Oops! A Successful Failure

[Golfgar4]

I love to post recipes and information about my successes, so I guess I'd better be willing to post the same about my failures.

We had friends over this evening who just love rhubarb desserts. So I decided to make a raspberry/rhubarb crumble. Unfortunately I didn't have any fresh raspberries, and most of the ones in the store looked pretty bad. So I opted for frozen raspberries. I didn't have time to properly thaw and drain either the raspberries or rhubarb, so I just threw everything together and started cooking it in the dutch oven. After about a 1/2 hour, I checked to see how things looked. All I could see was a raspberry/rhubarb lake over the crumble topping! Clearly all of the moisture was coming out of the frozen fruit, and there was a whole lot more than I thought there would be. So I quickly drained off as much as I could and I increased the number of coals on top to try to crisp up the crumble topping. That didn't work. The damage was already too extensive.

So I guess the lesson learned is that you just can't take shortcuts - too much!

Everybody loved the dessert even though it wasn't quite like it was supposed to be. I guess the bottom line is if your guests enjoy it, it must not be a complete failure.

Raspberry/Rhubarb Crumble

4 cups Rhubarb chopped
1 cup Sugar
2 6-8 oz. package fresh raspberries
½ cup Flour


Mix all of the above in the bottom of a Dutch oven

In separate container mix the following:
1 cup oats
1 1/2 cup flour
1 cup Butter
1 tsp. Baking soda (optional)

Mix all of this together and pour it on top of Rhubarb mixture.
It is best to gob it on with a spoon as mixture will be very thick.
Take 1 cup brown sugar and sprinkle on top.
You will need 18 coals on top and 8 coals on the bottom .
After 10 minutes rotate the whole oven quarter of a turn clockwise, the lid you rotate a quarter of a turn counter clockwise. You will continue to do this for the remainder of cooking time which is 35-45 minutes

[LPBeier]

Thanks for sharing Garry! Yes, I think we all have times where things just don't go the way we planned. But as long as your guests enjoyed it, that's what counts!

[quicksilver]

Still sounds yummy. Thanks for posting. So would you not recommend frozen? Was that the lesson?

[Golfgar4]

Oh, you can use frozen if you like. Just make sure that you allow sufficient time to let the fruit thaw and drain. I think that the draining part is the most important. You need to remove as much water as possible, because the cooking will draw out even more.

At least that's what I'm planning on doing in the future.

[Chile Chef]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Golfgar4 I love to post recipes and information about my successes, so I guess I'd better be willing to post the same about my failures. We had friends over this evening who just love rhubarb desserts. So I decided to make a raspberry/rhubarb crumble. Unfortunately I didn't have any fresh raspberries, and most of the ones in the store looked pretty bad. So I opted for frozen raspberries. I didn't have time to properly thaw and drain either the raspberries or rhubarb, so I just threw everything together and started cooking it in the dutch oven. After about a 1/2 hour, I checked to see how things looked. All I could see was a raspberry/rhubarb lake over the crumble topping! Clearly all of the moisture was coming out of the frozen fruit, and there was a whole lot more than I thought there would be. So I quickly drained off as much as I could and I increased the number of coals on top to try to crisp up the crumble topping. That didn't work. The damage was already too extensive. So I guess the lesson learned is that you just can't take shortcuts - too much! Everybody loved the dessert even though it wasn't quite like it was supposed to be. I guess the bottom line is if your guests enjoy it, it must not be a complete failure. Raspberry/Rhubarb Crumble 4 cups Rhubarb chopped 1 cup Sugar 2 6-8 oz. package fresh raspberries ½ cup Flour Mix all of the above in the bottom of a Dutch oven In separate container mix the following: 1 cup oats 1 1/2 cup flour 1 cup Butter 1 tsp. Baking soda (optional) Mix all of this together and pour it on top of Rhubarb mixture. It is best to gob it on with a spoon as mixture will be very thick. Take 1 cup brown sugar and sprinkle on top. You will need 18 coals on top and 8 coals on the bottom . After 10 minutes rotate the whole oven quarter of a turn clockwise, the lid you rotate a quarter of a turn counter clockwise. You will continue to do this for the remainder of cooking time which is 35-45 minutes

Least you tried Garry,

A lot of people would opt for pizza, Bk, or something at the store. But you decided to use a D.O for cooking.


Which is a good thing.