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Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Early Sunday Morning

Sunday started early in our house this week. My smallest one wasn't up with the larks, but with the wood pigeons. Half past five is not the time that I like to start my day, even more so on a Sunday.. Cooking sometimes eases me through those long hours before anyone else in the world is up, and so we made a cake.
In my Riverford Organic Veg Box this week was a recipe from their new cook book, Everyday And Sunday, for a Rhubarb and Cinnamon cake. I'd been looking longingly at the recipe all week, now was my chance.
                                   
Rhubarb isn't popular with my children. They pick it out of crumble, and eat the crust of a pie, silently ignoring the fruit underneath. They do, however, like waving the spears about like swords. I have been determined to try and find something containing rhubarb that they will eat, and I hoped that this cake would be the answer.

The cake is a joy to make. No need to stew the rhubarb, you just cut it into small chunks and add it into the mix. Stirring in the orange, creme friache and cinnamon creates an intoxicating smell and I could have eaten the mixture raw.
  
So did they eat it? Well no, not really. They picked at it for a while but I can't say that they woolfed it down. They had a lot of fun making it and waiting for it to come out of the oven, but they didn't take to the tangy taste. Maybe some things are best left for us adults and we certainly weren't complaining about eating their left overs. It is the most delicious cake I've had in a long time and makes a change from never-ending crumble.  I actually made 2 cakes, one small and one medium size as I didn't think we would get through the large one that the recipe calls for. The smaller cake took 30 minutes, the larger one took 40minutes.

Riverford Organics' Rhubarb and Cinnamon Cake (from Everyday and Sunday)
Serves 10 - 12
60g unsalted butter, softened, pluse more for the tin
380g soft brown sugar
3 large eggs
a few drops of vanilla extract
a pinch of salt
zest of 2 oranges
300g self raising flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
250ml creme fraiche
450g rhubarb cut into 1cm pieces

for the topping
60g brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 160C

Butter a 24cm springform cake tin and line with baking parchment

Cream the butter and sugar together.

Add the eggs, vanilla, salt and orange zest

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of sods and cinnamon into the mixture, and fold through the creme fraiche and rhubarb.

Pour into the cake tin and sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon for the topping.

Bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean  
Serve warm or cold, with custard or cream.

The lovely folk at Riverford Organic have given me a copy of their new book, 'Everyday & Sunday recipes from Riverford Farm' which was published on May 2nd. Leave me a comment with your name and the girls and I will draw a name from a hat on Monday 16th and I will send the book to the winner.


3 comments:

  1. Am loving the sound of this recipe it does sound absolutely delicious. I admire your determination to get your children initiated into the world of rhubarb particularly at such an early hour in the day! I try endlessly and unsuccessfully to encourage my Alex to eat red foods such as berries. As yet my only success is with ketchup!! Hey ho I will endeavour to keep encouraging.....
    Loving the pic of the cake and flowers, very country living!!
    My next cake I bake will be the recipe above and I will let you know how it goes down with my children and of course myself and Ben!
    Ps Very ingenious of the girls to use the rhubarb as swords!! jayne xxxx

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  2. Alex I made the cake too and it really is delicious. Don't tell Rob but I think it is better than his rhubarb crumble cake (only by a fraction). Yum, and I did taste the raw mixture. Lara x

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  3. I've just made this and it was DELICIOUS, my little one loved it! However it was only close to being cooked in the middle after an hour and half at 160, and by then the top was burned! Any tips?!

    I didn't have enough rhubard so added in some strawberries, worked really well!!

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