When Spring finally arrives every year I don't get worked up about ramps or spring onions when they hit the market. I enjoy sunshine and magnolia blooms and dogwood trees and cherry blossoms just as much as the next gal, but the only thing I really get excited about every May is rhubarb. It is my very favorite vegetable disguised as fruit to cook with and it is so welcome after a long winter of apples and pears.

We get plenty of delicious rhubarb in NYC, but I can never seem to find locally grown barb that is as vibrant in color as the stuff I used to find in the Northwest. I hear it is because those deep red plant starts are hard to find in the Northeast, but thanks to an online friend turned real-life friend I recently found myself with a glut of the most perfectly rosy red stalks of homegrown rhubarb. Camille to the rescue! With gorgeous rhubarb! Maybe I'll just have to keep my eye out for a deep red rhubarb start next time I am visiting my family to bring back with me.

This year, to start off my rhubarb extravaganza (and there will be an extravaganza) I bring to you this wonderfully complex dessert that is surprisingly simple to put together. It is cool and tart, floral and herbal, creamy and sweet all in one. If I was Southern I might say, y'all gotta try this one. Instead I will say, seriously you guys, if you have an ice cream machine this should be the first thing you make with it this Spring.

If you peek over at the sidebar you may notice something new and very exciting. I am so happy to announce that this here blog was featured as one of Saveur's Sites We Love. You can check out the post here.

Oh, and sorry for the extended break between my last post. I'll be back soon, with more rhubarb! More rhubarb recipes from the archives of this blog can be found here.

Rhubarb and Gin Sorbet with Rose Cream

Rhubarb and Gin Sorbet

yield, roughly one quart

The herbal flavor of gin complements the sweet-tartness of this rhubarb sorbet wonderfully and the small amount of alcohol makes the frozen sorbet perfectly scoopable. If you don't like gin, feel free to substitute vodka or leave the booze out entirely for a more family-friendly treat. Just make sure to thaw the sorbet for a few minutes before scooping.

8 ounces water

7 ounces granulated sugar

1 lb rhubarb stalks, the rosiest red ones you can find, chopped into 1-inch pieces

2 Tablespoons lime juice (or the juice of one juicy lime)

2 Tablespoons light corn syrup

2 Tablespoons gin, plus a bit more to serve (I used Hendrick's)

1. Combine the sugar and water in a medium sized saucepan and heat on medium high, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Add in the rhubarb and simmer until the rhubarb is very tender and beginning to fall apart, about 10 minutes.

2. Carefully transfer the mixture to a blender (or use an immersion blender) and blend until smooth. Add in the lime juice and corn syrup. Chill thoroughly.

3. Just before churning, stir in the gin. Freeze the chilled mixture in an ice cream machine, according to the manufacturer's instructions. Store in the freezer in an airtight container.

Rose Cream

The soft perfume of rose water goes beautifully with tart rhubarb sorbet, but if you don't like the idea of flowers in your food feel free to leave it out. The sorbet is wonderful on its own. For vegan rose cream, try whipping chilled coconut milk. Instructions can be found on this post

from the archives.

4 ounces chilled heavy cream

4-8 drops rose water

2 teaspoons granulated sugar (vanilla sugar if you have it)

Whip the cream to soft peaks then add in the sugar, followed by the rose water (one drop at a time) until desired flavor is reached.

To Serve

Top scoops of sorbet with a few drops of chilled gin and a spoonful of rose cream.

One of my favorite things about our new apartment is that we have space for an honest to goodness dining table. I mean, sitting on the floor and eating off of the coffee table worked great for years and our friends were always nice about it, but I have to assume that they prefer our current setup, even if it consists of an old school desk surrounded by an eclectic collection of stools and desk chairs. Baby steps, people.

