Rhubarb is the star of the show today. A lot more people are growing their own and ask me about recipes when I am doing demos. So today here are two that I like. Rhubarb is versatile and works well with ginger and vanilla.

This orange syllabub is a creamy mousse enriched with velvety Italian mascarpone. I was interested to visit an orange grower in Seville during one of my RTÉ shows and to see how easy it is to make marmalade with good produce. In Ireland, Tom and Laura Sinnott at Wexford Preserves make an excellent marmalade for the Simply Better range using oranges from the grower I met.

Rhubarb gives an enjoyable tartness to a dessert. The full-fat cream cheese and the crème fraîche together make for a lovely light fluffiness and a great tasting cheesecake. You can vary the biscuits to try out different tastes. Ginger nut are very good. This cheesecake is extremely easy because it does not require any gelatine. The action of the lemon juice on the cream cheese and crème fraîche helps it to set all on its own.

Happy cooking,

Neven.

Rhubarb and orange syllabub with toasted nuts

Serves four

3 tbsp Grand Marnier (orange-flavoured liquor)

3 tbsp Seville orange marmalade

grated rind of 1 orange

150ml (1/4 pint) cream

300ml (1/2 pint) mascarpone

100g (4oz) pistachio nuts

4 tbsp orange blossom honey

For the rhubarb:

225g (8oz) fresh rhubarb stalks

75g (3oz) sugar

1 vanilla pod

  • 1 Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F, gas mark six). To cook the rhubarb, trim the ends from each piece of fruit and cut in half if it is very long. Place in a roasting tin and sprinkle over the sugar. Run a knife through the centre of the vanilla pod and place it on top. Cover the tin with foil and seal well. Roast for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven but leave the foil in place for 10 minutes. Leave to cool.
  • 2 Mix the Grand Marnier in a small bowl with the marmalade and orange rind. Place the cream in a large bowl and mix in the mascarpone, then gently stir in the marmalade mixture and finally gently fold in the cooked rhubarb. Divide the mixture among wine glasses and chill for at last 4 hours but preferably overnight.
  • 3 Place the pistachio nuts in a dry frying pan and cook for a few minutes, tossing occasionally until toasted. Tip on to a plate and leave to cool completely; then roughly chop. To serve, sprinkle the pistachio nuts over each syllabub and drizzle the orange blossom honey on top.

    • Quick rhubarb and lemon cheesecake

    Serves eight

    For the cheesecake filling:

    1 large lemon

    100g (4oz) full-fat cream cheese

    50g (2oz) caster sugar

    100g (4oz) crème fraîche

    For the base:

    100g (4oz) butter

    225g (8oz) digestive biscuits

    1 1/2 tbsp Demerara sugar

    For the rhubarb topping:

    3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

    50g (2oz) caster sugar

    150g (5oz) rhubarb stalks, trimmed and very finely chopped

    1 tsp arrowroot

  • 1 For the base, put the butter into a large pan and melt over a low heat. Put the digestive biscuits into a plastic bag, seal the end and crush with a rolling pin into fine crumbs. Stir into the butter with the Demerara sugar, then press the mixture firmly into the base and sides of a 20cm (8in) loose-bottomed flan tin that is about 4cm (1½in) deep, using the back of a spoon. Chill while you make the filling.
  • 2 Finely grate the zest from one lemon and squeeze the juice – you should get four or five tablespoons of juice. Beat the cream cheese, sugar, lemon zest together in a bowl until smooth. Very gradually, beat in the lemon juice until you have a thick, creamy mixture, then gently fold in the crème fraîche. Spoon the filling into the biscuit base, swirl the top with a knife and chill for at least two hours.
  • 3 For the topping, put the lemon juice and sugar in a small pan and leave over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Add the rhubarb, bring to a gentle simmer and cook for six to minutes until completely tender but just holding its shape. Mix the arrowroot with one teaspoon of cold water, stir in and cook for about 30 seconds until thickened. Transfer for a small bowl and leave to cool. Then cover and chill alongside the cheesecake.
  • 4 Remove the cheesecake from the flan tin and transfer it to a serving plate. Spoon over the rhubarb topping, then cut into wedges to serve.