I really love the changing of the seasons. By the time the weather changes, I am always ready for the next season to arrive. And while I love the winter and fall months for their coziness and holidays, it is hard to deny there is something magical about spring. It is all new growth and anticipation of what is coming. Around the time the eggs and bunnies and cute baby things start showing up in all the magazines, the sun turns warmer here and we get some truly amazing days. This must magically trigger something in my brain, because I stop dreaming in citrus, or of stews and braises and heavy sourdoughs, and start thinking about lighter, softer fare.

Inspired by the world blooming around me, I set out to create a spring bread. I wasn’t entirely sure what I wanted, but I thought it may include rhubarb. I know lots of people are down on the ‘barb, but really, it is pretty great. Sure, it looks like rose-colored celery, it is very, very tart, and it has poisonous leaves, but that shouldn’t stop you. We have a long tradition of taming inedibly tart things in this country with pounds of sugar. Think cranberries people! Also, I have always loved rhubarb pies, tarts, crostatas, cakes, etc. I figured the world needed a bread of some sort. The natural first thought is a quick bread, but meh, that has been done. So, I thought a bit about my ode to fall bread, Apple Brown Butter Bourbon Brioche (still a mouthful, but still great!). I realized I could do some pretty great spring work, if I swapped out the filling. I decided that adding some strawberries to the mixture would make it a bit more approachable for those scared by rhubarb, but it could easily have been raspberries or other berries too.

The results? Well, I think they speak for themselves in this Strawberry Rhubarb Brioche. The bread is a lovely mix of pink and sweet and tart. It works for breakfast plain or toasted, after-school snack, after dinner snack, or to accompany a lovely cup of tea. I think you could even turn it into some mighty fine baked french toast as well, should you be so inclined. In short, I definitely suggest you give it a try.

For my recipient, I sort of think that worked out perfectly for spring too. A lovely friend of my husband’s just made it home from the hospital with their new baby boy. The first few weeks are tough and magical, especially when you already have a toddler–the sleepless nights, the adjusting to new schedules, but also the excitement of what this new family will be. I think a bread made to celebrate spring found a wonderful home in a newly blooming family.