Kale and Rhubarb Savory Muffin

Kale is another of those super-foods that has been finding its way into our regular meals over the last few years.

Be it Kale Slaw with Red Cabbage, or Kale Dal, or Kale and Chickpea Soup, or, Kale Quiche, or Oven-roasted Crispy Kale, or Kale Mushroom Bell Pepper Stir Fry, or Kale Sambar, or Steamed Kale with Onion and Garlic... Kale recipes are here to stay with us.

Fresh Rhubarb from the garden is hard to resist, I do find excuses to chop up a stalk or two and incorporate it into my usual recipes. That's how this Kale and Rhubarb Savory Muffins came about.

Serve these savory muffins instead of regular dinner rolls, or as snack or breakfast dish, fresh from the oven. I've also refrigerated these for up to 2 days and served after warming them up in the microwave.

Ingredients
veggies:
1/3 cup chopped fresh rhubarb
¼ cup finely minced onion
½ packed cup finely chopped kale
1 Tbsp finely grated ginger

dry:
1 cup unbleached white flour
1/3 cup oat bran
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt (a pinch more if preferred)
½ teaspoon coriander powder
½ teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon ground paprika

wet:
1/3 cup canola oil
2 eggs, beaten lightly
1/3 cup fat free milk


Preparation

1. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl
2. Add in the chopped veggies
3. Stir in the wet ingredients, adding the oil and milk a little at a time to form a thick batter
4. Coat a muffin pan with cooking spray, pre-heat the oven to 350°F
5. Spoon the batter into the muffin pan and bake in 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes, checking often after 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean
6. Allow to sit in the pan for a 3 to 5 minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack
7. Serve warm, fresh from the oven

Rhubarb Banana Bread

Rhubarb from the garden is always an inspiration - the few months that it grows wild, it is fun to be able to incorporate it in simple dishes. I do freeze some of the rhubarb towards the end of the season, but, nothing like using the fresh just-picked rhubarb.

Much like Blueberry Banana Bread or Apple Walnut Bread, this is a mildly sweet loaf enjoyed at tea time or as a dessert... and maybe at breakfast too...  the flax meal and wheat germ plus the absence of butter makes it all the more attractive.

Ingredients
2 bananas, mashed
¼ cup wheat germ
¼ cup flax meal
½ cup diced fresh rhubarb
1 egg, beaten
½ cup canola oil
½ cup dark brown sugar
1½ cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ cup chopped walnuts

Preparation

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F
2. Combine the ingredients and stir well 
3. Pour into a greased 9"x5" standard loaf pan
4. Bake in 350°F oven for about 45 minutes, checking every 15 minutes and turning the pan if desired
5. When a toothpick inserted in the center comes clean, it is done
6. Allow to rest in the pan for 5 minutes before removing;  cool on a wire rack before slicing

Jackfruit Seed, Rhubarb, Radish Greens Koottu

When the perennial rhubarb comes up every spring, I feel an urge to use it in as many dishes as I can. So, when I get past the usual rhubarb scones, rhubarb-strawberry cobbler, rhubarb chutney/relish, rhubarb sambar, I check the garden for what else can be paired with rhubarb for a wholesome dish.

The last of the radish greens were waiting in the garden. Fresh jackfruit seeds and fresh coconut were handy. And so this Jackfruit seed + rhubarb + radish greens koottu popped into existence.

Ingredients
¼ cup finely diced fresh coconut
1 Serrano or Jalapeño chili (or a milder variety if preferred)

½ yellow onion, diced finely
½ cup cooked jackfruit seeds
½ cup diced rhubarb
radish greens (about 2 cups chopped and loosely packed)
½ cup yellow split moong dal
3 to 4 cups water
½ tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste

For tempering: 1 Tbsp gingelly oil / sesame oil, ½ tsp mustard seeds


Preparation

1. Combine the green chili and coconut and grind to a fine paste
2. Heat the oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds and wait till they pop; add the onions, turmeric, and a pinch of salt, sauté for a few minutes
3. Add the rhubarb, radish greens, jackfruit seeds, and moong dal, 3 cups water, cover and simmer on medium low heat till moong dal is cooked; (check as add more water as needed)
4. Off heat stir in the coconut-chili paste and serve warm with hot basmati rice or roti  or naan

Rhubarb Strawberry Cobbler

Arrival of the fresh leaves on the reddish stalks signals Spring for me. Being the first of the backyard perennial that I harvest for cooking, rhubarb has a special place in the backyard and in my heart. Not that I relish it raw... too tart for my sensitive teeth, but, it is nice to know that I can make the usual scones and cobblers and chutneys with them, or freeze them for making Rhubarb-Strawberry jam when the strawberries arrive in a couple of months.

