Before my rhubarb patch goes by — it really doesn’t like warm weather, and ours has been on the warm side lately — I wanted to publish one more rhubarb recipe.
Rhubarb makes sense for this week. This Friday, June 19, is Juneteenth, the anniversary of the day in 1865 when enslaved people in Texas finally learned they were free. The day is understandably known as Jubilee Day. Foods served for Juneteenth are traditionally red, both to symbolize the blood shed for centuries by enslaved people and to pay tribute to a color that for many Africans symbolized spiritual power.
Texans don’t generally eat a lot of rhubarb on Juneteenth — or on any other day. Rhubarb is a cold-weather crop that doesn’t thrive in the Lone Star State. Nevertheless, I am confident that if Texans could get their hands on rhubarb, they would serve this lovely red plant for the holiday.
This week’s recipe was one I almost didn’t use. It wasn’t the most beautiful thing I have made lately, but it was easily among the most delicious.
On a recent Sunday after church, I saw that Kris Smole of Charlemont had made something called Rhubarb Jam Blondies for coffee hour. I usually try to avoid the sweets at coffee hour, preferring to go straight home and make myself something a little less sweet and a little more breakfast-y.
In this case, though, I decided to sample a blondie. After all, as the self-appointed local Queen of Rhubarb, I believe I have a duty to try anything related to that plant.
Kris’s blondies were tasty, and I asked her for the recipe, thinking I might use it in this newspaper. She gave it to me, but I decided not to use it for a couple of reasons.
First, although it was delicious, it wasn’t quite rhubarb-y enough for my taste. The jam had vanilla in it, which toned down the fruit’s signature punch. The blondies on which the jam perched included chopped white chocolate, which also served to mitigate the tartness of the rhubarb.
The second discouraging point for me was that the recipe originally came from King Arthur Baking in Vermont. The second discouraging point was that the recipe originally came from King Arthur Baking in Vermont. I love King Arthur; I have used the company’s flour all my life, and I have published their recipes before with permission. In this case, however, I wanted to flex my own culinary creativity.
I opted to embrace the general idea of Kris’s blondies. I made my usual butterscotch brownie recipe and swirled some not-too-sweet rhubarb jam on top. I didn’t know how it would work but I thought it was worth a try. In the terminology of Lucy Ricardo from “I Love Lucy,” it was a “speriment.”
I had promised to bring a rhubarb-related dish to a dinner party, so I had a captive audience of tasters. Yet, when my creation came out of the oven, its appearance concerned me. Instead of remaining on top of the brownies as it had in Kris’s version, the jam had descended into the brownie batter, creating a swamp in the middle of the pan. Frankly, if I had a backup in the freezer — I often pop a small pound cake in there for emergencies — I would have brought that to the dinner party instead of these Rhubarb Butterscotch Brownies.
The freezer was uncooperative that day, and I didn’t have enough time to bake something else. Wanting to honor my commitment to contribute a dessert, I went ahead and brought the swampy brownies anyway. My friends all know that I have to test recipes, and they are used to acting as guinea pigs for my creations. I knew they would understand that occasionally those creations are less than stellar.
We were all in for a massive surprise. The brownies looked a bit weird, but they tasted amazing. The jam’s descent into the brownie batter had infused each little bar with a strong rhubarb flavor. It also made the brownies extra chewy, which is a massive plus in my book.
I had originally thought I would tinker more with the recipe. But after we all tasted the brownies and watched them disappear in minutes, my friends convinced me to leave well enough alone and publish the recipe exactly as it was.
Below is the description of my process. Be sure to grease the parchment or foil as well as you can; the jam can make the end product a little sticky on the bottom.
Swampy but Delicious Rhubarb Butterscotch Brownies
Ingredients:
for the jam:
4 cups chopped rhubarb
1-1/2 cups sugar
the juice of 1/2 lemon
a tiny pat of butter
for the brownies:
1/2 cup (1 stick) sweet butter
2 cups light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons vanilla
rhubarb jam as needed (about 1/2 cup)
Instructions:
Begin by making the jam. You may do this a day or two in advance if you wish. Place the rhubarb, the sugar, and the lemon juice in a non-reactive (non-aluminum) pan. Cover them, and let them sit for an hour or so, until the rhubarb juices up.
Cook the jam over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until it is thick. The precise timing will vary, depending on the weather and your rhubarb. When I made it recently, it took about 25 minutes. When the jam gets foamy, stir in the butter to settle it down.
Ladle the jam into a warm, sterile jar, and cover it. If you’re not using the jam right away, let it cool to room temperature and then refrigerate it until you are ready to use it. You will have leftover jam after you make the brownies; feel free to eat it on ice cream or an English muffin.
When you are ready to make the brownies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8-inch-square pan with parchment paper or nonstick aluminum foil, and grease the parchment or foil as well as you can. (It can be a little awkward to work with.)
In a 2-quart saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter, stirring frequently to keep it from burning. Remove it from the heat.
Using a wooden spoon, stir in the brown sugar, carefully crushing any lumps in the sugar. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, and then stir in the baking powder and salt. Stir in the flour, followed by the vanilla.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan; it will be thick so you may need a spatula or a knife. Drop spoonsful of jam around the brownie batter, and stir gently to swirl it into the top of the batter.
Bake the brownies until they are ALMOST firm to the touch, about 40 minutes. Allow them to cool completely on a rack; then cut them into squares.
Makes 16 brownies.
Tinky Weisblat is an award-winning cookbook author and singer known as the Diva of Deliciousness. Visit her website, TinkyCooks.com.