69 votesRhubarb is technically a vegetable although it is mostly treated as a fruit when used as a culinary ingredient. In this recipe, Chef Etienne Krebs makes a delicious Rhubarb dessert flavored with cinnamon and rolled in a double-layer of fritter pastry and marzipan and fried quickly until crispy and golden brown. The result is an unusual dessert that is sweet, sour, spicy and crunchy, and will certainly make a sensational addition to your family menu or gourmet dinner party.
Fresh raw stalks of rhubarb are crisp like celery and have a strong tart taste with a sour and earthy flavor. Take note that their leaves are poisonous and should be discarded. Wash and trim the stems well before use and remove any stringy outer layers. The rhubarb stalks in this recipe are diced into small pieces and sautéed in butter, sprinkled with some sugar and cinnamon. The plant contains a lot of water that will leak out when they are cooked. The rhubarb has to be cooked only briefly if not they will disintegrate and turn into mush, making it hard to roll them in the pastry and marzipan. Cinnamon is a very good complement to the rhubarb and will bring out its pleasantly sharp flavor. Make sure to drain the rhubarb well after cooking but a little moisture will inevitably remain. The rhubarb juice is reduced to make a sauce for the dessert, which is flavored with more cinnamon for an excellent taste.
The marzipan adds sweetness to the rhubarb and makes it even more delicious. A paste made with sugar and almonds, marzipan has the consistency of dough and can be shaped and flattened to make a wrap such as in this recipe. The fritter pastry made with flour and eggs provide the crispy outer layer for a sensual dessert that is a delight to bite into.
Clean the rhubarb stems and dice into cubes. Sauté in butter and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Drain liquid with a sieve and set aside.
To make the sweet itself, take the fritter pastry and fold in two so that it holds the rhubarb without turning soggy. Place the thinly flattened marzipan on top of the pastry (which will also act as protection for the rhubarb). Put in just a little rhubarb at the end of the marzipan and roll nice and tightly. Tie both ends with a string.
Cook the wrapped rhubarb in a hot pan with clarified butter. Be careful as this browns quickly from the sugar. Once they turn brown and crispy, take it out of the pan and place in a paper napkin to absorb oil.
For sauce, reduce rhubarb juice on hot pan and flavor with cinnamon.
Place some of the stewed rhubarb on the side of the plate. Top it with a scoop of cinnamon ice cream. Place rhubarb sweets in the center. Season with some rhubarb sauce and serve.
