Rhubarb….yes another yummy recipe using rhubarb. My spring mission: to convince you rhubarb haters to try one of these recipes.  This one is delicate in flavor with a fluffy yet satisfying cobbler topping and no sour ickiness as some say rhubarb can seem to have.  It takes a bit less fruit than a pie and goes together in just a few minutes.  And it is gluten free for all of you who must avoid gluten which means no wheat, rye or barley flours. I have never made rhubarb cobbler but thought it might be tasty so I gave it a whirl and was really pleased with the results. <!–more–>

This recipe is a variant on the same basic one I posted about for peach cobbler last summer, it is modified from a muffin dry mix in Bette Hagman’s book, More from the Gluten-Free Gourmet and uses a flour mix that will give you 4 cups of the dry ingredients.  One cup will make an 8×8 pan of cobbler topping.  I used a rectangular pan but it is just slightly smaller than 8×8 and worked perfectly.

I store the rest of my dry mix in the freezer so a pan of cobbler can be thrown together in less than 10 minutes plus baking time.

I always get the fruit part cooking before putting the topping together so the fruit is hot and ready for the topping and can go right into the oven. Ripe sweet fresh fruit is vital for a successful cobbler. No canned or underripe fruit will do.

Recently I made this for my guy who used to be quite skeptical about rhubarb until he recently enjoyed my rhubarb crumb pie and then tried some of this cobbler last weekend.  He loved it and asked for a serving of it to take for lunch the next day. Convert… You can be the next to change your mind on rhubarb for dessert!

Angie’s Rhubarb Cobbler

Dry Cobbler Mix – use one cup for this recipe and freeze the rest

2 ¼ cups white rice flour

½ cup potato starch (not potato flour!)

½ cup tapioca flour

1 tsp. baking soda

4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp. xanthan gum

1/3 cup sugar

Blend well and store leftover dry mix in a freezer bag or a jar in the freezer.

Fruit Filling

4 cups sliced rhubarb

½ tsp. almond extract

2/3 cup sugar –add more or less depending on how sweet you want it

2 tbsp. GF flour

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Mix the fruit and almond extract in a sauce pan. Stir together the sugar, cinnamon and flour and mix into the fruit.  Cook on the stove top for 5-10 minutes until it is thickened and hot.  Pour into a buttered 8 inch square pan, top with big blops of the cobbler topping.

Cobbler Topping

1 cup dry baking mix

2 eggs

2 tbsp melted butter or canola oil ( I like butter for this)

1/3 cup milk/buttermilk

½ tsp. vanilla

 Directions:

Mix the wet ingredients and then add to the dry mix in a big bowl.   Mix briefly: do not over-mix for best texture.  Use a big spoon to plop it right away on the hot fruit.  Bake immediately as baking soda and powder can’t stand around waiting or they lose their umph!

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  The top should be light brown and spring back when you poke it with your finger.  If it looks damp or squishy bake it 5 more minutes before cutting.

Let cool 5 minutes before serving as it will burn your mouth right out of the oven! Oh the torture to have to wait.  Some people love it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  But I think this tender and sweet rhubarb cobbler is perfect just on its own.