoutis just may be your new, favorite thing! It is quick & easy to make, & I find it disappears just as fast!  Truly one of the best ways to enjoy rhubarb, this recipe is just the thing to make if you find yourself with a bunch you're not sure what to do with!  Do let me know if you give it a try & please share what you think! ​ ​Until next time --
​Take care & take time to #StopAndEatTheFlowers 

For more fun try my
​Rhubarb-Ginger Drinking Shrub Recipe

Click For The Recipe