Rhubarb Buns – Journey From A Polish Kitchen

Rheum rhabarbarum is the Latin name for rhubarb – in Polish it is rabarbar.
It is a plant that has its origins in China, Mongolia & Siberia – its roots survive the cold!
Rhubarb roots have been used in Chinese medicine for thousands of years.
The plant arrived in Europe via Venice in the 14th century having been brought from China along the Silk Road.
The leaves are poisonous to humans as they contain large quantities of oxalic acid and other toxins.
The stems however can be eaten safely, although they do contain a little oxalic acid but their tartness is due mainly to malic acid which is also found in sour green apples.
Rhubarb stems were first eaten in England in the 17th century.
In 1820 the rhubarb plant was taken over to the USA.
I live in West Yorkshire – just outside what is called the Rhubarb Triangle of Wakefield, Leeds & Morley – where rhubarb is grown in forcing sheds (in darkness) on a commercial scale.
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I have rhubarb growing in my garden.
The rhubarb is springing up and I have been looking for new recipes for it.
So far I have found several new recipes, which I will be trying out soon.
I thought I would look at recipes I have already posted and there are quite a few.
This post show links to recipes I have already posted.
It will save you searching.
Cake with Rhubarb
Cheesecake with Rhubarb
Easy Rhubarb Cake
Meringue Cake with Rhubarb
Placek with Rhubarb & Meringue
Pleśniak with Rhubar Pork with Rhuba
Pork with Rhubarb
Rhubarb Cake
Rhubarb & Custard Cake
Rhubarb & Date Cake
Rhubarb Soup – 1
Rhubarb Soup – 2
Rhubarb Yeast Buns

Today, 4 July 2021, is the 6th anniversary of my blog.
I still enjoy trying out recipes and writing about them.
I still have many more traditional and modern recipes to do.
Today’s recipe is very Polish – drożdżówki – sweet yeast buns.
The yeast dough I used for onion rolls was very good and I thought I could use it with different toppings.
I found that adding some granulated sugar to the dough was better for sweet toppings.
I have previously made similar buns – see kołaczyki, which means little wheels from the word koła which means wheels.
I like this dough recipe even more than the ones I have used before – this will become the one I will use the most.

Ingredients – Roll

200g & 50g plain flour
150 ml warm milk
1 teaspoon of granulated sugar
½ tablespoon of dried yeast
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¼ teaspoon of salt
60g granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
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Egg white for brushing – beaten
3 to 4 stalks of rhubarb
3-4 tablespoons of granulated sugar

Method – Rhubarb

Pre-heat the oven to GM4 – 180°C.
Chop the rhubarb into small pieces.
Place them on a baking tray.
Sprinkle them with sugar.
Bake in the oven for around 30 minutes.
The aim is to part cook them to be soft.
Leave to go cold before using.

Ingredients – Kruszonka

30g plain flour
20g butter
30g granulated sugar

Method – Kruszonka

Rub the butter into the flour to get breadcrumbs.
Stir in the sugar.

Method

Mix the milk, yeast, 1 teaspoon of sugar and 50g of plain flour.
Leave for 20 minutes.
Put the 200g of plain flour, 60g of sugar, salt, yolks and yeast mixture in a bowl.
Mix together to form a soft dough.
Add a little extra milk if this is too dry.
Knead for 10 minutes – set a timer – till you get a smooth ball.
Cover and leave for 1½ – 2 hours.
Line baking tray with baking paper.
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Lightly knead the dough for a few minutes.
Divide the dough into 6.
Roll each one to make a ball.
Place the balls on the baking tray and flatten each one.
Cover and leave for 30 minutes.
Pre-heat the oven to GM6 – 200°C.
Using finger tips or the base of a tumbler flatten the centre of each roll.
Brush with beaten egg white.
Place around 8 pieces of rhubarb in the centre of each roll.
Sprinkle the kruszonka – crumble mixture over the top of the rhubarb
Bake for 20 minutes.
Leave to cool on a wire rack.
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Serve warm or cold.