Strawberry & Rhubarb Crumb Bars

by Cristina on 3 May 2011 · 34 comments

Over the weekend, I was all gooey-eyed and both pleasantly surprised and happy to have watched the Royal Wedding of the now Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Could anything have been more perfectly orchestrated? It was Disney perfection and for those brief hours, many people put aside their worries of everyday life and economic struggles to rejoice and step into a fairytale {happy sigh}.

Rhubarb and Crumb Bars…

Truth be told, before making these crumb bars, I had never even tasted rhubarb. Their long, crimson stalks beckoned me from my otherwise boring, local market’s produce section. What a brilliant, deep colored vegetable. Even though rhubarb is a vegetable, it is more used like you might a fruit and treated with sugar/honey or used with sweet fruits like strawberries to offset its infamous tartness. Rhubarb is a good source of vitamin C, fiber and calcium. Warning Never eat rhubarb leaves. They’re poisonous and toxic when ingested.

This recipe turned out to be a gentle introduction to using rhubarb. In my excitement of finding these beautiful stalks in the market a couple of weeks ago, I have a couple more recipes to test with my new found vegetable as the star ingredient. As I didn’t know what to really expect with it’s flavors, I didn’t change the recipe too much this time around. I’ve substituted some of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat flour.

It’s a light, crumb-textured cake with some sweetness from both the strawberries and rhubarb. No flavor dominance. A seasonal cake to be enjoyed during these Spring days for brunch or a light evening taste.

Fresh Rhubarb

Teenie Notes

You can easily sub out either the strawberries or rhubarb and use all of either.
I’ve substituted 1:1 the all-purpose flour for some whole wheat flour. If you don’t have whole wheat flour, use the all-purpose flour in place of it’s measurement.
Creating a parchment overhang makes it so easy to handle the bars after they’ve cooled in the pan (and makes for a easier cleanup too).
I cut the baking time by 5-10 minutes and it turned out perfectly moist. Test your baking time at 40 minutes and bake accordingly from there — taking care not to over bake and dry out the cake.

Strawberry & Rhubarb Crumb Bars

source adapted/modified from Martha Stewart

Makes 9-12 bars

Ingredients

Streusel
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, spoon and leveled (plus additional to prep-dust pan)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour, spoon and leveled
1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cake
3/4 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
3/4 cup fresh rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon light-brown sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
—————————–
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides. Spray parchment with non-stick spray and sprinkle with flour. Tap out excess flour.

Make the Streusel:
Whisk together melted butter, brown sugar, and salt. Add flour and mix with fork until large crumbs are formed. Refrigerate until ready to assemble.

Make the Cake:
- In a medium bowl, combine the strawberries, rhubarb, brown sugar and the 1/4 cup of flour.
- In another medium bowl, whisk the remaining 3/4 cup flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a large bowl, using an electric or stand mixer, beat butter and confectioners’ sugar until light and fluffy; beat in eggs one at a time. Adjust mixer speed on low and add vanilla then the flour mixture.
- Spread batter in prepared baking pan. Sprinkle with strawberry/rhubarb mixture and top with streusel.

Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in center comes out with most crumbs attached, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely in pan. Use the parchment overhang to lift the cake out of baking pan. Cut into bars.

Strawberry & Rhubarb Crumb Bars