Jane Veale’s Rhubarb Lady Finger Cake

For years, my colleague has talked about her mother’s Rhubarb Ladyfinger Cake, and I finally got my hands on a copy of the recipe to recreate this absolute showstopper. It’s a take on a French Charlotte Russe: fresh rhubarb cooked down until soft and syrupy, folded into whipped cream, stabilized with strawberry gelatin, then layered with ladyfingers and finished with a glossy rhubarb glaze and fresh strawberries. The original recipe called for wild strawberry gelatin, which has since been discontinued, so I used regular strawberry Jell-O. It worked, but I can see why the wild strawberry version would have been special. Even if the sugar amount was similar, it likely had a slightly tarter, less candy-sweet flavor that would have played beautifully with the rhubarb. Next time, I may reduce the strawberry Jell-O slightly, replace part of it with unflavored powdered gelatin, and add a little lemon juice or zest to bring back more of that tart edge. Not because this version wasn’t…