We’re back from our little getaway, and as a little souvenir, we brought back kilos of strawberries from our farm pickings in Orleans Island. And with all these strawberries, I only had one desire: a good old rhubarb-strawberry crumble. [Slice of life: you can’t imagine the difficulty I had in finding rhubarb, it seems to have disappeared from the stalls and it took me days to finally find some] The best thing about crumbles is that they are so easy to make, you can use any fruit you like, depending on the season and taste.
Now the question is: crumble or crisp… do you know the difference? Well, I’ve just discovered there actually is! I’ve been seeing crisp recipes everywhere since I arrived in Quebec, but I never took the time to look into them in detail. In fact, it’s quite simple; crisp is a crumble in which oatmeal has been added. This gives more crunch (in addition to improving the nutritional value). As for the compote, the combination of rhubarb and strawberries always works great. I don’t use a lot of sugar because I like the tangy taste of rhubarb, but you can increase it according to your taste. Finally, the chia seeds are there to absorb some of the liquid and thicken the compote when baking and make the recipe a bit healthier. It’s optional; if you want to thicken the compote without the chia seeds, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.
There you go, so I finally made a crisp. Verdict: it’s delicious, no doubt. But I still have a slight preference for the crumble. Probably a question of habit.
Come on. I’ll let you try and decide which team you’re on.
MY FIRST CRISP (RHUBARB & STRAWBERRIES)
Ingredients
Pour la compotée de fraises et rhubarbe
- 600 g rhubarb sliced into thin rounds
- 450 g strawberries stems removed and cut into quarters
- 60 g sugar
- 3 tablespoon chia seeds optional
- eau
Pour la croustade
- 120 g butter
- 75 g of flour
- 120 g oatmeal quick-cooking
- 80 g of muscovado sugar or brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
For the strawberry and rhubarb compote
- In a saucepan, cook the rhubarb sections with the strawberry, sugar and a little water over low heat.
- Simmer until the fruit is cooked through and reduced to a compote (about 15 minutes)
- Set aside.
For the crisp
- Mix all the ingredients with your fingertips until they form a homogeneous sandy paste.
For the assembly
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F)
- Mix the compote with the chia seeds.
- Pour the compote into an oven dish. Spread the croustade dough on top.
- Bake for 45 minutes.
