I was asked a while back by someone who had loads of rhubarb wildly growing in her backyard, how to possibly use it all?!! I had to admit I didn’t really know. I’ve not paid rhubarb much attention. One, I don’t have a garden; and two, rhubarb isn’t really one of those ‘superfoods’ that gets much attention. But that doesn’t mean it should be overlooked!
As you may have read last week (in Seasonal Fruits to Boost your Running Performance), rhubarb is known in Chinese medicine to have a positive and balancing effect upon the digestive system. Aside from vitamin K, it contains few nutrients – and few calories as well: one cup chopped rhubarb (4oz) contains only 25 calories, a little bit of vitamins A and C and a bunch of vitamin K (45% of your daily value). In other words, there is no reason why not to be eating rhubarb and in fact a few reasons to include it in your diet!
So I decided to see what I could make in the kitchen using a whole bunch of rhubarb all at once – here is the result. And let me just say, I’ve always been a fan of fruit crumbles but this one blew me away. Pretty sure I like rhubarb more than I originally thought! This is a wonderful ‘healthy treat’ for occasions where you want to partake in dessert, but a healthier version because you know you don’t want to undo your hard training efforts with too much sugar (albeit sugar from all natural sources)!
Rhubarb Crumble
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs chopped fresh or frozen rhubarb (24 ounces)
- 1 cup unsweetened strawberry (or raspberry) fruit spread (such as Crofters Just Fruit spread)
- ¼ cup 100% pure maple syrup (2 Tbsp only if you prefer less sweet)
- ¼ cup raw honey (2 Tbsp only if you prefer less sweet)
- 2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
- pinch sea salt
- ¼ cup virgin coconut oil, melted
- 2 Tbsp 100% pure maple syrup
- 2/3 cup ground oats (oat flour)
- 2/3 cup instant oats
Directions
- Heat oven to 350.
- In a large pot, mix together the rhubarb, fruit spread, maple syrup, honey, lemon juice and salt. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Slightly mash if desired for leave as is for chunkier fruit crumble dessert.
- Pour the mixture into a 9×13 baking dish.
- For the crumble: in a small mixing bowl, mix together the coconut oil and maple syrup. Add the ground oats and instant oats. Mix well.
- Distribute the oat mixture evenly overtop the rhubarb mix.
- Bake for 35 minutes. Let cool before serving.
- Store in fridge.
Enjoy!
Eat clean, run strong, be well… Cheers,
