Beyond Pie: 3 Recipes for Rhubarb

By Zester Daily staff

Early summer means the arrival of fresh rhubarb, but we bet you can't think of a thing to do with it other than make a rhubarb pie, right?

This year get adventurous with a trio of recipes that will use up a nice big bunch of farmers market rhubarb and make your family beg for second helpings.

Related: Rhubarb's favorite partner in most recipes -- strawberries.

From Denmark, this rhubarb trifle with rye bread recipe from Trine Hahnemann makes a beautiful and sophisticated dessert, perfect for an outdoor potluck meal.

Rhubarb Trifle with Rye Bread

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the rhubarb:

1 pound rhubarb

2 cups sugar

For the cream:

1 cup goat or plain yogurt, or crème fraiche

2 tablespoons sugar

1 vanilla pod

For rye bread crumbs:

4 slices rye bread

2 tablespoons coarse sugar

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375 F.

2. Rinse rhubarb and cut into slices. Place on a baking stray and sprinkle with the sugar.

3. Bake for 15 minutes, then cool.

4. Cut the bread into small cubes and roast in a dry frying pan until crisp. Add the 2 tablespoons coarse sugar and turn down the heat. Let sugar melt, stirring regularly. Cool.

5. Mix the yogurt with regular sugar and scrape out the vanilla pods and add to the mixture. It can all be prepared the day before.

6. Put the dessert together just before serving. In 4 tall glasses: place the rhubarb, then the rye bread crumble, and finish with goat yogurt cream.

Related: Is fruit losing its flavor?

Another Danish recipe from Trine Hahnemann, this simple relish is simple, with clean, bold flavors.

Rhubarb Relish

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 pound rhubarb, rinsed and sliced

½ cup shredded fresh ginger

1½ cups sugar

1 tablespoon whole pepper

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

Directions

1. In a saucepan, mix all ingredients and let simmer for 30 minutes.

2. Cool and store in refrigerator. Relish will keep for at least a week.

Related: Tips for cooking everyday meals with organic produce.

For that classic rhubarb pie, try this fresh recipe from Susie Norris that complements rhubarb with other seasonal fruit and a perfect flaky crust.

Fruit Pie With All-Butter Flaky Crust

Ingredients

For Grand Central Bakery's pie crust:

2½ cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup cold butter (2 sticks), cubed
3 tablespoons cold water
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 egg for egg wash
1 tablespoon water

For the fruit filling:

4-5 cups of fresh fruit (such as a mix of sliced strawberry and rhubarb, or fresh blueberries or sliced peaches)
3 tablespoons of arrowroot or cornstarch
3 tablespoons of sugar (white or brown)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

1. Make sure all your ingredients are cold. The best way to do this is to measure them all out, then place them on a large plate or tray and place the tray in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.

2. After the ingredients have chilled, mix the water and lemon juice together and set aside. Place the flour in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the cold butter cubes and combine on the lowest speed for about a minute or two. The texture of the mixture will change to rough and mealy.

3. Add ¾ of the water and lemon juice mixture and mix very briefly. You should still be able to see pea-size chunks of butter, and the dough should start to hold together. If it is still crumbly, mix a little longer, then finally add the rest of the water.

4. Form the dough into 2 disks, flatten them and wrap in plastic wrap or tightly in a large Ziplock bag. Allow them to chill for 1 hour.

5. Once the disks are chilled, unwrap them and sprinkle the work surface and the dough with a little flour. Roll the dough out with a rolling pin to about 10 inches in diameter and about ⅛-inch thick.

6. Heat the oven to 350 F.

7. Gently place the dough in a 9-inch pie plate, wrap with plastic wrap and allow it to rest in the refrigerator as you repeat the process with the other disk, which will be the upper crust. You can wrap the second disk in plastic wrap and place it over the covered pie plate to allow them both to chill and rest.

8. In a medium bowl, toss the fruit slices or berries with the arrowroot, sugar, lemon juice, vanilla and salt.

9. Fill the pie plate with the sliced fruit or berry mixture.

10. Top with the other crust. Pinch the inch two crusts together to create a fluted edge. Cut a few decorative slices in the top of the crust to allow steam to escape.

11. Finally, mix the egg with a tablespoon of water and brush the egg wash on the crust before baking. Bake until the pie crust is golden brown and the fruit is bubbling -- about 35-40 minutes.

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