rhubarb cake in pan.

Fresh from the oven, cooling off in Debra’s home kitchen

Ben Franklin is credited for bringing rhubarb to North America in 1772, but it took until the early 1800s for it to become popular. Today, we love rhubarb because it means spring is truly here!

Did you know that rhubarb is a vegetable, not a fruit? That it’s nickname is the “pie plant”?

Rhubarb ranges in color from red to pink to greenish. They all taste great, and you can use any color in this recipe. Rhubarb is tart, but good raw, too. Try it diced in a chicken or tofu salad.  In addition to vitamin C, rhubarb has small amounts of lutein, a nutrient especially good for skin and eyes.

This is a tender, soft cake, so make sure to cool in the pan completely before cutting.

Yes, use organic ingredients, and we have them for you. Why? You don’t need to eat pesticides or herbicides – they don’t do a body good, they don’t make you healthy.

makes 1 8×8 or 9×9 pan | preheat oven to 350
2 C coconut sugar 2 cup flour (I prefer einkorn or spelt flour)
1 good egg  2 C rhubarb (about 2 stalks)
1/2 C extra virgin olive oil 1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp baking soda
1 C diced apple, granny smith or pink lady preferred 1/4 tsp salt

 

Using an electric mixer, cream coconut sugar (don’t you love the fact that coconut sugar is low on the glycemic index?), egg, extra virgin olive oil and vanilla. I let my mixer run about 5 minutes on medium while I prepared the remaining ingredients.

 

Rinse the rhubarb, slice lengthwise in half and slice crosswise. Peel and dice apple. Add fruit to mixer together with the flour, salt, cinnamon and baking soda. Mix just until everything is incorporated.

 

Using a rubber spatula, scoop batter into an 8×8 or 9×9 greased baking pan. I grease with Spectrum lecithin spray nowadays, which saves me mixing my own liquid lecithin and oil mixture. Bake 40 minutes at 350. When brown around edges and knife blade inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, remove from oven. Remember (read above) to cool in pan. Cut into 12 squares. Serve as is or with accoutrements such as whipped cream or ice cream for a fine Mother’s Day treat!