Now, all of that is to say, we've been having people over to eat more often. Usually on Sundays and usually for a lengthy and loung-y brunch, a meal I find infinitely more enjoyable at home (rather than a restaurant) where I don't have to wait 45 minutes for a table or for my coffee to be refilled. Where the eggs are always cooked just how I like them and the home fries are crispy, but perhaps most importantly, when you have brunch at home, you can excuse yourself to lay down on the couch mid meal if you feel the need and you can encourage your guests to do the same.

Constructing a solid brunch menu is a delicate process. There must be coffee and juice and water and a little hair of the dog if you're up for it. I'm usually not (afternoon drinks ruin me for the rest of the day), but I fully support those who are. Alongside all of those beverages there should be something sweet and something savory. Something carb-y and something fresh. And if you're at my house it pretty much goes without saying that there must be something baked and maybe a little fancy like these babies.

These croissants take a bit of time and planning to pull off. You could make them in a day and a half if you are feeling ambitious or you can put them together a little at a time over the course of a few days, which is the route I chose to take. I made this batch over the course of a week, which is why the light varies so wildly in these photos, and it worked great. All I had to do the day I wanted to serve them was roll them out, cut them, and let them rise before baking which took a few hours of mostly hands-off time. I'm noticeably a little short on finished croissant photos here, and I'm sorry about that, but I'm sure you can all figure out why.

Homemade Croissants

adapted from Tartine

yield 16-18 croissants

Tartine lists ingredients in cups, grams and ounces. I used the gram measurements which I have included below along with the ounce measurements. If you'd like the cup measurements check out The Fauxmartha, but I have to say if you like baking enough to attempt croissants at home you should own a scale. There is quite a bit of resting/waiting/rising time in this recipe so make sure to read through the entire recipe at least once before you get started. Also, I've added a few notes throughout the recipe, they are in italics.

For the Preferment

6 ounces/150ml nonfat milk (I used whole milk because that's what I had on hand)

15ml/1 tablespoon active dry yeast

6 1/4 ounces/175g unbleached all-purpose flour

For the Dough

20 ml/1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon active dry yeast

14 ounces/425ml whole milk (room temperature)

28 ounces/800g unbleached all-purpose flour

2 1/2 ounces/70g sugar

20ml/1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt

15ml/1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Roll-in Butter

22 ounces/625g unsalted butter, cool but pliable

Egg Wash

2 large eggs

2 ounces/60ml heavy cream or milk

pinch salt

To make the Preferment

1. Heat the milk in a small saucepan until it is just warmed through, about 80-90 degrees. Pour the milk into a medium bowl and stir in the yeast until dissolved. Add the flour and stir the mixture with a wooden spoon until a smooth, but sticky dough forms. Cover the bowl with cheesecloth or plastic wrap and let the mixture rise until it has almost doubled in volume. This will take 2-3 hours at room temperature or overnight in the refrigerator.

Truth be told, I left mine in the fridge for two days with no problems at all. I think the extra day gave the finished croissants more flavor.

To make the Dough

1. Add the preferment mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the yeast and mix together on low speed with the dough hook until evenly combined. You may have to stop the mixer and scrape the dough off of the hook occasionally. When the mixture has come together, increase the speed to medium and mix for a couple of minutes.

2. With the mixer running, slowly add in half of the milk and mix until well combined. Reduce speed to low and add the remaining milk, flour, sugar, salt and melted butter. Mix until the dough comes together, about 3 minutes. Turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 15-20 minutes, loosely covered.

3. Turn the mixer back on low speed and mix the dough until it is smooth and elastic, no more than 4 minutes. If the dough seems very firm, add in more milk, 1 tablespoon at a time.

I added a tablespoon or two.

Make sure to not overmix the dough as over-mixed dough will result in tough, glutenous croissants that are difficult to roll out. Cover the bowl with cheesecloth or plastic wrap and let it rise until the volume increases by half, about 1 1/2 hours.

4. Lightly flour a work surface and transfer the dough to the surface. Gently press the dough into a rectangle 2'' thick. Wrap the rectangle in plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator to chill for 4-6 hours.

