KosherEye.com
Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Favorites
St. Martin's Griffin
"We look forward in the spring to the appearance of local strawberries and rhubarb in our markets. This crumble uses just the right amount of sweetening—enough to satisfy as dessert, but not so sweet that the flavor of the fruit is lost.
Try the crumble topping with other fruit as the season progresses, or as your taste buds dictate. Experiment with different fruit combinations. No matter what fruit you use, just be sure to have about 6 cups of slices, berries, whatever. Some of our favorites include peaches and blueberries with some lemon, peaches and mangoes with a little ginger and lime, strawberries and mangoes with cinnamon and cardamom (as in the photo opposite), apples and dried apricots with lemon— almost any combination has its fans. Of course you can make the topping with another kind of nut, but we love the rich, buttery taste of pecans the best. We like to make extra topping and keep it in the freezer. With frozen fruit and frozen crumble topping on hand, you can quickly and easily put together a delicious dessert any time."
Ingredients
3 cups strawberries, hulled and halved or quartered, depending on the size
3 cups sliced rhubarb (3⁄4 inch- thick- slices- cut very wide stalks in half lengthwise before slicing)
3⁄4 cups packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Pecan Crumble Topping
1 cup unbleached white all- purpose flour
1 cup chopped pecans
1⁄2 cup sugar
1⁄4 teaspoon salt
1⁄3 cup vegetable oil
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
In a mixing bowl, toss the strawberries and rhubarb with the brown sugar, cinnamon, and cornstarch. Set aside while you make the crumble topping.
In the bowl of a food processor, whirl the flour, pecans, sugar, and salt until crumbly. Place the mixture in a bowl and drizzle the oil over it.
Thoroughly mix the oil into the flour and pecan mixture.
Give the fruit mixture a stir and distribute it evenly among six 7- or 8- ounce baking cups or ramekins. Tap the bottom of the cups gently on a hard surface to settle the fruit. Spread the topping evenly over the fruit and place the cups on a baking sheet or large baking dish (easier to handle and also will catch any juices that bubble over).
Bake until the fruit is bubbling and the topping browned, about 45 minutes. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.
Serves 6
Notes
Variations
If you use frozen fruit, it is best to measure it before thawing, because the fruit compacts as it thaws. Add an additional tablespoon of cornstarch to help thicken the fruit. Most fruit is sweeter than rhubarb, so we suggest you use a little less brown sugar in other fruit mixtures: we usually use 1⁄2 cup for 6 cups of fruit. To blueberries, peaches, pears, or apples, we like to add a tablespoon of fresh lemon or lime juice and/or a little finely grated zest.
Recipe: kosher, parve, dessert