There's More to Spring’s Tart Rhubarb Than Just Desserts
Why meatless on Mondays? Not only is eating less animal protein a healthy diet choice, but curbing your meat consumption can have a significant environmental impact too. In 2006, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization reported that animal agriculture accounted for a full 19 percent of greenhouse gases—more than the transportation sector. Best of all, with recipes like these, going meatless can be a delicious weekly habit.
March is a funny time of year. Spring is here, and yet it’s snowing in Chicago today. With its pendulum swings between warmth and chill and its bipolar fluctuations of sun and clouds, March feels contagiously confusing. My body doesn’t know how to keep up. If I get sick at all during the year, I get sick in March.
But the garden is not confused. Under the on-and-off snow cover, a rich thaw is happening. The perennials are coming to life. There is movement and sprout. The rhubarb is pushing the soil up and out of the way, and soon its crimson stalks, one of spring’s first crops, will start to show themselves.
Rhubarb seems to be a polarizing taste. You either love its tart bite and the way it makes you pucker your mouth—or you hate it. I happen to love it. So much so that, as well as adding enough sugar to make it a dessert, I embrace the savory side of rhubarb too. This tart—or crostata, really—is a seasonal favorite in my house. It is not a dessert but a savory main course filled with spring’s promise of return. Along with tasting great, rhubarb is heavy in vitamins B and C—helping my body work through the confusion of seasonal shift.
Savory Rhubarb Crostata
Serves 8
Ingredients
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 cup all-purpose flour
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 to 5 tablespoons cold water
12 ounces rhubarb, cut into ½-inch pieces
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon chopped capers in brine
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
1½ teaspoons cornstarch
1 egg, beaten with a pinch of salt
Directions
Make the crust: Place the butter on a tray and freeze until solid, about 1 hour. Grate the frozen butter using a food processor fit with the grater blade. Add the flour and ¼ teaspoon salt to the food processor, pulsing until the fat is mostly combined but still has some small lumps. Stir in 4 tablespoons of the water with a fork; then squeeze a small handful of the dough. If it is crumbly, stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon of water.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface. Smear the dough with the palm of your hand 3 or 4 times so that it comes together. Pat the dough into a round; then wrap it in plastic wrap and chill at least 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Roll the dough out on a floured work surface. With a floured rolling pin, roll it into a 14-inch round. Transfer the dough to a buttered baking sheet.
Toss the rhubarb together with the sugar, capers, zest, cornstarch, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, then place on the dough, spreading evenly and leaving a 1½-inch border. Fold the edge of the dough over the filling, overlapping it in places. Brush the edge of the dough with some of the egg.
Bake the crostata until the filling is bubbling and the pastry is golden, 20 to 25 minutes.
Original article from TakePart
