Classic Rhubarb Crisp Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why is my rhubarb crisp soggy? ›

Why is my rhubarb crumble soggy? There might be a couple of reasons: - The rhubarb will start to release its juices as soon as its mixed with the sugar so only mix your fruit right before baking. - There's to much moisture in your fruit.

Usually it's the crumble that wrong. It might be too lean, making it rather dry and everlasting to eat, or it's undercooked so that it has the pasty flavour of uncooked flour.

There is nothing in rhubarb that makes it turn sweet with cooking or baking, without the adding of sugar, in the form of sweeter fruits and berries, honey or other natural sugars or processed granulated sugar. It has to be added. Fresh or frozen rhubarb may be used."

Chopped and toasted nuts such as pecans, almonds or hazelnuts also make a lovely addition to a traditional crumble, for taste as well as an extra-crunchy texture. Sprinkle flaked almonds or other nuts of your choice over this gooey toffee apple crumble for an irresistible caramelised topping.

Not enough butter, and your topping will be a dry, floury mess. Too much butter and your topping will become a greasy blob or disappointingly soggy. Some recipes will ask you to cut in cold butter along with your dry ingredients, resulting in pea-size pieces that are sprinkled across the hot fruit filling.

The main reason your crumble topping isn't crunchy is probably because you haven't used Demerara sugar. Although, it could also be that you've got your topping ingredient quantities wrong: either too much or not enough flour and butter alongside the sugar.

So what's a crumble vs. a crisp? A crumble is just a crisp without oats in the streusel. It may feature nuts, but the streusel topping is usually a simple combination of butter, flour, and sugar that is more clumpy than that of a crisp.

Removing the first layer of skin will take away its "rubbery taste" and bring out the stalk's most appealing flavors, and the brown sugar will temper the tartness.

What is the best sweetener for rhubarb? ›

My advice is yes, try honey! The recipe pictured above (and linked below) includes some honey along with the sugar; try making it with just the honey and see how it turns out. Sometimes, depending on how tender and fresh the rhubarb is, I even cut the sugar down by half.

Mix together rhubarb, honey, flour and cinnamon, ginger and cloves, until well combined.

Incorporating coffee grounds into the soil around rhubarb plants can improve soil structure, promote microbial activity, and enhance overall plant health. Also, coffee grounds can help deter certain pests, such as slugs and snails, which may damage rhubarb foliage.

Cut the rhubarb into 1/2-inch slices, adding it to a wide, 6- to 8-quart pot. Measure out 3 cups of sugar, and stir it and the ginger juice into the rhubarb. Cover the pan with its lid, and let the rhubarb macerate at room temperature overnight, until the sugar starts to release the juice.

Rhubarb grows best in an open, sunny site with fertile, moist but free-draining soil. It will also cope in light shade. Avoid ground that gets waterlogged, as plants are liable to rot. If your soil is heavy, plant in raised beds or large containers.

Method. Put the rhubarb into a saucepan with the orange zest, juice, sugar and 2 tbsp water. Bring to the boil then simmer for 8 mins until the rhubarb is cooked but still holds its shape.

Rhubarb plants can be prone to honey fungus, crown rot and viruses. Any of these diseases will weaken the plant and it is best to dig up affected plants and start again on a new site. Crown rot is the most common. It's a fungal infection at the base of the stalks, and causes the crowns to turn brown and soft.

Macerate Your Rhubarb With Sugar To Draw Out Excess Liquid

Mixing fruit with sugar draws out moisture through the process of osmosis, which happens when water naturally balances out by migrating from the cells in your fruit to the dissolved sugar molecules on the surface, the same way it does with salt.

Because there's a lot of moisture in rhubarb, it's common to get a soggy lower crust. A blast of higher heat when you first start baking helps prevent that.