Rhubarb Caraway Cake
Adapted by Brita Zeiler from Vegetable Literacy by Deborah Madison
This versatile, everyday butter cake is as satisfying as it is simple. Make with or without Rhubarb, try substituting caraway for poppy seeds, make it your own! Serve with creme fraiche, yogurt, or butter.
Caraway seeds lend a floral, herby fragrance, along with a carminative (gas & bloat reducing) function. Rhubarb is a cool vegetable to celebrate. In the Buckwheat aka Knotweed aka Polygonaceae family, Rhubarb shares it's sharply tart oxalic acid flavor with other edible plants in the same family like sorrel and oca tuber. Like many of our Springtime plants, Rhubarb is a "cleansing" plant that gently aids digestive tone and elimination.
Ingredients
1 + 3/4 cup sifted all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch sea salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temp
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (use bitters or a tasty, brandy based tincture as a substitute for vanilla if you run out in a pinch, or just because)
Grated zest of 1 large Meyer or regular lemon or small orange
3 eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk (or buttermilk or half n half, just use whatever you have on hand)
1 teaspoon caraway seeds, plus more for a garnish for the top
1 stalk of rhubarb
Preheat your oven to 350. Grease either a 8-inch cake pan, or 8x4 inch loaf pan. If using a loaf pan, line the pan with a strip of parchment paper than hangs over the two longest edges so that the cake is easier to remove once it's baked.
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and set aside. In a stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until soft, then gradually add the sugar and continue until light a fluffy. Add the vanilla and lemon zest, then add the eggs and beat until thoroughly combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat once more until the mixture is smooth, and then add the milk.
With the mixer on low, gradually add the flour. When all of it has been added, scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure all is incorporated, then stir in the caraway seeds. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and even the top. Slice the rhubarb into thin strips, cutting down in length as needed so the strips fit in the pan, and then place on top of the cake. Sprinkle the top lightly with additional caraway seeds.
Bake in the center of the oven until golden and firm on top and the sides are pulling away just slightly from the pan, about 30-45 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes in the pan, and then loosen the sides with a knife and the cake out onto a cooling rack. Let cool completely before serving.
