This cake. Oh, this cake. It is so unreal in it’s deliciousness that I had to post about it immediately.
I love me some rhubarb but have only ever enjoyed the pie and crisp variety of rhubarb desserts. Until this cake, that is. Leisel, a sweet reader, sent it my way, telling me it turned her rhubarb-hater of a husband into a rhubarb-lover.
Since I was already a lover of rhubarb, it completely sealed my fate to adore rhubarb forevermore.
Tart rhubarb is folded into a deliciously moist and sweet buttermilk cake and topped with a buttery, crunchy streusel. Baked to golden perfection, the cake retains it’s moistness and the rhubarb softens to perfect puckery tenderness. Smothered in the creamy sweetness of the warm vanilla sauce and this unbelievable cake becomes absolutely irresistible.
P.S. I’m still chasing bears in Yellowstone. Please excuse my delay in answering comments/emails/questions. I’ll be back in commission this weekend.
One Year Ago: Moo Shu Noodles
Two Years Ago: Chicken with Mushrooms and Zucchini
Rhubarb Streusel Cake with Warm Vanilla Sauce
Printable Version with Picture
Printable Version
*Note: I doubled this cake – it was too much batter for a 9X13-inch pan so I made 9 cupcakes in liners (filling them about 1/2 to 2/3 full) and a 9X13-inch cake. The cupcakes baked for about 23-25 minutes, the cake for about 40 minutes.
*Serves 6
INGREDIENTS:
Cake:
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups chopped fresh or frozen rhubarb
Streusel Topping:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Vanilla Sauce:
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-inch square baking dish and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar for the cake. Beat in the egg. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed butter/sugar mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beating just until moistened. Fold in the chopped rhubarb. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the batter to the edges.
In a medium bowl, combine the streusel topping ingredients, mixing them together until the mixture is coarse and combined. Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the batter. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the top of the cake is lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.
For the sauce, melt butter in a medium saucepan. Add the sugar and milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2-3 minutes or until slightly thickened (it will thicken more as it cools slightly). Remove from the heat; stir in the vanilla. Serve warm with the cake.
Recipe Source: adapted slightly from a reader, Leisel, who got it by way of allrecipes.com
{ 27 comments… read them below or add one }
I am drooling over the vanilla sauce. That sounds incredible.
I have never had rhubarb (I know-can you believe it?), but this cake looks delicious! The vanilla sauce looks amazing, too. This will go on my “must try” recipe list!
We love rhubarb around here — and this dessert looks wonderful! We have just inherited a bunch of rhubarb from the garden at our new house, so we’ll be trying this for sure!
Rhubarb is phenomenal–I think a strawberry sauce would go over this great as well as the vanilla!
I love Rhubarb I always ate it as a kid. I will have to try this recipe.
Seeing the photo’s reminded me how amazing this was! I’m going to have to make it again, right away!
streusel and sweet, succulent sauce–it doesn’t even matter that i don’t care for rhubarb!
Sure — now you post a yummy rhubarb recipe. AFTER I move from the house that had more rhubarb than I knew what to do with! And now I have none. Guess I might just have to go buy me some and try this recipe out.
I have to say, I have never used rhubarb, but your struesel cake looks delicious….and you really got my attention with the warm vanilla sauce!
Ok, this has nothing to do with rhubarb, but i have to say, you’ve been my go-to website for quite some time, and I needed a meatloaf recipe. I have never cooked a meatloaf recipe during my almost 10 yrs of marriage cuz my hubby hates it. But, i searched it on here and found the “Best meatloaf” and it was a recipe for “mini meatloves”. TO DIE FOR!!! They are literally THE BEST i’ve ever tasted, the flavor is superb and the sauce on top is so irresistable! Plus it is so simple and quick!!! My kids gobbled them up. And I may or may not have eaten 21/2 of the 5 loaves i made, who are we kidding, I could’ve eaten all 5. This was a first for us, but most certainly won’t be our last. Thanks again for a tried and true recipe that has instantly become a favorite!! THANK YOU THANK YOU!!
Yum, that looks seriously dreamy.
~ingrid
Hillary – thank you so much for your comment! I always feel like I’ve made a real difference in the big ol’ world when a meatloaf-hater is converted to the mighty meatloaf. I’m thrilled the mini meatloaves were such a hit. Thanks for letting me know!
Hey there. It’s me again. I just made this today for a big potluck and it was tastetastic! Every component is a delight from that ultra moist and yummy buttermilk cake, the tart rhubarb, the crunchy streusel and that ridiculous sauce—oh hold me! I get asked all the time for the recipes of the different dishes I make and 9 times out of 10–it’s from your website. I have sent many people your way for the best food around.
Hey Reyna – glad this cake got rave reviews! And thanks for the accolades on the website. I’m thrilled you enjoy it so much!
i made this today. it was delicious, thank you. the next time i make it i think i will add more rhubarb – maybe one more cup.
Thanks, Helen!
So I recently had my baby and the friend who first introduced me to your fabulous blog made this and brought me over some…Oh my heck, it was amazing!!! I’ve only had rhubarb in a jam before but this was so good, I wish I had more!
Ashlee – well first, congrats on your baby! And second, I wish your friend would bring ME some of this cake! Maybe I should have another baby.
Since this cake has rhubard in it, should it be stored in the refridgerator?
CarrieW – I wasn’t aware that rhubarb needed to be refrigerated, so I’m not sure. The sauce should definitely be refrigerated and it probably wouldn’t hurt the cake to be chilled, also.
hi Mel! I wondered if this could be made in a bundt pan? And why did you double it? Did you want the extra cupcakes or was the recipe as is not enough for a 9×13? Also, could the sauce and cake be made ahead and then the sauce heated up? Thanks! (LOVE your website!)
My rhubarb is going crazy! I made crisp last week and made this yesterday. It was delicious! I used 4 cups of rhubarb instead of 2 to give it a little more rhubarb flavor. The streusel topping was crunchy and wonderful. Turned out perfectly. Thanks for another great recipe!
My family loves rhubarb so I like to make a lot of different dishes this time of year with it in. I made this last night and they really enjoyed it, especially with the sauce! Thanks for the recipe. You do a wonderful job with your blog, so many great recipes!
I made this for my Friday coffee with my lady work friends this morning and brought it to work warm. They loved it and most of them asked for the recipe. I double the recipe all the way around and the cake fit nicely into my 11×15 pan. Enough to feed the entire crowd, and then some. Looking at some of your other recipes now and expect to try some of them too.
Melanie!
You did it again. I was given some rhubarb and I had remembered drooling over this cake. Thanks for giving me the perfect recipe to make with my rhubarb. This cake was amazing!! I added a little lemon, used a buttermilk substitute and more rhubarb and this cake was a perfect 10!! I posted the changes to my blog–and I figured the recipe amounts that worked perfectly in a 9×13 pan. Now I am going crazy trying to find me some more rhubarb so I can make it again.
Thanks so much!
http://www.dealstomeals.blogspot.com
What do you do with a bag of frozen rhubarb? I knew you would have the answer. I made this tonight… yum! My picky little a 4 year old called me a culinary genius. Okay… he just said, “Yummy,” but I take that seriously when I hear it come from his lips. This is not the first recipe from your blog to elicit such a response, nor will it be the last, I’m sure. Thank you!!! Also, thanks for the effort you put into occasional gluten free recipes. With several Celiacs in the extended family, I appreciate the ideas.
I found a bag of frozen Rhubarb in the back of my freezer this morning. A search lead me to this recipe, so good. I think I’ll make it for my friends for lunch next week.