The Easiest Rhubarb Dessert Recipe

If you know me, you know I don't often bake. The precision, the focus, the waiting....it's just not my preference when it comes to time in the kitchen. So on the rare occasion when I do bake, it's gotta be pretty easy and the end result has to be really rewarding. Which is why I love this Rhubarb & Dried Cherry Crisp recipe. I served this for dessert at my recent Pop-Up dinner and it was a total hit, so by popular demand, I'm sharing the recipe here. Perfect timing for you to pick up some fresh rhubarb at the Farmer's Market this weekend and enjoy yourself a little sweet-treat!

RHUBARB AND DRIED CHERRY CRISP
Serves 6-8

Ingredients - Filling
3 cups rhubarb, cut into 1/4 inch pieces (about 4 stalks)
2 cups dried cherries, (dried cranberries will work too)
2 tablespoons AP flour
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 cup aged balsamic vinegar

Ingredients - Topping
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1/2 cup AP flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup oatmeal (not instant)
2 tablespoons sliced almonds, no skins

If you plan to bake right away, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
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Start by making the filling.  Depending on how fast you chop and measure, this part takes about 5-8 minutes. I usually slice the rhubarb stalks lengthwise into three strips and then cut crosswise to get the 1/4 inch dice. This is not meant to exhibit knife skills.  A rough chop is lovely.

Once the rhubarb is all chopped, I add it to a large mixing bowl with the dried cherries.  Use a big bowl because you are going to need room to mix it all up.

Next, I like to add the dry ingredients first - flour, brown sugar and white sugar - and use my hands to make sure everything is well incorporated. The brown sugar can get clumpy so using my hands helps break it apart evenly.

Then, I add the balsamic. I specifically use an aged balsamic here. It came about because I had my favorite bottle on hand while I was developing this recipe and I knew it would add a sweet richness to the dish. If you don't want to invest in this ingredient, then you could use regular balsamic, orange juice or water, but you might need a little less of those more liquid-y liquids. Basically, this ingredient works with the flour to create the gooey sauce. Here is the balsamic I used. You can pick it up at Williams-Sonoma or order on-line. 

I pour in the balsamic and then stir it all up together.  It looks pretty good already!

You can scoop the filling into small ramekins, big ramekins, or one big baking dish (a 9"x9" works well). Whatever your preference for serving. I like the idea of individual portions, but the crisp will bake the same either way. You can make the filling a day or two ahead of time and just cover and refrigerate until you are ready to bake.

Next up - the topping. This part takes all of 5 minutes, so in total your work time for this recipe is less than 15 minutes. Now that's my kind of baking!

Start by cutting your butter into small cubes, then place it back in the refrigerator so it stays cold while you prep the other ingredients.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, brown sugar, white sugar and salt. Burr it up real quick to blend it well. Again, that brown sugar can get clumpy so make sure there aren't any big chunks of it hanging around.

Toss in the cold butter cubes and pulse a few times until the butter is the size of peas, or chunky sand. I usually will stop after a few pulses and then use a spoon or my hand to stir the ingredients around, lifting the stuff on the bottom up to the top as I tend to find huge chunks of butter hidden underneath. Then, I pulse a few more times.

Finally, here is where I mix in the oats and almonds. I like these ingredients to stay pretty whole so they add texture and depth to the topping, so I pulse the food processor only about 2-3 times max! You can actually make the topping ahead of time, too. Just make sure to get it back in the fridge quickly so that butter stays chunky. I will package the topping separately from the fruit filling if I am making it in advance, and then just pour it over the fruit right before putting it in the oven to bake. This makes the dish a great option for dinner parties, FYI.

Place the filled ramekins or baking dish on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. The paper helps for easy clean up in case the filling bubbles over in the oven, which it might depending on the depth of your baking dish(es). Then, scatter the crumble over the top of the fruit. A few tips here - the crisp (in my opinion) is the best part, so don't be shy. Give it all you got!! Load it up!! Pile it on!! I bury the fruit with the crumble so you can hardly see what's underneath.

Then, bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes until the top is golden brown and the filling is bubbly and hot. It tends not to matter how big of a dish, or how small of ramekins you are baking in. It still tends to take about the same amount of time for that crust to bake, but if you are working with small dishes try checking on the crisps a few minutes earlier just in case.

After removing the dessert from the oven, let cool for 5-10 minutes. I'm telling you....these things will be piping hot and they retain their heat amazingly well. So use caution when serving!

Of course, vanilla ice cream or cinnamon ice cream or strawberry ice cream or simple whipped cream all add a delicious cool creaminess to the final dish, but I can eat it straight too. Just like candy!

​Enjoy and Happy Baking!