Old Fashioned Rhubarb Crisp Recipe

Rhubarb is one of the first harvests in many regions, ripening in early spring. This rhubarb crisp recipe is a delicious way to use it while it’s in season! 

Love rhubarb? Be sure to try this rhubarb coffee cake, too! 

Let’s start with what is rhubarb, exactly? A rhubarb plant is a long-lived perennial that grows on stalks — similar to celery, but much larger. The stalks range from pink to bright red. 

The stalks of rhubarb are edible; the leaves are poisonous, as they contain dangerous levels of oxalic acid. You’d need to eat a lot to kill you, but small amounts can make a person sick. 

The stalks are very tart, so you’ll often see rhubarb paired with strawberries to cut the tartness, and almost always in sweetened dishes like pie, cake, and jam.

Ingredients

Rhubarb — I use fresh rhubarb from the garden here.

Flour — When I bake with all-purpose flour I opt for the unbleached version. Bleached flour is very white, but it’s also treated with bleaching agents that I don’t really need in my food.

Rolled oats — They’re not just for breakfast! Old fashioned rolled oats give this crisp a delicious flavor. Optionally, you can pulse half the oats in a blender to make them a bit more fine.

Sugar — Use your favorite brand of granulated cane sugar. I prefer organic.

Cornstarch — This is our thickener so the crisp isn’t watery.

Making Old Fashioned Rhubarb Crisp

Combine the crisp ingredients, except rhubarb, and press half of the mixture into the pan as a “crust.”

Top with the sliced rhubarb in an even layer.

Cook the syrup in a saucepan to dissolved all of the ingredients before pouring over the rhubarb.

Finally, top with the remaining crumb mixture.

Bake until brown and bubbly!

FAQs

Can I use frozen rhubarb instead of fresh?

I haven’t tested that in this recipe. In general though, you will want to thaw and drain the frozen rhubarb to remove excess moisture. Because of the freezing process, the rhubarb will have “shrunk” some with water loss, so you may need to add more to completely cover the crust. You’d also want to think about using less sugar syrup to combat excess moisture. Let me know in the comments if you work this out!

Can I make this crisp gluten-free?

Pick up a cup-for-cup gluten-free all-purpose flour and you can use that instead of wheat flour. Make sure your oats are certified gluten-free if that is important to you, such as with Celiac disease.

Can I make crisp ahead?

I recommend baking the day you are serving. It tastes best fresh from the oven and still slightly warm. It will still be crisp later that day and likely the following day, but beyond that it will become soggy. Still delicious for up to 4 days when stored in the fridge, but the texture will have changed.

★ Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below! ★

Originally published February 2021; this post has been updated.

Click to save or share!