sweet tooth: strawberry rhubarb crumble

It wasn't until I moved to Pennsylvania that I first tried rhubarb and became slightly obsessed with this strange, celery-looking vegetable that is most commonly used in desserts. It's an enigma, for sure, but one that's definitely worth taking the risk and trying. Why it's not a southern staple is beyond me. It meets all of the requirements...

Can you put it in a pie?

Yep. 

Does it work in a cobbler?

Absolutely.

Can you turn it into preserves and spread it on a big, buttery biscuit?

You betcha.  

It's tart and sweet and just oh so good. Thank heavens, the Germans agree, and there's tons of fresh rhubarb to be found at the markets. My ONLY complaint is that most folks - including the bakeries around here - add wayyy to much sugar for my liking, taking away that delicious tangy bite that I love so much. 

This crumble is a culmination of the things I liked best from Ina's version and this one at epicurious, plus a couple of tweaks of my own based purely on personal preference and what I had on hand. If you're jonesing to try rhubarb and can't find it in your normal grocery store, you can typically find it in season at Whole Foods in the U.S. or pre-chopped in the frozen fruit section. Now, prepare yourself, because this sucker is way too simple to make and way too good to share...

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

Begin by preheating your oven to 375 F (190 C).

Crumble Topping:

1/2 c. all purpose flour*
3/4 c. oats (either quick cooking or old fashioned will do)
1/4 c. chopped nuts (I used hazelnuts, but you could use walnuts or pecans)
1/2 c. brown sugar (if you, like me, don't have brown sugar, you can use 1/2 c. white sugar + 2 tsp. molasses)
1 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of salt
1/2 c. butter, softened*

In a medium bowl, combine flour, oats, nuts, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add butter (I softened mine in the microwave both because I'm impatient and because I wanted it to be soft enough to incorporate with a spoon) and stir until mixture clumps together. Place in refrigerator while preparing the filling.

Filling:

3 - 4 c. rhubarb, cut into one-inch pieces
2 - 3 c. strawberries, diced (if you don't have strawberries, I think peaches or even raspberries would be delicious here)
juice of one lemon
1/2 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. all purpose flour*

In a large bowl, mix sugar and flour. Add rhubarb, strawberries, and lemon juice, and toss well to coat. Pour filling into 13 x 9-in. glass baking dish.

Drop clumps of crumble topping across the top of the filling, then place in 375 F (190 C) oven for approximately 45 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 - 20 minutes. Serve in bowls with a heaping scoop of good vanilla ice cream.

*I haven't tried it, but I believe this recipe could easily be adapted to be gluten-free and/or vegan by subbing oat flour or almond flour for the all purpose flour and using softened coconut oil in place of butter.

seven years and still no itch

Our wedding day. Photo by Sarah Beaty of Eyeris Photography.

If you had told these two kids what life would look like today, I likely would have laughed maniacally in your face, then promptly proceeded to have a panic attack and contemplated putting on my running shoes. Thank goodness there's no magic crystal ball in life.

Today, Josh and I celebrate seven years of married life. Seven years of big moves and crazy adventures and lazy nights spent on the couch watching TV and career changes and puppies and babies and arguments and so much joy and laughter. Perhaps no year has been more adventurous than the past twelve months - we've packed those months with our fair share of challenges and triumphs - moving to Germany, spending two months separated by an entire ocean, welcoming our son into the world, learning to navigate parenthood (and still be loving spouses despite sleep deprivation), becoming debt-free, exploring new places. To say it's been a whirlwind would be quite the understatement. It's been stressful and exciting and exhausting and just plain crazy.

Despite the craziness, or perhaps because of it, there's no one I'd rather do all of it with than my best friend. He's the one constant in this circus. He makes me laugh until my face hurts and doesn't care how silly he looks or sounds doing so. He throws sour gummies in the basket for me when we're in the line at the grocery store. He's such a good daddy and makes Miles smile like no one else can. He works hard to provide for our family and ensure that I can stay home to care for our child. He tells me I'm pretty even when I'm sporting messy hair, yoga pants, and a t-shirt smelling vaguely of spit-up. He makes me coffee in the afternoon when he gets home and I can barely hold my eyes open. Even when I don't like him, I still love him to pieces. I guess what I'm trying to say is, even though I may have married him for his good looks and witty charm, I got so much more, and I couldn't have chosen a better partner for this life.

Less than two weeks after we welcomed our baby boy. Photo by Marissa Joy Photography.

Boo - I love you more now than I could have even imagined possible on this day seven years ago, and I hope to spend a hundred more years with you in this crazy life. xoxoxo times a million.

Read past anniversary posts here:

Celebrating 5 Years in San Francisco
5 Things I've Learned in 5 Years of Marriage
Four Years Married
Third Anniversary
Six Years of Dating

an afternoon in cologne

On Saturday, the little family and I headed over to Cologne (or as they call it in Germany, Köln) to meet up with a few of Josh's coworkers from both the Asheboro and Germany plants for an afternoon. Despite it only being an hour away from where we live, we have yet to spend much time there, so it was nice to see a few of the sights and get to know the city just a little better.

Full disclosure that the majority of these photos were taken by Josh (my hands are usually full with a baby), but I'm gonna just go ahead and call myself the Art Director of most of them, since I tell him "you should take a picture of that."

Cologne Cathedral | Germany | iPhone 6

We met up in front of the well-known Cologne Cathedral. Once the tallest building in the world, there's no arguing how magnificent the structure is with it's twin spires and beautiful gothic style. Seeing as it was close to lunch time, we headed round the corner to the Früh for some food and libations.

Hohenzollern Bridge | Cologne, Germany | iPhone 6

After lingering for awhile and enjoying the local Kölsch beer, we decided to head over the Hohenzollern Bridge, covered in "love locks," to the observation deck at the KölnTriangle. The view from atop the 30 story building was fantastic, albeit a bit chilly, and featured these cool, to-scale, drawings of major landmarks around the city.

If you look closely, you can see the drawing on the glass overlaying the building below.

Miles was enjoying a nap, but he still got his selfie with the Cologne skyline :)

Ready to warm up, we went back across the water to the most quaint pub for drinks (coffee for me!) and lingered there for a bit before picking up a print from a local artist (Josh and I collect art from each city we visit, which we hang in a hallway at our North Carolina home) and heading back to Aachen to get the little one ready for bed.

There's definitely a lot more we'd like to see of Cologne, so I'm pretty sure we'll be back on a day when the weather's a bit nicer!