Flay's Rhubarb: The Food, Not A Dispute!

Fresh off the opening of his first restaurant outside the United States, Bobby Flay was ready to serve up recipes for dishes using spring delights.

He offered some using rhubarb on The Early Show Thursday.

Flay's "Mesa Grill" just debuted in the Bahamas.

He noted this is a wonderful time of year to cook in the U.S. The first spring fruits and vegetables are on sale at supermarkets.

One of Flay's favorites, rhubarb, is actually a vegetable, though it's often eaten as a fruit.

He says it's a breeze to use rhubarb.

It's a member of the buckwheat family. Its thick, celery-like stalks of can reach up to two feet long, and are the only edible portion of the plant: The leaves contain oxalic acid and can be toxic.

In any event, it can be extremely tart.

Flay showed how to use it in both sweet and savory recipes.

FOOD TERMINOLOGY

Clotted Cream: Flay uses it in his dessert recipe. Clotted cream, or Devonshire cream, is made by slowly heating rich, non-pasteurized milk to about 179 degrees Fahrenheit and holding it at that temperature for about an hour. A very thick, yellow layer of clots or coagulated clumps of cream forms on the top. It has a minimum fat content of 55 percent. Clotted cream is a traditional accompaniment to the English 'cream tea,' served with jam and scones.

RECIPES

Pan Roasted Duck Breasts with Spiced Rhubarb Chutney

Serves: 4

Chutney
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon ground garlic
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
4 cups 1/2-inch cubes fresh rhubarb (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 cup (generous) chopped red onion
1/3 cup dried tart cherries or golden raisins (about 2 ounces)
3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

Combine first 8 ingredients in heavy large Dutch oven. Bring to simmer over low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Add rhubarb, onion and dried cherries; increase heat to medium-high and cook until rhubarb is tender and mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. Can be made 1 day in advance and stored covered in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Pan Roasted Duck Breast

4 Muscovy duck breasts, 8 ounces each, extra fat trimmed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Season the duck on both sides with salt and pepper and place, skin-side down and cook until the skin is golden brown and fat has rendered, about 10 minutes. Carefully drain the fat, turn the breasts over and continue cooking to medium doneness, 6 to 9 minutes longer. Remove from the pan and let rest 5 minutes. Slice each breast into ½-inch thick slices and top with some of the chutney.

For more recipes, go to Page 2.Rhubarb-Strawberry Cake with Clotted Cream amd Lemon Curd

Serves: 4

3/4 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/3 cup plus 1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh rhubarb stalks
1 vanilla bean, split
1 cup chopped fresh strawberries
1 cup AP flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup whole milk
Zest of 1 lemon
1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Clotted cream
Lemon curd, slightly warmed
Mint leaves, for garnish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Butter the sides and bottom of an 8-inch baking dish. Place the water, cornstarch. 1/3 cup of the sugar and the vanilla bean in a medium saucepan over medium high heat, add the rhubarb and bring to simmer, stirring constantly and let cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the strawberries. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small bowl. Whisk together the egg, milk, zest and butter in a large bowl, then add the flour mixture and whisk until just combined. Add 1/2 of the fruit mixture to the bottom of the baking dish, pour the pour the batter evenly over. Drizzle the remaining fruit mixture evenly over the top of the batter and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake come out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes before serving. Serve on a plate with a large dollop of clotted cream and a drizzle of warm lemon curd.

Rhubarb-Strawberry Syrup

1 1/2 cups rhubarb, trimmed and chopped
1 cup strawberries, sliced
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup water

Serve over pancakes, waffles, French toast, ice cream, rice puddings or add to lemon aid or mixed drink recipes. In a 1-quart saucepan, combine rhubarb, strawberries, sugar, and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; cook until rhubarb is very soft -- about 15 minutes. Strain mixture into serving dish, discarding rhubarb-strawberry pulp. Store in an airtight container, refrigerated, for up to four days.