Rhubarb Cake – A Simple Recipe I Wait for All Year Long
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This simple Rhubarb Cake recipe is one I look forward to all year. Packed with rhubarb and simple pantry ingredients, it’s a long-time family recipe we’ve been making for a couple of generations. For us, it’s a delicious summer ritual!
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I adore spring for its beauty and freshness, and the new life it brings to our world.
But I also love it for rhubarb, a sentiment it took me a few years to embrace. But this Rhubarb Cake changed all that. It’s delicious and yummy, even for non-rhubarb lovers.
When I begin to see stalks of crimson rhubarb lining the produce shelves at my favorite market, I truly know as Frog said to Toad — “Spring is just around the corner.”
I’ll never forget the first time I had this cake. It was a sweltering Saturday and a family reunion in Yakima, Washington. Muggy and hot. I’m not a fan of humidity. And it was so humid that day. But then I tasted this cake, dusted with cinnamon sugar. It was more delicious than I can tell you.
The recipe is from cousin Marilyn’s mother. Passed down through their family tree.
When I asked, maybe begged for the recipe… cousin Marilyn sweetly said, “Yes.”
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Rhubarb Cake Ingredients
All you need to make this delicious family recipe is a few pantry ingredients, plus rhubarb. You may not have buttermilk on hand, but you can easily make your own in a pinch.
The exact measurements are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Granulated sugar
- Unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- Large egg
- Vanilla extract
- Buttermilk
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda and salt
- Ground cinnamon
- Fresh rhubarb
How to Make Your Own Buttermilk
I love to keep buttermilk in the refrigerator, but inevitably, when I need it for a recipe, it’s not there. Making your own is so simple, you never had to go without this important
What Does Buttermilk Do For Baked Goods?
Buttermilk brings a pleasing tang to baked goods like cakes, breads, biscuits, pancakes, and more. Much like yogurt and sour cream, it helps the cake rise due to its acidic nature. It also bring a softer texture to baked goods and gives them additional body.
How To Make Your Own Buttermilk
- Add 1 tablespoon vinegar (or lemon juice) to a 1 cup measure.
- Fill the rest of the 1 cup measurement with milk.
- Stir and let sit at least 5 minutes until it begins to curdle and thicken.
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Rhubarb Cake
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 24 servings 1x
Description
It’s rhubarb season. And I wait for it all year long. Many reasons, but the one that stands out like a clarion of spring is Rhubarb Cake.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3 cups diced rhubarb
Topping:
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and coat a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Chop rhubarb, reserve 1/2 cup, and toss the remaining with 2 tablespoons of flour.
- Cream butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla together. Add buttermilk. Finally, add the dry ingredients; flour, salt, and baking soda. Fold in rhubarb and spread into prepared pan. Sprinkle the topping, along with reserved 1/2 cup chopped rhubarb, over the cake.
- Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Cake
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
I also grew up on rhubarb, I miss it, my grandma grew it in her huge garden in Michigan where I grew up, I’m going to see if I can find it here in Colorado where I live now thank you
Hi Cindy! My grandmother grew it too as did my aunts. I was always so fascinated by those giant leaves and red stems! Although they say rhubarb is at its peak in April — in colder states, I think it must be later. I had a difficult finding it this year too.
PERFECTION! DON’T CHANGE A THING! IT HAS AWESOME BALANCE, EYE-OPENING FLAVOR, I USE DUFF GOLDMAN’S FLAKY PIE CRUST RECIPE. ULTIMATE RHUBARB EATING, YOU SAVOR EACH BITE, YOU MARVEL & WISH ONE BITE COULD LAST FOREVER, YOU EXPERIENCE TRUE RHUBARB BLISS… NIRVAVA!!
Thank you so much, Dee Dee. I’m so glad you liked it!