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Rhubarb flourishes in the cool spring rains we have been receiving lately. Though the season is a bit late this year, area cooks are beginning to feel overwhelmed with the pie plant produce. Several readers asked for a repeat printing of Baked Sticky Rhubarb Pudding, a recipe shared by Karma Henry in 2021. Super easy to prepare, it is delicious served with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream or can stand alone if desired.

Baked

Sticky Rhubarb Pudding

3 cups diced rhubarb

1 cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup milk

2/3 cup butter, melted and slightly cooled

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup powdered sugar

1 Tbsp corn starch

1 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch square pan. Pour the chopped rhubarb into the bottom of the pan and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, granulated sugar, milk, melted butter, baking powder, salt and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Pour over rhubarb in pan and spread evenly.

In a separate bowl, combine powdered sugar and corn starch. Scoop mixture evenly over the top of the rhubarb and batter mixture. Pour the water over the top. Don’t worry, it is supposed to look soupy.

Bake for 1 hour. Remove from oven and cool a bit before serving. Top each serving with whipped cream or ice cream if desired. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Those who bake with sourdough on a regular basis are often interested in recipes to use the discard or excess sourdough starter that accumulates. Kaiti Chadburn recently posted a photo on Facebook of sourdough tortillas she made. She shared the link to the recipe she used that comes from a site called Milk and Pop. Touted as “a delicious no-fail recipe to use sourdough discard”, these tortillas are super tasty and easy to make.

The Best

Sourdough Tortilla

1/2 cup sourdough starter discard

1/4 cup olive oil

1/3 cup water

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

In a large bowl, mix the sourdough discard, olive oil and water. Stir to combine well.

Add the flour and salt, mixing until the dough is formed. In the bowl, knead dough for 1 to 2 minutes, just until everything is well combined, and dough looks homogeneous, with no dry spots. You can use a stand mixer with dough hook if you prefer. If dough is too sticky, add an additional tablespoon of flour and knead until it is absorbed.

Cover the dough with a damp towel and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Preheat a large skillet on high heat. Lightly flour the surface you want to roll the dough on. Divide the dough into 8-10 equal pieces and roll in balls.

Flatten each ball with the palm of your hand. Then, roll each piece of dough into a circle, using a rolling pin or a tall wine bottle, label removed. Tortillas should be rolled very thin, 1/4 inch or less, and will look almost see through when rolled thin enough.

Cook tortillas individually on high heat about one minute on each side. Flip as soon as bubbles appear, and the edges look firm. The tortilla should have nice brown spots when turned. Serve warm.

Allow them to cool for storage if not using right away. Place in an airtight container when cooled. Yield: 8 to 10 tortillas.

Several requests came in for the recipe for the garlic butter used at a recent spaghetti feed. The recipe makes quite a bit, enough for 4 to 5 loaves French bread, but will keep well for a week refrigerated, or can be frozen for up to one month without loss of flavor.

Best Garlic Bread Butter

1 cup butter, softened

1 Tbsp minced garlic

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp crushed parsley flakes

1/4 tsp ground paprika

1/8 tsp salt (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a large mixer bowl and whip at medium high speed for 1 minute or until thoroughly blended.

To use garlic butter, slice French bread loaves almost in half lengthwise. Spread about 1/3 cup of the mixture on the top half of the bread loaf. Close loaf and cut into 1 1/2 inch slices. Arrange slices in loaf shape on foil and wrap tightly. Bake at 350 degrees about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

Note: by putting the butter on the top half, it melts down into the bottom half while the top half get a good coating and bread doesn’t get soggy. Also, the loaves may be wrapped and frozen until ready to use. Thaw and bake as directed above.

What can you do with leftover garlic bread? Cube the leftover bread and use in any bread-based breakfast casserole, or place the cubed bread on a foil lined baking sheet and toast in a 325 degree oven 10 to 15 minutes, stirring often until golden brown and crispy. Cool completely and store in an airtight container. Use as croutons of grind for seasoned breadcrumbs. Note: lining a pan with foil when working with pungent ingredients like garlic prevents the pan from taking up a strong flavor and makes clean up easy.

I recently learned that rhubarb leaves make a good weed barrier, deter crawly bugs and add nitrogen to the soil as they decompose. Rhubarb leaves are toxic in large amounts, so most animals and bugs avoid them. A healthy rhubarb plant produces some massive leaves that should cover quite an area, and the weight should keep them from blowing around in our famous Eastern Washington winds.

Share your favorite rhubarb recipes, other spring theme recipes and gardening tips with your fellow readers by sending them to: Welcome to My Kitchen, c/o The Record Times, P.O. Box 458, email therecord@odessaoffice.com or drop them in the Welcome to My Kitchen mail tin in The Odessa Record office.