Valerie Lugonja from A Canadian Foodie invited me to participate in "The Canadian Food Experience Project". The topic for June (I'm a tad late, so sorry) was "An Authentic Food Memory". This site has an amazing collection of recipes from some of the best Food Bloggers in Canada!
My fondest memories relating to food take me back to my childhood; spending precious time at the farm in Saskatchewan with my Grandparents. Everything from the bread to the butter was produced on the farm. They raised their own chickens for eggs, cows for milk, cream and butter, and grew an enormous garden. If we ever needed a snack in the afternoon, we simply went to the raspberry patch, picked a bowl full, then Gramma would pour a little fresh cream on and sprinkle with sugar. Rhubarb was also a tasty treat for us. A small container of sugar for dipping and a fresh stalk of rhubarb was the only candy we ever needed. I can't help but smile as I write this remembering those carefree days; life was so simple, yet so joyous!
The recipe I am sharing is a French dessert with a great Canadian fruit - RHUBARB!
Rhubarb Tarte Tatin
Ingredients
- 3 lbs fresh rhubarb
- 5 tablespoon butter
- ¾ cup sugar
- Pastry Ingredients:
- 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- pinch of salt
- 5 ½ oz unsalted butter chilled and cubed
- 1 egg yolk
- 1-2 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Pastry
- Sift flour and salt into large bowl.
- Add the butter, rub with fingertips until forms pea sized bits.
- Add egg and 1 tablespoon of cold water.
- Using a pastry blender mix until dough just starts to come together, adding more water a bit at a time as needed.
- Press dough together and shape into a disk.
- Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a least 30 minutes.
- Keep refrigerated until rhubarb mixture is cooked down and caramelized.
- Roll out pastry dough on lightly floured surface slightly larger than frying pan.
- Filling
- Cut rhubarb into 1-2 inch pieces
- Put butter and sugar in a deep 10 inch frying pan with ovenproof handle.
- Heat until the butter and sugar melt together.
- Arrange rhubarb tightly on top, filling all gaps.
- Cook over low heat for 20-30 minutes, or until caramelized (lightly browned) and excess liquid has evaporated.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Cover rhubarb mixture with rolled out pastry dough.
- Press down around the edge to enclose completely.
- Bake 25-30 minutes until pastry is golden and cooked.
- Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes.
- Cover frying pan with serving plate and carefully flip over.
- Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipping cream.
A Canadian Foodie
Laureen,
Your line"I can't help but smile as I write this remembering those carefree days; life was so simple, yet so joyous!" resonated with me... as well as the part about picking a bowl of raspberries - and grandma would add the cream - and that would be lunch. Such a life it was. I was raised in Red Deer, but my grandparents were in Clive, Alberta, and their garden was massive. In the Spring, after the rototilling, I could sink to my knees into the soil it was so black and rich and deep. I have always wanted to make a rhubarb tatin, so appreciate your recipe, and may get to it, yet.
Thrilled you accepted my invitation to join the project as your contribution is so important. There is so much I am learning about Canadian food through each round up. I am looking forward to reading about one of your local food heros in August!
🙂
Valerie
Laureen King
Thanks Valerie, the only thing I would do differently on the Tatin is not stir the rhubarb as much as it is caramelizing, it would look better if there were larger chunks of rhubarb. Looking forward to enjoying more great stories and recipes on the Canadian Food Experience Project.