To "Laminate" the Dough with Butter

1. About 1 hour before you are ready to start rolling and laminating the dough, take the roll-in butter and place it in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix the butter on medium low speed until it is malleable but not warm or soft. Turn the soft butter onto a piece of plastic wrap and wrap it up. Place it in the refrigerator to stay cool, but don't let it harden completely.

2. Lightly dust a work surface with flour and place the rectangle of chilled dough on it. Roll the dough into a rectangle 28 inches by 12 inches.

3. With the long side of the rectangle facing you, and starting from the left side, use your fingers to gently and evenly spread the butter over 2/3 of the rectangle, leaving the far right side butter-less. Fold the un-buttered third of the dough over the butter, then fold the left-hand third over the center, like a letter. Gently pinch all of the seams of the dough to hold the butter in place.

4. Give the rectangle a quarter turn so that the end seams are to your right and left and the long edge of the dough is facing you. Again, roll the dough into a 28 inch by 12 inch rectangle, being careful to not break the seams holding the butter in. Fold the rectangle into thirds and transfer to a lightly floured quarter sheet pan. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the refrigerator for 1 1/2-2 hours before making the final turn.

5. Lightly flour a work surface and place the refrigerated dough on top. Again, roll the dough to a 28 inch by 12 inch rectangle and fold it into thirds. Place the rectangle back on the quarter sheet pan and wrap tightly with plastic. Place the pan in the freezer for at least one hour. If you plan to make the croissants the next morning, transfer the dough from the freezer to the fridge the night before. Alternately, you can freeze the dough for up to one week, just remember to transfer the dough to the fridge the night before you plan to bake the croissants.

I froze my dough for 5 days before baking.

To Finish the Croissants

1. Transfer the thawed dough to a lightly floured work surface and roll it into a rectangle 32 inches by 12 inches and about 3/8 inch tall.

2. Use a ruler to mark 4 inch intervals at the bottom of the dough. Cut the dough into long triangles, 4 inches wide at their base. If you'd like to make pain au chocolat, cut the dough into 6 inch by 4 inch rectangles.

I made a combination of the two.

3. To shape the croissants, begin with the base of the triangle facing you, gently stretch the base and roll the base towards the point. To finish, grab the point, stretch it gently, and tuck it underneath the rolled dough. This will help the croissants stand tall and proud. To shape the pain au chocolat, place a baton of chocolate or a few ounces of chopped chocolate in the center of the rectangle and, starting from a long end, carefully roll the croissant. Place the croissants or pain au chocolat, seam side down on a lined baking sheet at least 2 inches apart.

I used two baking sheets.

4. Loosely cover the formed pastries and let them rise until at least doubled in size, 2-3 hours, in a draft free area. The ideal ambient temperature is 75º, but a bit warmer or cooler is alright as long as the temperature is not so warm that it melts the butter in between the layers. When the croissants are finished rising the pastries should be puffy, but still a bit firm to the touch.

5. When the croissants are ready to be baked, preheat your oven to 425º and prepare the egg wash by whisking all of the ingredients together. About 10 minutes before you are ready to put the croissants in the oven, gently brush them with the egg wash then let the wash dry slightly before baking. Make sure to wipe up any errant drips of egg wash on the baking sheet.

6. Place the croissants in the oven and turn down the temperature to 400º. After 10 minutes, quickly open the oven door and turn the sheet pan(s) 180º which will help the croissants bake evenly. Bake for 6-10 more minutes or until the croissants are deep golden brown.

7. Remove the croissants from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool. They are best enjoyed fresh and warm, but they can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day or for up to 3 days in the fridge. Genltly warm them in a 375º oven before serving.

Bonus Recipe

If you have any scraps of dough left over after cutting your triangles and rectangles DO NOT throw them away. Roll them in a mixture of 4 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Then curl them up into little snails and tuck them into a muffin tin. Let them rise until they are doubled in size and bake in a 400º oven until crisp and deep golden brown. My little cinnamon snails are pictured above with the grapefruit juice and they were such tasty little treats.