My Mom's Rhubarb Cake

The first birthday cake I vividly remember is the one I helped bake. It was my 7th birthday and even then my Mom knew that I was not the kind of kid you give a birthday cake to; I was the kind that would only be happy if she was allowed to participate in the making of it. I remember whisking the eggs with the sugar -- that was fun. And then mixing it the flour -- that was hard because the batter got stiff. But my Mom said it couldn't have any lumps so I kept on mixing, and mixing, and mixing... Then my Mom showed me how to cut the apples and make a huge pile of them in a pan. When we poured the batter over them, I was really skeptical that this strange looking thing could turn into a cake. The pile of apples seemed huge and it didn't look like we had enough batter to even cover the top layer of them. "You'll see," said my Mom. "I promise, it will turn into a cake." And sure enough, she was right. When we pulled the pan out of the oven about an hour later, we had a cake! This wasn't the kind of cake you put icing on, so my Mom made a stencil with the number "7" out of parchment paper and sprinkled it with powdered sugar. It was the best cake ever and to this day it's my favorite.

If you close your eyes, you'll probably remember your first adventure in the kitchen. Whether it was chocolate chip cookies or a grilled cheese sandwich, it will always have a special place in your heart. And if you keep your eyes closed and try to reconstruct the details of that first kitchen experience, I am sure that most of you will see your Mom standing next to you, guiding your little hand. I'd like to dedicate this post to my Mommy who helped me discover who I was and always told me to trust myself. Over the years, we had to learn to share a kitchen, which is one of the hardest things two women can do. It took a lot of talking, yelling, and crying, but oh -- the food and the memories that came out of that kitchen...

Happy Mother's day to all the Moms reading this blog!

My Mom's Rhubarb Cake

To be honest it's not really a rhubarb cake. This is my family's all-purpose cake. None of us are traditional cake eaters (layers, icing, and all), but we absolutely love this cake with whatever fruit is currently in season. Apples in the fall and winter; plums, apricots, and peaches in the summer; and rhubarb in the spring.

Serves 8
(but Jason and I can finish the whole thing between the two of us in one sitting :)

3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1 cup all-purpose flour (4.5 oz)
1/2 tsp baking powder
Zest of 1 orange
1 Lb rhubarb, diced
Butter for greasing the pan

1. Preheat the oven to 375F.
   
2. In a large bowl, beat eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt with a wire whisk until frothy. Add the flour, baking powder, and orange zest and continue to mix just until combined. Stop mixing as soon as the flour streaks disappear.
3. Butter an 8x8x2 pyrex dish or a baking dish of about that size. Spread the rhubarb in the bottom of the dish and pour the batter evenly on top. It will look like you have way more fruit than batter. Don't worry -- it will puff up in the oven.
   
4. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the skewer comes out clean (just make sure you are piercing the batter and not a piece of rhubarb).
5. Cool at least 20 minutes before serving. Can be served warm or cold.