Erin’s Famous Spoon Cake | Gluten Free Rhubarb Cake

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rhubarb cake recipe

This recipe – Erin’s Famous Spoon Cake | Gluten Free Rhubarb Cake – is straight out of my favorite cookbook The Lost Kitchen by fellow Mainer, Erin French.  If you are a cook or foodie and haven’t read this book, get your hands on it, because it’s a real gem.  She describes this recipe as a complete recipe mishap gone heavenly.

I wish I could say this dessert was the product of consideration and foresight, but then it might not have been as delicious.  When I had my very own first rhubarb patch I was to harvest it and cook it into a beautiful cake to impress my supper club.  But I added too much butter and not enough flour, and I ended up with a pink and white swirly mess.  But something really magical had happened—it tasted like gooey vanilla cake with warm compote mixed in.  Now when I serve this(purposefully), I hand out spoons and we all dig in.”

Erin French, The Lost Kitchen, Freedom, Maine

It’s springtime in Maine and that means an abundance of rhubarb.  This interesting plant is a perennial, which means it returns every year without re-planting it.  There is nothing easier than that! I love the surprise of seeing it return year after year, its the little things…

If you’re looking for a brilliant springtime dessert or more specifically, a Gluten Free Rhubarb Cake you are in for a real treat!

easy rhubarb cake recipe

But something really magical had happened—it tasted like gooey vanilla cake with warm compote mixed in.”

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all purpose flour (for gluten free use Red Bob’s 1:1 baking mix)
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing pan
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg (for vegan, flax egg instructions in notes)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup sour cream 
• Rhubarb compote
• Whipped cream

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Coat at 10-inch oven proof skillet, preferably cast iron, with butter and flour, shaking out any excess flour.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, vanilla, milk, sour cream, and melted butter.  Gently stir the wet ingredients into the dry until just incorporated.

Pour about two-thirds of the compote into the greased skillet and spread evenly. Pour the cake batter over it, spread evenly, then dollop the remaining compote over the top. Use a butter knife to swirl together the batter and compote. 

Bake until a cake tester or knife inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes.  Serve this warm directly from the skillet, with a big spoon and a bowl of whipped cream to dollop on top. 

Rhubarb compote

• 3 cups chopped rhubarb(1 inch pieces)
• 2/3 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons arrow root

Makes about 3 cups

In a medium saucepan, combine the rhubarb, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and arrow root. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the rhubarb becomes tender and sauce-like, about 7-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and blend until smooth with a hand-held immersion blender or transfer to a stationary blender.  This will keep in the fridge for up to a week.

Rhubarb

The thing about rhubarb is that it’s always different, depending on the weather and growing season, and also the variety. Sometimes rhubarb is a deep ruby color, and other times it’s closer to green. You just have to respect it, make good decisions and work with what you’ve got. If your base is looking a little green, you can alway pink it up with a little beet juice.

Erin French, The Lost Kitchen

Dairy-free notes:

• Use plant-based ingredients such as Miyokos butter, Forager sour cream and Nut pod creamer.  For the nut pods creamer, I loosen it up into a milk-like consistency by cutting it with water, 1:1 ratio.  For this recipe, use 1/4 cup creamer and 1/4 cup water.  Make sure to use the original and avoid the sweetened and flavored options.  I used all of the products mentioned above while making this recipe for us and it came out delicious and perfect.
• For vegan or eggless:  Use 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds and 2 tablespoons of water.  Incorporate completely and allow to sit for at least 30 minutes for the mucilage to develop.  

If you enjoyed this warm gluten free rhubarb cake, you may also love these other dessert recipes – Flan and chocolate mug cake mashup, apple pie flautas or wood-fired chocolate and strawberry Cookes(gf).

I’d love to hear about your favorite variations of rhubarb cake, so please leave a comment below. If you try out my recipe and make any changes or additions, feel free to share those as well! You can also find more of my food journey on Pinterest at Molé in the Wall, where I share my favorite recipes.