Roasted rhubarb granola bowl

This roasted rhubarb granola bowl features tangy, juicy rhubarb and a crunchy, homemade granola. Quick to make and so absolutely delicious, this baked rhubarb recipe is perfect for cozy breakfasts.

Forget about pancakes and waffles, it‘s time to introduce you to my roasted rhubarb granola bowl. This beautiful show stopper will quickly become a breakfast staple in your home. We‘ll turn fresh rhubarb into a juicy, sweet topping and serve it with a healthy, homemade batch of granola and yoghurt. The best thing? It‘s so easy to make, you can whip it up in minutes and let it bake while you‘re in the shower. The perfect recipe for a great start to the day. 

I‘m a breakfast person through and through. Pancakes for lunch, waffles for dinner, granola as a snack. There‘s never a time where I don‘t want breakfast foods. As an incredibly impatient person, my love for breakfast may stem from their simple preparation methods. Something that also translates to my general approach for cooking. Make it quick, make it simple and delicious. Nothing wrong with that. So when I experimented with easy ways of preparing rhubarb, this granola bowl got me excited. 

Granola in itself has always been a staple in my home. I‘m not a big fan of the store bought versions and have always preferred my mum‘s crunchy clusters. I just love how many different grains, nuts and seeds you can incorporate in one batch of granola. And it‘s such a great food to take with you and snack on. Whether you‘re gluten-free or have other allergens to avoid, homemade granola will almost always turn out delicious. Being in full control of your sweeteners and spices, it‘s pretty difficult to mess this up. Another one of those fool proof breakfast items I love so much. 

Roasted rhubarb granola bowl ingredients

Here‘s what you‘ll need to make this delicious baked rhubarb recipe:

Rhubarb, of course. One bunch of fresh rhubarb will serve three to four as a topping. While I haven‘t tested the recipe with frozen rhubarb before, I‘m fairly certain you can use it if fresh just isn‘t in season at the moment. 

White sugar to sweeten the rhubarb. I‘d encourage you to thoroughly mix the rhubarb and sugar to evenly coat your pieces of fruit. 

A lemon, we‘ll be using both zest and juice. If you have access to organic lemons, opt for one of those to avoid pesticides in your breakfast. Either way, give the lemon a good wash before zesting it. Then cut it in half and extract the juice.

Vanilla essence. One of my favourite cooking ingredients. Vanilla essence adds a delicious note to your sweet meals, but also tricks your brain into experiencing the food as much sweeter than what it actually is. 

Plain or natural yoghurt as a topping. Between the granola and our roasted rhubarb we have enough sweetness in our dish. Let‘s save ourselves the sugar and balance our breakfast bowl with a generous dollop of plain or natural yoghurt.

Granola as a base. We‘ll be using my nut free granola for this roasted rhubarb granola bowl, but you‘re welcome to substitute for your own recipe or a store-bought alternative. 

Roasted rhubarb granola bowl tips

When preparing the rhubarb, try and cut your pieces evenly. This will ensure everything cooks to perfection and you don‘t end up with some soggy and some chewy bits. 

Roast your granola in a pan before baking it. I know it sounds like a double up in steps, but trust me, your granola gets so much better this way. I usually heat my oil and honey first to create a bubbly, sticky mass. Then I add my ingredients and coat everything evenly before transferring it to the baking tray. Seeing a few clusters form in the pan will allow you to see if more honey or oil is needed, which makes the end result so much nicer. 

Make a large batch and store it for the next few days. This applies to both the roasted rhubarb, as well as the granola. Once cooled, granola can be stored in an airtight container for a few days. The rhubarb can be kept in the fridge and re-heated in a small pan each morning. 

More breakfast favourites:

If you love this baked rhubarb recipe, try one of these breakfast favourites next:

Warming Bratapfel porridge

Fluffy sourdough pancakes

Gluten free pancakes

Mixed berry smoothie bowl

Zucchini bread

Rustic rye sourdough loaf

How to make a roasted rhubarb granola bowl

We start by preparing the rhubarb. Remove the leaves, wash the stems and cut them into small, 2cm chunks. While you‘re doing this, pre-heat your oven to 180°C/350°F.

Once cut, place your rhubarb pieces in an ovenproof dish. I like to use a small dish that snugly fits my rhubarb. Sprinkle with sugar, vanilla essence, lemon zest and lemon juice and thoroughly mix to combine. 

Cover the dish with a layer of baking paper, then wrap it in silver foil. Bake it for 25-30 minutes or until soft.

While you‘re rhubarb is baking, prepare a batch of granola, following my nut free granola recipe. Allow the granola to cool a little before serving. 

Evenly divide the granola across your favourite breakfast bowls and top it with a generous dollop of yoghurt and juicy baked rhubarb. Serve with your morning coffee or cup of tea. 

Frequently asked questions

Are rhubarb leaves poisonous?

Rhubarb leaves contain toxins that can be dangerous to both animals and humans. While it is said to take a larger quantity of leaves to affect humans, I wouldn‘t recommend you testing your boundaries. If consumed, you will likely experience gastrointestinal symptoms such as an upset stomach. Consumption of large quantities can however lead to more severe issues such as kidney failure. 

What happens if you don‘t cook rhubarb?

Rhubarb is quite a bitter food. Most recipes will call to cook or bake it with lots of sugar, which makes it not only softer but also much more palatable. I know of a number of people who were served raw rhubarb with a bowl of sugar as a dip when growing up. This seems to have been a popular snack back in the days. For me personally, the extra time of baking or cooking rhubarb into a sweet topping or dessert is absolutely worth the effort. 

Do you peel rhubarb before roasting?

You don‘t necessarily need to peel rhubarb before roasting, no. You will however sometimes find that thick stalks of rhubarb, or those late season harvests, come with a thick layer of skin that‘s difficult to cut through with a knife. These are the stalks I like to peel, to avoid hard chunks of skin in my dish. 

Is it better to can or freeze rhubarb?

Rhubarb can be both frozen and canned. Choosing the right preservation method for you will likely come down to how much space you have in your freezer and shelves, but more importantly, what you would like to turn your rhubarb into. For me personally, rhubarb is ideal for baked goods of any kind. Because of this, freezing is my preservation method of choice. While canning is absolutely possible, it might be a better method for those batches you‘d like to turn into jam or other soft dishes where a mushy texture is desired.

Is it worth making your own granola?

Yes, it is absolutely worth making your own granola. Besides granola being one of those easy to make recipes you can whip up in minutes, the homemade version comes with a number of other benefits. The variety and quality of ingredients can be controlled by you when making a homemade batch. Granola is also a great way to use up those little amounts of pantry leftovers like seeds and dried fruit. Store bought granola often has a very high sugar content. Not only that, but sweeteners used are often low quality and bad for your health. Not what you want to fuel your body with. Taking a few minutes to make your own batch of homemade granola allows you to be in full control of the sweeteners used, while not only feeding, but nourishing your body.

Is granola better for you than oats?

That really depends on how you look at it. Oats in themself are a true super food. Filling and nutritious, they‘ll keep you going for hours. Granola on the other hand can (but doesn‘t have to) feature oats, together with a range of other ingredients such as nuts, seeds, dried fruit and other grains. One could therefore argue that granola is the more balanced option, offering a greater variety of nutrients. Unfortunately, this argument is often destroyed by a range of substandard ingredients used in mass-produced granola. The sweeteners added to packaged granola are also questionable, featuring high fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners, often linked to modern world illnesses. I highly recommend you checking the list of ingredients for anything store bought. Ideally though, try and find 10 minutes a week where you can create your own batch of homemade granola.