In the Pacific Northwest, we usher in summer with local rhubarb and strawberries. I rarely buy rhubarb, because my neighbors all grow it and are generous with their bounty. This is one of my favorite ways to use rhubarb, and it’s a big recipe perfect for a 9″ x 13″ pan. Straightforward ingredients: rhubarb and strawberries combined with a little sugar, some lemon juice, and enough cornstarch to hold everything together. If you have an apple or two hanging around, peel, dice, and toss them in.
I like an oatmeal-based top for a crisp. And I make a lot of it – enough to completely cover ALL of the fruit. I have one rule about making crisps – you can mess around all you want with the filling, but don’t skimp on the top.
Serve in bowls with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Rhubarb Strawberry Crisp
Ingredients
FOR THE FILLING
- 2 cups rhubarb, chopped into 1" pieces
- 5 cups strawberries, hulled and halved (or quartered if large)
- 1 apple, peeled, quartered and sliced (optional)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- Juice from one large lemon
- 3 Tbsp. cornstarch
FOR THE TOPPING
- 1 1/2 cups regular rolled oats
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
- 1 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Combine the rhubarb, strawberries, apple, sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch and a pinch of salt in a 9″ x 13″ baking pan. Toss gently to combine.
- In a large bowl, combine the oats, flour, and brown sugar.
- Add the butter to the flour mixture and cut in the butter pieces with a pastry cutter, a large fork, or your fingers until the mixture forms coarse crumbs.
- Sprinkle the topping over the strawberry rhubarb filling.
- Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 40 minutes until the filling is bubbly and the topping is crisp and browned.