Enjoy it warm as-is, or with a scoop of home-made frozen yogurt or ice cream.




Ingredients
for the cobbler topping:
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
¼ cup Smart Balance™ Omega Light Butter
¼ cup brown sugar
2- 4 Tbsp half-and-half or heavy cream, as needed
1 Tbsp baking powder

fruit mix:
2 cups chunky chopped rhubarb
2 cups quartered strawberries
¼ cup sugar or brown sugar or agave nectar
1 Tbsp flour

Preparation

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F
2. Fruit Bottom: Combine the fruit mix and keep handy
3. Cobbler Topping: Sift the flour and baking powder together, add the brown sugar and mix well; rub the butter into the flour mixture till crumbly; add some cream, a little at a time and work it in till it comes together to form a soft dough
4. Grease a bar cake or muffin mold pan; drop some fruit mix at the bottom; add a dollop of the cobbler topping dough; Alternately, use a round or rectangular cake pan instead, adjust cooking time according to the size of the pan
5. Bake in the 350°F oven for about 20-25 minutes till the topping is done

Garden Rhubarb Scones

Spring is almost over and Summer is around the corner, still it is pretty nippy here and our vegetable garden is just beginning to wake up... the first fresh stalks of spring rhubarb are the best and the juiciest; and, just like last year, I didn't want to miss using them fresh from the garden this year.

Rather than the usual triangular/pie-slice-like shaped scones, I went for a smallish roundish more like cookie shape. The texture turned out better than I expected and the hint of rhubarb seemed just right, not overpowering.

And since this is my garden's first bounty this year, I'd like to send this post out for WHB: Weekend Herb Blogging started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen fame, hosted this week by Cate from Sweetnicks.

Ingredients
2-3 cups self-rising flour*
¼ cup rolled oats (optional)
½ cup butter, melted
¼ cup sugar
buttermilk, as needed
2 eggs
1 cup raisins or dried currants or dried cranberries
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 teaspoon baking powder
2-3 cups peeled and coarsely chopped rhubarb

*self-rising flour is just all-purpose flour plus baking powder: can use 3 cups all-purpose flour + 3 tsp baking powder, if self-rising flour is not handy

Preparation

1. heat the oven to 400°F
2. microwave the rhubarb till a little mushy (no extra water needed)
3. mix the dry ingredients - start with 2½ cups of flour, baking powder and oats - then slowly cut in the butter; beat the eggs and add them in; add the cooked and mushy rhubarb; then add a little buttermilk at a time till the dough comes together to an almost cookie-dough-like (dropping) consistency
4. adjust the flour and buttermilk to get the right consistency - not quite as stiffly elastic as pizza dough, and not too loose like cupcake dough
5. either roll to about an inch thick round and cut into wedges, or roughly shape into triangles for a traditional look; I simply dropped lumps with a large spoon onto the cookie sheet, like I do for cookies; alternately, can be baked in mini-muffin pan
6. bake for about 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean

rhubarb scones

D likes scones. He likes to have scones with clotted cream. I got him a jar of clotted cream a while back, but, didn't get around to making the scones to go with it until now...

The gnarly dark green leaves along with their deep red stalks are unmistakably signaling the rise of the rhubarb again this year. This hardy perennial heralds the start of the growing season, usually the garden's first gift I look forward to each spring.



The first spring stalks are supposed to be the best, so, I wanted to use it for making some baked goodies. I like its crisp tartness. Pie is not a favorite of mine, so, I decided to try something along the lines of scones, having tried a few other things with rhubarb before...

