strawberry rhubarb crisp

tilly used to grow rhubarb in her garden.....all along the stone wall there was mint and rhubarb growing like crazy and trying to take over.  when i was little i would pick stalks of bright red rhubarb and try to eat it......so sour.....it used to make my grandfather laugh.   my sister and i would get a bowl of sugar and dip the ends of the rhubarb into the sugar and munch away.  every summer tilly would make strawberry rhubarb pie.....it was so good.  years later when tilly was in her 70's and 80's she would pick me a bunch of her rhubarb and bring it over to my house as a gift.....now i have to hunt the farmers market or get karen to grab me a bunch from whole foods in west hartford.   britany and i tried some different rhubarb and strawberry combo recipes last summer....some successful......one ...not so much.....it looked very pretty but it did not set, it  kind of turned into a pink blob....not so good but we laughed a lot!!!! ( and of course we tried to eat it.....it tasted pretty good but what a mess).  last month's food network magazine had an ina garten recipe for strawberry rhubarb crisp.....that sounded amazing.....all the strawberry rhubarb yumminess and no fussing with pie crust.  i made it memorial day weekend with britany, emily, and kelsey.  (we cooked all weekend......had a blast)....oh and the crisp was wonderful........(also awesome to dollop on top of greek yogurt for breakfast)

beautiful red and green

crunchy bubbly goodness

recipe after the jump

4 cups fresh rhubarb, 1 inch diced (4-5 stalks)
4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and halved if large (native are best)
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons grated orange zest
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup quick -cooking (not instant)
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted diced butter
vanilla ice cream for serving

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
for the fruit: toss the rhubarb, strawberries, 3/4 cup of the granulated sugar and the orange zest together in a large bowl.  in a measuring cup dissolve the cornstarch in the orang juice and then mix it into the fruit.  pour the mixture into an 8 by 11 inch baking dish and place it on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
for the topping: in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the flour, the remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar, the brown sugar, salt and oatmeal.  with the mixer on low speed, add the butter and mix until the dry ingredients are moist and the mixture is in crumbles.  sprinkle the topping over the fruit, covering it completely and bake for 1 hour, until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden brown.  serve warm with ice cream.