Summer is for Rhubarb!
I love early summer because rhubarb is in season. It’s one of my favorite “fruits” to bake with because it’s tart and pairs so well with some of our favorite flavors, like vanilla and cardamom. It also grows very easily in cool-weather climates, like the UK and Denmark, which is part of the reason why it’s a favorite ingredient in desserts and baked goods of these countries. It’s a flavor that always reminds me of home, and that’s probably because we used to eat it a lot in Denmark in the summertime. Now that I live in the UK, it’s been nice to have it so accessible again. I’m actually attempting to grow some rhubarb right now, so we’ll see how that turns out. I’m sure it’ll be ready to harvest in a few years 😂
Are You a Rhubarb Lover?
What about you? How do you feel about rhubarb? Like I said, we love it. It’s a strange fruit because it’s not a fruit at all. It’s actually a vegetable, a bit reminiscent of celery in appearance, but it tastes so delicious. The flavor is difficult to describe but it’s tart, tangy, sour, and tastes a little bit vegetal, like the way green apples or green bell peppers have that certain vegetal taste. When combined with sugar, it cooks or stews down into a delicious soft jam that you can spread on toast or use in various pastries and desserts. It works well with lots of other flavors too, including almond, ginger, cardamom, and vanilla. If you’ve never tried it, you definitely should! Let us know in the comments – are you a rhubarb lover?
Today’s Pastries
That brings me to introducing today’s recipe – rhubarb crescents! While the Danish name of these pastries directly translates to “rhubarb horns,” the shape is more commonly known as “crescents” in the US. Like a crescent moon! They are made with a yeasted enriched dough, which means fats and sugars are added, like butter, to make it very soft. We have a similar recipe on the blog for vanilla pastry cream crescents, or “cremehorn,” and they are also very tasty – check it out here. Something about the shape is ideal for filled pastries, as the filling runs through the entire pastry but still leaves room for the dough to rise and get super soft and buttery. Yum!
Fluffy and Pillowy
The secret to a great pastry is a delicious combination of textures and flavors. If you’re working with puff pastry, croissant, or Danish pastry dough, you might be aiming for a super flaky dough with a creamy and rich filling. For this type of dough, you want a punchy flavor from the filling so that the dough doesn’t overwhelm it, and you want a very soft and pillowy dough with a nice golden brown crust. It makes the experience of eating them much more enjoyable when it’s like biting into a little fluffy cloud that just tastes delicious. We love to add a bit of demerara sugar on top for an added crunch, just to make them even more tasty. Keep reading to find out how you can make them at home!
Ingredients for Rhubarb Pastries
For these pastries, you’ll need ingredients for the filling and the dough. To make the filling, all you’ll need is rhubarb, sugar, vanilla extract or paste, and salt. To make the dough, you’ll need milk, yeast, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, flour, salt and butter. Obviously, if you want to substitute something else for the rhubarb, you definitely can, but then they won’t be rhubarb pastries! If you use a sweeter fruit, like berries, we would recommend either lowering the sugar by 25-50 grams or adding some lemon juice for balance.
You can add other flavors in with the rhubarb too – almond extract, a bit of fresh or ground ginger, cinnamon, or cardamom would all be delicious. For the dough, feel free to use plant-based milk and a different type of sugar. You can add a small amount of wholemeal or rye flour instead of some of the all-purpose/plain flour if you like, which might add a nice flavor. The butter can be replaced with margarine or another vegan alternative.
How to Make Rabarberhorn
The process of making these is a little long since the dough is yeasted, but we can promise it pays off in the end! You’ll want to make the filling first so that it can cool in the fridge for a while. To do so, simply heat up the rhubarb, sugar, vanilla, and salt on the stove until you have a jammy and soft mixture. Then, for the dough, start by blooming the yeast – you can find more detailed instructions in the recipe below. Add the other ingredients and knead until the dough is smooth and no longer sticky. Let this rise in a warm place for 45 minutes to an hour or until doubled in size.
Now it’s time to shape the pastries. Split the dough in half and taking the first half, roll this out in a circle. Cut into 6 pieces – like a pizza – these will be rolled up to make the crescent shapes! Fill and roll up the pastries and repeat with the other half of the dough. Let these rise again for 45 minutes, then egg wash, sprinkle with sugar, and bake! Don’t worry if some of them leak or overflow. The rhubarb filling will get a bit sticky but they still turn out super delicious. Enjoy!
