eating local

Our local food buying club has started and I am enjoying some of the local produce that is beginning to appear. I've even found some local strawberries already! There are a lot of things I will buy out of season, but my spring time favorites, asparagus and rhuburb, are two I never do. I try and fit them into our weekly menu as often as possible. Here is a recipe for a crumble I made last Friday for our friends. It was so yummy with vanilla ice cream. The grated lemon zest is key to the topping.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble - adapted from Smitten Kitchen.com
Yields 6 to 8 servings.
For the topping:
1 1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons Demerara sugar (or turbinado sugar aka Sugar in the Raw)
Zest of one lemon
1/4 pound (1 stick or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:
2 1/2 cups rhubarb, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 1/2 quarts strawberries hulled, quartered
Juice of one lemon
1/2 cup sugar
3 to 4 tablespoons cornstarch
Pinch of salt
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Prepare topping: In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugars and lemon zest and add the melted butter. Mix until small and large clumps form. Refrigerate until needed.
2. Prepare filling: Toss rhubarb, strawberries, lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch and a pinch of salt in a 9x13 inch pan.
3. Remove topping from refrigerator and cover fruit evenly with topping. Bake until crumble topping is golden brown in places and fruit is bubbling beneath, about 40 to 50 minutes.