A few years ago, I was standing in line at a market with my arms full of rhubarb when an older woman walked up to me and asked what I was holding and what one would do with it. I was so surprised! I’ve always thought of rhubarb as an old-fashioned ingredient. It’s a vegetable that is marketed as a fruit thanks to a growers’ campaign decades ago. My parents have spoken of their mothers stewing it with white sugar, which neither particularly liked. I like to add depth to the tart, sharp rhubarb with honey, vanilla, and orange. This cake can be served for dessert, breakfast, or a snack, with ice cream, yogurt, or as-is. 

Rhubarb cake 

2 1/2 cups spelt or whole wheat pastry flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 cup salted butter, softened 

Seeds scraped from 1/2 vanilla bean 

1 cup wildflower or clover honey (if you love citrus, go to town and use orange blossom honey) 

1 tsp. freshly grated orange zest 

2 tbsp. orange juice 

2 eggs at room temperature 

1/2 cup milk (I’ve used whole, skim, and a mix of the two. All have worked well) 

2 cups rhubarb, chopped into small pieces 

Preheat the oven to 350º F. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flower and baking soda; set aside. Cream butter and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the honey and orange zest and cream until the mixture resembles a light frosting, a further 5 minutes or so. Add the eggs, one at a time, followed by the orange juice, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add the flour and milk in alternating batches until just combined. Stir in the rhubarb and turn batter out into a greased 9″ round cake pan. Bake 50-55 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out with just a few crumbs clinging to it. Serve the cake warm or cooled.