Shirley Johnston from Lucerne, Calif., was looking for a recipe for a Rhubarb Chocolate Cake.
Unfortunately, we did not receive any recipes from our readers, but I thought rhubarb and chocolate sounded like a tasty combination and one worth a little research.
A quick Internet search turned up two recipes, both of which I decided to test. Both cakes were very good, and if you didn’t know it, you might have a hard time believing there was rhubarb in either one.
The Chocolate Chip Rhubarb Cake was the winner in my house. The recipe came from a Web site called Now ... you’re cooking! (donogh.com/cooking).
Chocolate Chip Rhubarb Cake
Cake:
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk or sour cream
1-3/4 cups chopped rhubarb
1/2 cup chocolate chips
Topping:
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup brown sugar
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cream brown sugar and shortening. Add egg and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl.
Add flour mixture to creamed mixture, alternately with buttermilk, beating after each addition. Stir in rhubarb and chocolate chips.
Pour batter into a greased 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Combine topping ingredients. Sprinkle over cake batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
Serves 12.
Per serving: 408 calories, 5 grams protein, 16 grams fat, 6 grams saturated fat, 63 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber, 18 milligrams cholesterol, 242 milligrams sodium
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