Rabarberhorn (Rhubarb Crescent Pastries)
Ingredients
DOUGH
- 150 ml milk
- 2 tsp instant yeast (2.25 tsp active dry yeast, 17.5g fresh yeast)
- 1 large egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 50 grams sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (or vaniljesukker, if you happen to have it!)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 375 grams all-purpose flour
- 57 grams unsalted butter, softened
FILLING
- 400 grams rhubarb, chopped (about 3 stalks)
- 175 grams granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
TOPPING
- 1 egg (for egg wash)
- Turbinado/demerara sugar (optional)
Instructions
FILLING
- Make your rhubarb filling ahead of starting your dough, so it has time to cool down in the fridge.
- Add chopped rhubarb, sugar, vanilla, and pinch of salt to a small pot on the stove.
- Cook on medium heat until the rhubarb has released its juices. Lower the heat and cook for at least another 15 minutes, possibly longer, until the rhubarb has softened and the mixture has thickened. You should be able to run a spatula along the bottom of the pot and see the bottom for a few seconds before the mixture runs back together.
- Transfer the rhubarb filling to a separate bowl and let it cool down for at least 20 minutes at room temperature, then transfer to the fridge to cool completely. While it is cooling, start making the dough.
DOUGH
- To prepare the dough: heat up the milk, either in the microwave or in a saucepan, until it is "fingervarm" (finger warm), meaning it should feel warm to the touch but not hot. You don’t want to kill the yeast! Add the yeast and stir to dissolve. Let it rest 5-10 minutes until it begins to froth and bubble a little bit. You can also add a few teaspoons of sugar to help it along; just add some from the total amount of sugar for the dough! (If your yeast doesn’t do anything, it may be expired. Check the expiration date on the package and start over with new yeast!)
- Combine the egg, egg yolk, sugar, vanilla extract, and salt in a large bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix well.
- Add the milk and yeast mixture to the egg mixture and whisk to combine.
- Add in the flour, stirring with a wooden spoon (or using your mixer). Once the dough starts to come together, you can start kneading.
- Add the softened butter and knead until smooth and elastic, probably around 5-10 minutes. If you prefer not to get your hands messy and covered in butter, feel free to use a stand mixer for this step!
- Add a bit of flour if the dough sticks to your hands or the surface, or the sides of the stand mixer bowl. The texture of your dough before its first rise should be soft and smooth, not sticky and not too dry.
- Cover and let your dough rise for about 45 minutes, or until doubled in size. You can also use the "poke test" to determine whether the dough is ready (when you poke the dough, it creates an indentation without springing back immediately).
ASSEMBLY
- Once the dough has doubled in size, turn out the dough onto a clean work surface. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces.
- Roll each piece into a circle, about 1/4" in thickness, or about 10 inches in diameter.
- Cut the circle into 6 equal triangles (like a pizza).
- To shape the "horns" or rolls, start by rolling out each triangle with a rolling pin to get more surface area – you are just flattening the dough here to make it easier to roll up.
- Place 1-2 tablespoons (you can start with less until you get the hang of it!) of the rhubarb filling on the widest end of the triangle.
- Roll up the triangle towards the point, fully enclosing the rhubarb in the crescent. If a little bit leaks out, it's also totally fine.
- Place on a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper, making sure the point is tucked underneath so it doesn't unroll!
- Tuck the ends of the pastry towards the center to form more of that moon shape. Once all rolls have been shaped (you will likely need two baking sheets, with 6 pastries on each), leave to rise for another 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
- While the pastries are proofing, preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Prepare the pastries by egg washing them.
- Then, sprinkle over some turbinado or demerara sugar. This gives the top a nice sweet crunch!
- Bake for about 15 minutes until golden brown. Make sure to adjust the oven racks if baking both batches at the same time (or make sure to rotate and switch the baking sheets halfway through), otherwise bake the sheets one at a time in the middle rack of the oven. Place on a cooling rack when done to cool off slightly. Enjoy!
endnu en gang meget velsmagende.
Tusind tak 🙂