Uncle Paul's Rhubarb Crunch Cake

I am about ready to jump in the car and drive the five hours up to Portland, PA to go through my Uncle Paul's stash of recipes and interview him for some baking and cooking tips. My uncle is a trained chef and clearly knows how to create amazing baked goods. I found this crunch cake in the recipe book from my bridal shower. It is getting to be the end of rhubarb season, so this cake was the perfect seasonal treat to try. I was a little hesitant to use strawberry Jello in a coffee cake, but no one is ever going to guess you used it! 

Nick and I agree that this is probably one of the best fruit coffee cakes we've ever had. The sour cream in the batter provides some density without compromising the lightness of the cake. Though the recipe has plenty of sugar, the rhubarb provides a hint of sourness that cuts through the sweet cake. The cinnamon, sugar and nut layers provide the satisfying crunch, balancing out the layers of fluffy cake and spongy rhubarb. This cake would be a delightful addition to a weekend brunch, afternoon tea, or a light summer meal. Add a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream to put this treat over the top.

I only used the two larger stalks of rhubarb. Fortunately, Nick stopped me from grabbing about five stalks at Whole Foods! This cake is relatively simple to make, but I did have some issues spreading the sticky batter into the greased pan. I think an offset spatula would work well. The layering is just batter, rhubarb, nut mixture, batter, nut mixture. It's okay if some of the rhubarb is peeking out along the edges. This just adds extra color to the top of the cake.

True confession - I forgot to add the first layer of the walnut / sugar mixture on top of the rhubarb. Hence, we had only half the crunch, but this cake was still amazing! Be careful not to over-bake it as the walnuts will start the burn.

I hope that the family chef will share some additional dishes with us - his recipes may become a permanent feature on the blog! We're praying for you . . . get better and get back in the kitchen soon.

Rhubarb Crunch Cake
From Paul Lebkuecher
Serves 18-20

Ingredients

• 3 cups rhubarb pieces, 1/2" or smaller
• 3 oz strawberry Jello
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preparation

Mix rhubarb pieces thoroughly with strawberry Jello. Set aside to absorb color.

Make batter with next eight ingredients. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs well. Stir in remaining batter ingredients (sour cream, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt). 

Mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, remaining sugar and walnuts in a small bowl.

Spread half of batter in greased 9 x 13" pan. Spread rhubarb mixture lightly over batter. Sprinkle half of the nut mixture over the rhubarb. Spread on remaining batter. Sprinkle the batter with the remaining nut mixture. 

Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes or until browned.

Grandma Lois's Old World Apple Cake

My grandma is a fantastic cook and baker. She can throw together a pot roast with multiple sides AND dessert without breaking a sweat. Her skills can probably be attributed to growing up on her family's ranch in Hysham, MT - lots of hungry mouths to feed! I have several Grandma Lois recipes to share with you but thought I would do a post about one of my absolute favorites - Old World Apple Cake! As the comforting aroma of cinnamon filled the kitchen, Nick yelled out, "hey is that Old School Apple Cake almost done?" Sorry about that, Grandma.

While I had romantic notions that this was an original recipe that came over on the boat from Switzerland, Grandma told me the other day that she got the recipe from a friend at their old church in the Philadelphia suburbs. Regardless, the recipe has been a family favorite for years and is a big hit every time we serve it at holiday dinners, bridal showers, etc. In addition to being a great dessert (make sure you add a scoop of vanilla ice cream), a small slice pairs well with your morning coffee or tea.

The only time consuming part of this recipe is peeling the apples and slicing them super-thin. I just use a knife, but I'm sure a mandolin would work really well here to make uniform slices. Hmmm - maybe that will be my next kitchen gadget purchase!

The batter is very simple - just flour, sugar, oil, baking powder, salt, eggs, orange juice (I use no pulp) and a tablespoon of good-quality vanilla extract

 .

No need to pull out the KitchenAid stand mixer to tackle this batter. Just use your hand-held mixer - should take you less than a minute to get everything incorporated. I try not to over-mix the batter.

Grease and flour (I LOVE Pam's baking spray) a standard 12-cup bundt pan. Fill the pan with half the batter, then lay half the sliced apples on top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. As you can see, I am not shy with the cinnamon.

Pour in the rest of the batter, sprinkle with more cinnamon and sugar and bake. You end up with this beautiful, crusty-on-the-outside yet moist-on-the-inside apple cake. A sprinkling of powdered sugar would look nice, but I couldn't find any in the pantry (thanks Nick for finding it this weekend!).

Have some good friends over for tea and serve this cake. It'll help brighten up a cold and blustery winter day.

Old World Apple Cake

From Lois Oman

Ingredients

• 2 cups thinly sliced apples (I used McIntosh)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup orange juice (I used no pulp OJ)
• 4 eggs
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• Extra cinnamon and sugar for sprinkling between cake layers
• Powdered sugar for serving (optional)

Preparation

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 12-cup bundt pan. Thinly slice the apples and set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, oil, orange juice, eggs, baking powder, salt and vanilla extract. The batter should be smooth.

Pour approximately half of the batter into the bundt pan. Place the apple slices in an even layer on top of the batter. Sprinkle the apples with about 2 tablespoons of sugar and generously with cinnamon (just eye-ball it). Pour the additional batter into the pan and sprinkle cinnamon and sugar.

Bake for approximately 70 minutes. Cool for ten minutes and then remove the cake from the pan. Cool completely and, if desired, sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.