Gorillas, Strawberries, and Rhubarb, Oh My

We went to the zoo! I freaking love the zoo. I had a random day off on Saturday, and we used it to our advantage! Of course, once we got there I decided I needed to get my Master's in Anthro-zoology. Totally logical course of action after a bachelor's in English and Business... right? Anyway, Scott let me look at these guys for about 2 hours...

He loved us. Don't let him fool you with his imposing stature, he's my new best friend. I think his name should be Ringo because he just has that vibe. There was also a baby gorilla. Baby. Gorilla. I wanted to cry, I loved him so. What a sweet little nugget! He did seem to be quite a handful though. Case in point:

CHEEKY LITTLE THING. I didn't name the peanut, too busy oohing and aahing. We also saw tigers, and zebras and some really cool (non-gorilla) monkeys. For a city zoo, it was actually better than we expected. But nothing will make my love for the pandas at the National Zoo fade. I LOVE that place. National Zoo, Disney, St. Thomas = top 3 favorite places to be. But anyway, on to more important things. A busy day like this at the zoo must involve something sweet, no?

We were in the store, and Scott mentioned he likes rhubarb. Strawberries were on sale, and so a plan was born. All it took was a naked orange, a little sugar, and some chopped fruit. Well, a few other things too, but I needed a way to say 'naked orange' and couldn't figure out another one...

After figuring out the difference between a crumble and a crisp (Crumble vs. Crisp) I decided to go with a Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble. I adapted this one slightly (I have to be different) and man, was it DELICIOUS. So good. Sweet, but not overly so, with the perfect cake topping. And one leftover, naked orange. Here's the visual and the recipe, hope you like! Side note: My pictures will get better once someone teaches me how to use my fancy camera. Any volunteers?

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble
Adapted slightly from Smitten Kitchen

For the topping:

• 1 1/3 cup flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder 
• 6 tablespoons sugar 
• Zest of half an orange (here's where it got naked. I had no way to use the insides of the poor dear!) 
• Zest of half a lemon
• 1/4 pound (1 stick or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted 

For the filling:

• 1 1/2 cups rhubarb, chopped into 1-inch pieces 
• 1 quart strawberries plus a few extras, hulled, quartered 
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice 
• 1/3 cup sugar 
• 2 tablespoons honey 
• 4 tablespoons cornstarch 
• pinch of salt 

1. Heat oven to 375°F. Prepare topping: In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugars and lemon zest and add the melted butter. Mix until small and large clumps form. Refrigerate until needed.
2. Prepare filling: Toss rhubarb, strawberries, lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch and a pinch of salt in a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate.
3. Remove topping from refrigerator and cover fruit thickly and evenly with topping. Place pie plate on a foil-lined baking sheet, and bake until crumble topping is golden brown in places and fruit is bubbling beneath, about 40 to 50 minutes.


I highly recommend putting it in a bowl before you take a bite. It may help you avoid eating the entire damn thing at once... Happy Monday!