Allison Malec is a Marketing Manager at Clarkson Potter, a division of Random House, and is an editor at The Recipe Club. She lives in New York City, and loves to cook, bake and eat. She loves anything sweet, especially Momofuku Milk Bar’s Compost Cookies, Ben and Jerry’s Oatmeal Cookie Crunch Ice Cream, and Vanilla Mr. Softee cones with rainbow sprinkles.
I love the combination of tart rhubarb and sweet strawberries commonly found in the popular summer pie. Ina Garten turns that classic into an easy to make crisp with this recipe in her cookbook Barefoot Contessa How Easy Is That?.This strawberry rhubarb crisp can be prepared in under 15 minutes, and it’s perfect for a crowd. When served hot out of the oven with vanilla ice cream, you would be hard-pressed to find someone who wouldn’t love this treat.
Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
Recipe from Barefoot Contessa How Easy Is That? by Ina Garten
Serves 6
4 cups fresh rhubarb, 1-inch diced (4 to 5 stalks)
4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and halved, if large
1 ¼ cups granulated sugar, divided
1 ½ teaspoons grated orange zest
1 tablespoon cornstarch (see note)
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup quick-cooking (not instant) oatmeal, such as McCann’s
12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced
Vanilla ice cream, for serving
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
For the fruit, toss the rhubarb, strawberries, ¾ cup granulated sugar, and the orange zest together in a large bowl. In a measuring cup, dissolve the cornstarch in the orange juice and then mix it into the fruit. Pour the mixture into an 8 × 11-inch baking dish and place it on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
For the topping, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, the remaining ½ cup granulated sugar, the brown sugar, salt, and oatmeal. With the mixer on low speed, add the butter and mix until the dry ingredients are moist and the mixture is in crumbles. Sprinkle the topping over the fruit, covering it completely, and bake for 1 hour, until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden brown. Serve warm with ice cream.
Note: The amount of cornstarch you add depends on the juiciness of the berries and the ripeness of the rhubarb. Green rhubarb has more pectin, so the juices will set better. This is delicious any way it comes out!
