Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2009 | Page 95

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Local food & drink
Comforting seasonal puds
Chilly winter days make us long
for comfort food, warming soups,
casseroles and puddings. Old
favourites such as bread and butter
pudding, steamed suet or sponge
puddings and fruit pies are satisfying
and scrumptious, and so easy to
make. It is an ideal time to make the
most of the wonderful fresh rhubarb
that is now in season. Stewed with
a little sugar it makes delicious
crumbles, pies or cobblers. Cook
the fruit with very little water until
soft, add sugar to taste and top with
pastry, crumble or scone topping.
Serve with cream, ice cream or lashings of
custard. Rhubarb incorporated into the
layers of a bread and butter pudding adds
a fruity lightness to this standard favourite

pudding.
Orange juice and zest add another
dimension to the flavour. Ginger, Star anise
or nutmeg add a warming depth to rhubarb,
but use sparingly not to overpower the

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rhubarbs delicate flavour.
Rhubarb also freezes well. Unlike other
fruits that sometimes lose their texture
when frozen, because cooked rhubarb
is a pulp freezing does not affect it. It is
best to cook the rhubarb before freezing
because in its raw state it is very bulky,
but cooked down it greatly reduces in
mass taking up less room in the freezer.
As a tasty fruit puree it can be added
to yoghurt or cereals at breakfast time.
The addition of whipped cream makes a
luscious fool for a very speedy dessert.
Rhubarb has been used as an
accompaniment for smoked fishes such as
Mackerel.
My favourite treat is incredibly simple,
sweet cooked rhubarb on hot buttered toast,
it is delicious.

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