Creating from a Recipe -- Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble

Taking off from my last blog, this will give you an idea of how I work.

I love Strawberry-Rhubarb anything: pies, jam, etc. so As it is Rhubarb season, I bought some and some strawberries and decided I wanted to make a crumble -- which in my mind is a sort pie filling with a coffee-crumb-like mixture on top. If you want to get technical, look up: buckle, crumble, crisp, cobbler, etc. Different cooks describe these differently and have a variety of recipes, its all good!

So, just to be sure I got things more or less in the ballpark, I looked up Rhubarb in James Beard. Now James doesn't get real specific with some recipes, so he tends to group 'berry' pies, cobblers, etc., under a general recipe and gives some extra notes relative to a specific berry or fruit. What I wanted to see in his recipe was the general ingredients and amounts for a berry pie or cobbler. For example: the amount of sugar one adds to the pie filling depends on the berry. Rhubarb requires more than most.

After glancing at the recipe, I simply went from there and did my usual 'dumping.' I had about a cup and a half to two cups of rhubarb and two cups or so of strawberries.I chopped these into manageable pieces (1/2 inch or so) tossed them in a bowl with 1 and 1/2 cups of sugar (I did not include the recommended cinnamon or any other spices as I did not want anything to interfere with that great strawberry-rhubarb flavor.), and tossed with 1/2 a stick of melted butter and four tablesppons flour (thickener, can also use Tapioca). [You can use more, but this is plenty and you know -- fat, calories, etc.] I put all in a lightly greased heavy casserole.

I didn't have a 'crumble' recipe, but I knew the general ingredients and I knew what I wanted, so I created. I tossed in a large bowl: about 3/4 cup of flour, 1/3 of a cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup of white sugar (you can use all brown, but I ran out), and about 2/3 of a stick of melted butter. Mix thoroughly with a Foley Fork. [HEY! anyone out there remember the Foley Fork -- what happened to those guys? I've been looking for one for fifteen years at garage sales -- those who still have them must covet them, as I would. My son finally found a substitute which is labeled a "Granny Fork": http://www.kitchenkrafts.com/product.asp?pn=BE1123&bhcd2=1274797805. It's for mixing pie dough, etc.] Then sprinkle mixture evenly over pie ingredients.

Bake in 325-350 oven for 35-40 minutes or so until bubbly. YUM!

Serve with vanilla ice cream, even yummier!

Best,

Joe Koob