The leaves contain oxalic acid and are toxic; the deep red stalks are the only edible portion of this plant (Rheum rhabarbarum). Botanically, rhubarb is a vegetable.

And, rhubarb is the plant I would like to share for this week's Weekend Herb Blogging hosted by Anh at Food Lover's Journey.

A few uses of rhubarb (Rheum palmatum) that I found interesting:

• can be used to make an environmentally friendly cleaner for pots and pans - rhubarb brings back the shine in burnt pots and pans
• can be used as a hair dye
• can be used to make organic insecticide
  

This rhubarb scone recipe is a sweet version of the flatter soda scone, rather than traditional scones which are closer to biscuit in thickness and texture.

Ingredients
1¼ cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 Tbsp wheat gluten flour
1 cup sugar (reserve 2 Tbsp of this for sprinkling on top)
¼ cup dried cranberries
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda

½ cup ghee

1 cup rhubarb, cooked, drained and mushed
2/3 to 3/4 cup buttermilk*
*(add a little at a time to form a dough that is not runny or loose)

Preparation

microwave the rhubarb till it is soft;(no extra water needed - usually a cup of coarsely chopped rhubarb cooks in about 45 seconds to a minute); drain well, or reduce buttermilk quantity

combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, cut in the ghee till the flour mixture feels like breadcrumbs; gradually stir in the rhubarb, then buttermilk

either roll the dough into a ball and flatten to a one-inch thick disk, score the tops into wedge shapes, and place on parchment paper lined cookie sheet ; OR, just roughly make triangular shaped heaps on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet

bake in a 400°F oven for about 20 minutes or till done - toothpick inserted comes out clean; sprinkle some of the reserved sugar on top

Serve warm with clotted cream or butter.

cranberry rhubarb chutney

Chutneys of all kinds were always handy at home when i was little, my mom made sure of that. She prefers the traditional south indian thogayals, all forms of coconut-based chutneys, "green" chutneys (usually, green chilies with mint/cilantro), "red" chutneys (tomatoes and dry red chilies usually), and so on.

Chutneys now have become an integral part of my menu, especially since the wee one likes to dip her foods in something, and, i sort of like to experiment with different flavors and combinations of ingredients. Some have come out surprisingly good, some have taught me a lesson or two...

Anyway, it is rhubarb season again - almost. A few plants we have in our garden have started growing again. Time for me to use up the stash of frozen rhubarbs from end of last season:-)

While I love dry fruits, my main objection is that they are almost always treated with sugar. But, last week, i found some unsweetened dry cranberries at the store and i had to get a big bagful.

Now, typically, fresh cranberries are a late autumn treat, whereas by then, rhubarb season has ended... so, making this with fresh cranberries and fresh rhubarbs has not happened so far for me...

This cranberry rhubarb chutney is a favorite at home, especially since i get to make it only a few times a year, depending on availability of the ingredients.

The tang from rhubarb and unsweetened cranberries is balanced by brown sugar and a pinch of cayenne pepper in this recipe. In that sense, this is a form of sweet and sour chutney, much like tamarind-date-raisin¹ chutney.

Serve with dosai, adai, savory waffles, rotis, or even with dhokla ...

Ingredients:
1 cup dried unsweetened cranberries
1 cup finely diced rhubarb
¼ cup brown sugar (or more)
1 tsp cayenne pepper powder (adjust to taste)
1 tsp canola oil
salt to taste (just a tad, to bring out the other flavors)

Preparation

heat oil in a pan, and sauté the cranberries and rhubarb for a bit; combine the rest of the ingredients in a food processor and blend to a fine chutney, adding water as needed to get the desired consistency; for additional tang, i sometimes like to add tamarind concentrate.

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¹ For tamarind-date-raisin chutney:
roughly measure out equal amounts of raisins and chopped dates into a pan, add just enough water to immerse them, bring to a gentle simmer till most of the water is absorbed, and turn off heat; when cool enough to handle, put the cooked dates and raisins, along with any remaining liquid, into a blender, add some tamarind concentrate, salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper powder, blend to a fine paste; adjust flavors to suit your taste and enjoy :-)