Melissa Clark’s rhubarb pound cake.Credit…Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times

Good morning. The rhubarb’s beginning to pop by the fence where it always grows, but it’s still a few weeks from its delicious adolescence. That’s OK. I know there are farmers who force it, and I’m happy to pay them for their labor. I’ve been dreaming of rhubarb pound cake (above) for months, astringency against buttery sweetness, a perfect taste of spring.

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Rhubarb Pound Cake

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So that’s on the docket for today, dessert to follow a seasonal feast of pasta Bolognese with lamb and peas and a shaved asparagus and radish salad. I hope you’ll join me.

As for the rest of the week. …

Monday

Some weeknights, I like to improvise in the kitchen, set aside detailed recipes and cook from a prompt instead. Take, for example, my vague instructions for bulgogi-style tofu, which you can easily make your own. Serve with rice, lettuce cups, kimchi and a dipping sauce of sesame oil and ground white pepper.