Rhubarb pie
Today I have a recipe for a very simple and delicious Icelandic rhubarb cake for you.
In our original homeland Germany, the rhubarb harvest begins in April and traditionally ends at the end of June. An old farmer's rule states that no more rhubarb should be harvested after St. John's Day (June 24th). This rule has the following background: The high temperatures cause the oxalic acid content in rhubarb to rise. And too much oxalic acid is unhealthy for humans. However, this has nothing to do with the rhubarb flowering, which often begins around this time; there is probably no connection between flowering and rising oxalic acid levels. One also often reads that the plant needs a rest period after the harvest from the end of June onwards to gather enough strength for a good harvest the following year.
In Icelandic cuisine the rhubarb season on the island usually begins in early June and practically lasts throughout the summer. I have no idea whether the plants here don't need a rest period, or whether the longer dormancy period during the Icelandic winter compensates for this.
The temperatures in the Icelandic summer are probably not so high that the oxalic acid concentration in the rhubarb becomes too high, but you often read the tip to use an extra tablespoon of sugar for rhubarb that is harvested at the end of summer, because the rhubarb also becomes more acidic as the season progresses.
So this is my last rhubarb recipe in Germany for this year - and I'm looking forward to having fresh rhubarb again when we fly to Iceland next week!
Ingredients for about 6 servings
500 g rhubarb
1 tbsp sugar
200 g melted butter
180 g white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
120 g wheat flour
1 tsp ground vanilla
2 eggs
Preparation
Wash and trim the rhubarb, cut it into slices about 1/2 inch (1-2 cm) thick, and place it in a baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of sugar, stir, and let it stand briefly while you prepare the dough.
In a bowl, mix the melted butter with the sugar, flour, baking powder and vanilla.
Add the eggs and whisk thoroughly.
Pour the batter over the rhubarb.
Then bake the cake in a preheated oven at 350 °F (180 °C) upper and lower heat for about 30 minutes until the cake is golden brown (toothpick test!).
Let cool slightly and then serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream or both.
Bon appetit!
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