“My neighbour puts manure on his rhubarb. I prefer custard.”
Rhubarb. The fruit that is a vegetable. Rhubarb is a bit of a strange vegetable, but if you’re in a temperate climate, like me, chances are your rhubarb went bonkers this Spring and added a beautiful green and red to your backyard! It’s such a great plant to have in the garden as it doesn’t require much maintenance and can be harvested as needed.
In addition to the green-thumb appeal of rhubarb, it does contain a few vitamins, most notably Vitamin K1. The K group of vitamins is commonly found in green leafy vegetables and has recently been attributed to a range of possible health benefits such as assisting in the prevention and treatment of coronary heart disease and cancer, and improving bone strength (particularly in postmenopausal women).
Now, I’m not saying rhubarb is a miracle vegetable (far from it!), but it’s easy to grow, pretty in the garden and I love stewing rhubarb down to add to my morning porridge… I started doing this a lot more when I broke 2 of my toes this year (don’t ask!)… Since rhubarb is a fairly sour vegetable with slight hints of sweetness, it is most commonly consumed cooked, but this process doesn’t take long so it can easily be chopped and added to cake batter raw. It is a simple and tasty addition to cakes!
My Cinnamon Rhubarb Tea Cake is very simple to make, and the flavour combination of the cinnamon and maple compliment the rhubarb nicely. I’ve been lenient on the amount of rhubarb so that the cake isn’t bitter, but the quantity provides a nice subtle flavour variation to your common tea cake. For those who prefer less sugary cakes, this recipe also works well with just 1/4 cup of coconut sugar.
This recipe utilises ingredients that are common pantry staples, with the exception of the coconut sugar which is a relatively new sugar variation. I prefer the flavour, and it compliments the desiccated coconut throughout the cake, but I’m sure this recipe would work with most granulated sugars.
The desiccated coconut stirred through the cake batter at the end doesn’t just make the cake taste wonderful, but provides a lovely, full mouth feel to the cake. Texture says a lot when it comes to dessert.
I hope you enjoy this cake with someone special; share a cup of tea and bask in the joy of indulging in a treat.
Rhubarb Tea Cake
Ingredients
175g unsalted butter (at room temperature)
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
2 large eggs
2 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/2 cups self raising flour
2/3 cup milk
1/4 cup dessicated coconut
1 cup chopped rhubarb stalk (~ 1cm long pieces)
Method
Pre-heat oven to 180C and grease and line a 20cm round cake tin
Dice the butter and place in a large mixing bowl with the sugar. Cream butter and sugar using an electric mixer until pale and creamy
Add the maple syrup and beat until combined
Add an egg to the butter mixture and beat to incorporate. Repeat with remaining egg.
Add the cinnamon, ginger and vanilla to the batter
Add in half the flour and half the milk and mix on low speed to combine. Add the remaining milk and flour and, again, mix to combine (it will result in a thick cake batter; this is good!)
Stir through coconut and rhubarb using a spatula until just mixed through the cake batter.
Transfer the batter to your prepared cake pan and smooth the surface with a spatula or the back of a spoon. Place in your pre-heated oven and bake for 50-55 minutes. It will be ready when it has lightly browned on top and a skewer inserted in to the middle comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack.
Enjoy with custard or whipped cream and a hot cup of tea ❤
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