In search of...

I love that crumbly, crispy, oatmeal-y, sugary stuff that goes on top of the gooey, sweet, syrupy fruit stuff that's underneath.  Do you know what I'm talking about?  Ever since I started cooking (mom got me started at age 12), I've been in search of the perfect recipe for that topping.  My grandma used to make an awesome topping.  Mom's was okay.  But, I kept searching.  I knew it had oatmeal, brown sugar, and something to give it a little interest - like cinnamon or nutmeg usually.  Each one I tried was good, but not "WOW"!

All that changed today.  I need search no further!  I looked through most of my cookbooks and many online recipes to come up with this concoction.  Half the secret was realizing that I want MORE topping.  The other half of the secret is the unusual ingredients that were parts of different recipes I found.  I gave it a test drive this afternoon on top of the rhubarb I picked up at Bi-Zi Farms yesterday.

So simple to make.  I chose short thin stalks of rhubarb and crosscut them into small 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch pieces.  Choosing consistently sized stalks and uniform crosscuts makes the baking much easier.  No need to worry about whether the large pieces are done.

I dumped the cut rhubarb into an 11"x7" corning ware baking dish.  Tossed in some granulated sugar and a little bit of flour (to help it thicken up).  Then went on to make the oatmeal topping.

Here's the best part!  Besides the usual ingredients, I added ginger as the spice (instead of cinnamon) and coconut (instead of nuts).  Oh my!  I really had to resist the urge to just get out a spoon and start eating the uncooked topping right out of my mixing bowl!  Okay, I confess...I did eat a little bit - for taste testing purposes, of course.

As mentioned earlier, the other trick was to boost up the quantity of topping.  I found the perfect amount was to not double the recipe (a little too much), but rather to 1 1/2 times the topping recipe.  It smelled so good while it was baking in the oven.  (I think this topping would go VERY well on apples, peaches, pears, apricots, blueberries, cherries, as well as rhubarb.)  Rhubarb never tasted so good!
 

 

 

 

Rhubarb Crisp

INGREDIENTS

5	cups cut rhubarb (¼ to ½ inch pieces)
½	cup granulated sugar
3	T all-purpose flour

Topping:

½	cup regular rolled oats
½	cup packed brown sugar
¼	cup all-purpose flour
¼	t ginger
¼	cup softened butter
¼	cup shredded coconut

Directions

1. Place rhubarb in an ungreased baking dish.  Toss in granulated sugar and all-purpose flour.  Toss to coat rhubarb.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine oast, brown sugar, all-purpose flour, and ginger.  Cut in soft butter with a pastry blender or your hands until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Add coconut.  Sprinkle topping over filling.
4. Bake at 375° for 30-35 minutes until topping is golden brown and fruit is tender.
5. If desired, serve warm with ice cream or light cream.

Do I have raspberries in my hair?

Loganberries

It may seem like an odd question.  But, it really wasn't that far out there when I asked it.  In fact it was a perfectly appropriate and legitimate question after an evening of making loganberry and raspberry jam.  The ruby-colored 12oz jars of loganberry jam were cooling on a towel at the end of the kitchen counter and I had just finished filling pint jars with freshly made raspberry jam.  The last jar was only about 3/4 full.  So, we decided to pour the hot jam into a 12oz jar instead.  I poured, it splattered all over, and I could feel something land in the hair on the top of my head.  That's when it popped out of my mouth, "Do I have raspberries in my hair?"



I ate this raspberry!  Huge!

You should have seen the look on the husband's face!  I think he wasn't sure if he had heard me right.  Then, he realized he had heard me right.  We started into one of those laughing spells that gets funnier the longer you laugh.  He'd get it together and I'd take off.  Then as I would wind down, he'd take off again.  When the gaffaws finally slowed down to a trickle of giggles, I asked him again, "Seriously!  Do I have raspberries in my hair?"  And, off we went again.

To this very moment, I don't know if I had raspberries in my hair or not.  Well, either way, the jam I licked off the ladle was really good!



Pint jars of Raspberry Jam

Raspberry Jam

INGREDIENTS

3	T Classic Pectin
3¼	cups crushed raspberries
½	t butter
2	cups sugar

Directions

1. Wash raspberries in cool, running water and drain.  Crush berries (not too much if you want raspberry chunks in your jam) one layer at a time using a potato masher.

2. Sprinkle pectin evenly over bottom of the pot fitted with the stirrer.  Add crushed berries evenly over pectin.  Add butter to help reduce foaming.

3. Press the “Jam” button and press enter.  Wait four minutes for the appliance to sound four short beeps indicating that it is time to add sugar.  Add sugar gradually while the stirrer continues running.  Place the glass lid on the pot.  (Now, go read a book for the next 18 minutes.)

4. The appliance will continue to automatically stir your ingredients while it cooks.  When it beeps again at the end of the cycle, press cancel and immediately remove the glass lid.  Remove the stirrer using a pot holder and load up your jars.

5. Process jars in the Electric Automatic Canner according to its directions. 

Let me guess, now you're wondering what the difference is between a loganberry and a raspberry, right?  I'll save you some Googling time.  A guy named James Harvey Logan (Lawyer and Horticulturist) accidentally created them in 1883 in Santa Cruz, CA.  He wasn't happy with his blackberries.  So, he tried crossing two different kinds of blackberries.  However, he planted them right next to his raspberry plants.  Everything flowered and fruited at the same time.  Mr Logan gathered and planted the seeds from those berries. Loganberries are less "seedy" than raspberries and it's stalks are less "thorny" than blackberries.  From his 50 plants came all things loganberry.  So, in a nutshell, a loganberry is a hybrid of a blackberry plant pollenated by a neighboring raspberry. By the way, the loganberry has been used as a parent for more recent crosses, such as boysenberries (loganberry + raspberry + blackberry + dewberry).  Aren't you glad you asked?  Next time you eat a loganberry, think fondly of Judge James Harvey Logan!