{"id":1419,"date":"2009-05-13T11:53:17","date_gmt":"2009-05-13T18:53:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/?p=1419"},"modified":"2011-06-14T10:19:35","modified_gmt":"2011-06-14T17:19:35","slug":"glorious-rhubarb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/glorious-rhubarb\/","title":{"rendered":"Glorious rhubarb"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"rhubarb-clafoutis\"<\/p>\n

Before I left for Alaska two weeks ago, I wrapped up a piece on glorious spring rhubarb that was published today in the San Jose Mercury News.<\/p>\n

The dish that pleased me most was this homey rhubarb clafoutis. A riff on the simple French cake frequently made with cherries, it\u2019s at once tart, sweet and creamy.\u00a0 The bright, tangy flavor of rhubarb plays deliciously against the custard-like cake.\u00a0 The secret to its luscious texture is to not bake it too long.\u00a0 The finished cake should still be a little soft in the center when you take it out of the oven.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, I\u2019ve been sailing the Inside Passage on my way through Southeast Alaska.\u00a0 The ferries have proved a marvelous way to get a close look at this magical landscape of snow-capped mountains and dense green forests sweeping down to the sea.\u00a0 Eagles soar overhead and Pacific White-sided dolphins leap out of the water.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve yet to see much of whales aside from random spouts in the distance, but we haven\u2019t reached Haines.\u00a0 There\u2019s still plenty of time to encounter a pod of humpbacks.<\/p>\n

One of the things I\u2019ve been looking forward to most is the taste of fresh salmon straight out of Alaskan waters.\u00a0 Since the salmon season was cut short in Northern California, I haven\u2019t had any of my favorite fish for months.\u00a0 Even if I weren\u2019t opposed to farmed salmon on principle, I wouldn\u2019t consider it an acceptable alternative.\u00a0 Its flavor just can\u2019t compete with that of its wild cousins.<\/p>\n

\"platedsalmon\"I was so eager for the real thing that I took a risk and ordered it in the ferry\u2019s dining room.<\/p>\n

I should have known better, considering all my years as a restaurant critic.\u00a0 Although the fish looked promising, it was overcooked, excessively seasoned and utterly disappointing.<\/p>\n

At least the view was fabulous.<\/p>\n

\"diningview\"<\/p>\n

My mission now is to buy some fresh salmon \u2013 off the docks if possible \u2013 and cook it myself.\u00a0 I\u2019m thinking about steaming fillets en papillote<\/em>, or, more likely, in a foil packet.\u00a0 I\u2019ll let you know how it turns out.<\/p>\n

Addendum on June 14, 2011:<\/p>\n

Since the link to the story and recipes has expired, I’ve added the clafoutis recipe.<\/p>\n

RHUBARB CLAFOUTIS<\/strong>
\nServes 8<\/em> <\/p>\n

1 pound rhubarb
\n1 tablespoon Grand Marnier or brandy
\n\u00bd cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided use
\n3 eggs
\n1 cup heavy cream
\n6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
\n1 teaspoon vanilla
\n2\/3 cup flour<\/p>\n

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Trim rhubarb, removing any coarse strings, and slice into \u00bd-inch chunks. Place rhubarb in medium bowl, sprinkle first with Grand Marnier and then with 1 tablespoon sugar. Toss to coat pieces and set aside.<\/p>\n

In a food processor, whirl together \u00bd cup sugar, eggs, cream, melted butter and vanilla. Add flour and process until smooth.<\/p>\n

Butter deep dish pie pan and pour in enough batter to cover bottom of pan. Distribute \u00be of the sugared rhubarb over the bottom and cover with remaining batter. Arrange remaining rhubarb over top and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar.<\/p>\n

Bake for 20-30 minutes, until top is deeply browned and the sides are set but the middle remains slightly soft. Cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.<\/p>\n

Aleta Watson<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Before I left for Alaska two weeks ago, I wrapped up a piece on glorious spring rhubarb that was published today in the San Jose Mercury News. The dish that pleased me most was this homey rhubarb clafoutis. A riff on the simple French cake frequently made with cherries, it\u2019s at once tart, sweet and … Continue reading Glorious rhubarb<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1419"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1419\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4707,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1419\/revisions\/4707"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}