Easy Rhubarb Pudding
It seems everyone has their own version or idea of what rhubarb pudding is. This easy rhubarb pudding is a recipe passed down for at least 3 generations by my husbands grandmother. I’m not sure if this is what most people think of when thinking about rhubarb pudding, however it IS the one my husband and his brother’s love. Being a family of 5 boys, their mother (my mother in law) was always making something budget friendly to feed 5 growing boys. And since rhubarb was a staple in her garden this was an often made treat for everyone.
The funny thing about recipes passed down through generations is that sometimes they don’t come with exact measurements. My husband once told me that his grandma often had recipes that would give measurements like “butter…about the size of an egg”! This leads to a lot of room for interpretation, luck or failure in my opinion. Even this recipe, which I wrote down over 20 years ago was missing measurements. So through trial and error, and some tasting by an ever-willing hubby, this is as close as I can get to the original. The ingredients are exact, the measurements are..well what I think they should be, and so ARE.
When thinking of rhubarb pudding, i know a lot of recipes call for milk to make the pudding more of a cake like concoction. Like I said before, this is a simple family recipe and they used what was at hand and in budget. It’s a no-frills basic recipe that lets the rhubarb be the star. Just a little brown sugar on the rhubarb and then a crumble topping (pressed) and that is it. 4 Simple ingredients. Rhubarb, brown sugar, flour and butter.
We are in the beginning of rhubarb season so I thought it only right to start with a basic rhubarb recipe to get the season started. This rhubarb pudding is really that simple to make and that’s why it’s called Easy Rhubarb Pudding. It cannot get much easier than this. Serve it warm with some vanilla ice cream for a real treat.
This amount will serve 6 people a generous serving or alternatively 8 with a nice sized portion (especially with some ice cream).
If you are looking for some more fruity desserts try some of my other recipes:
The Best Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Easy Rhubarb Pudding
Equipment
- 1 9×9" or small round baking dish
Ingredients
- 6 cups rhubarb, cut into 1" pieces about 5 stalks
- ½ cup Light brown sugar to coat the rhubarb
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ cups light brown sugar
- ½ cup butter, chilled
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉
- wash and trim the rhubarb then cut 6 cups rhubarb, cut into 1" pieces
- In a bowl, toss the rhubarb with the ½ cup Light brown sugar and then put into your baking dish (spray with cooking spray)
- In the same bowl you mixed the rhubarb in, combine the 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1½ cups light brown sugar
- cut or dice the butter into ¼" pieces then add to the flour mixture and using your fingers press and crumble the butter into the flour and sugar, making a course crumble topping. Pour the topping over the rhubarb in the baking dish
- Lightly press down to form a crust.
- Place in preheated oven, and bake for 45 minutes until lightly brown on top
- Serve with ice cream for a real treat! enjoy!
Notes
Reheating Easy Rhubarb Pudding:
If you have a microwave (and lets face it, almost everyone does) then that is the easiest way to reheat all or a portion of rhubarb pudding. Just pop it in the microwave for 1-2 minutes (depending on your microwave) and heat it to your desired temperature to enjoy.
What’s the difference? Pudding, crumble, grunt, pandowdy or cobbler.
This is where it sometimes gets confusing. Often people use the terms interchangeable but to be honest they do actually refer to different things.
Pudding: a pudding traditionally has a fruit layer and a topping layer and the liquid is from the fruit that is used. However, a Pudding CAKE is a different thing altogether-it is similar in that there is a layer of fruit on the bottom and a topping, but there is liquid added in the form of boiling water (usually) to create a pudding-like layer on the bottom.
Cobbler: a cobbler is also made of layers of fruit and batter except the topping is more like a biscuit dough than a crumbly top. They usually aren’t as saucy as a pudding cake because the only liquid is the liquid from the fruit (much like this recipe).
Grunt (or stump): a grunt or stump is basically a cobbler that is done on the stovetop in a (usually) cast iron skillet.
Pandowdy: a pandowdy is basically a grunt or stump that is topped with scraps of pie dough instead of biscuit dough.
Do you see how all of these terms can create some confusion? Whatever you call it, just enjoy the process and the flavors of seasonal fruits at their peak and you won’t be disappointed.
How to harvest and store your fresh Rhubarb:
If you are lucky enough to have a rhubarb patch then you probably already know the basics. The one thing that I cannot stress enough is that when you harvest your rhubarb use the “pull and twist” technique rather than cutting the stalks with a knife etc. Pulling and twisting actually encourages better regrowth than cutting, and it’s easy…no tool required.
If you don’t have your own rhubarb plant then I recommend trying a nearby farmers market (seasonal) and even some grocery stores will sell stalks of rhubarb. When selecting rhubarb look for stalks that are smooth and firm with no visible blemishes or soft areas. Color is not an indicator of ripeness in rhubarb, since there are different varieties there are also different colors. Some are red or pink and some stay mostly green with a little bit of pink or red blush at the tips. Also, try and avoid the biggest or fattests stalks if you have a selection to compare as these ones are typically more fibrous and less sweet than more slender stalks.
Once harvested wash, dry and trim the rhubarb, making sure to discard the leaves as they are TOXIC to humans. Then use your freshly harvested rhubarb in your favorite recipe. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week. If you have an abundance of rhubarb it does freeze well. I recommend cutting the rhubarb into 1/2-1″ pieces then packaging it in freezer bags by portion. I like to do 2c or 4c portions then I just pull out what I need for a recipe. It will freeze for up to 12 months with no detectable change in quality,
There are so many rhubarb recipes out there you will run out of rhubarb long before you run out of recipes to try. Below are a few of my favorites, and believe it or not, they are not all sweet. Rhubarb is technically a vegetable (of the celery family) and therefore lends itself to savory recipes as well.
Sweet Rhubarb Recipes to try:
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/rhubarb-curd
https://cloudykitchen.com/blog/rhubarb-custard-pie
Savory Rhubarb Recipes to Try:
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/222842/rhubarb-barbeque-sauce
Enjoy your harvest!!