Rhubarb & Custard Tart
Prep time: 2hrs | Serves: 8-10
Ingredients:
• 200g plain flour
• 100g cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 60g icing sugar
• 2 egg yolks 1
• 10–20g cold water (as needed)
• 350g rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 1–2cm pieces
• 150g caster sugar 1
• 10g lemon juice
• 5g lemon zest
• 250ml full-fat milk
• 250ml double cream
• 6 egg yolks 2
• 70g caster sugar 2
• 5g cornflour
• 5g vanilla bean paste or extract
• 2g fine sea salt
Method:
1. For the pastry, icing sugar and egg yolks 1
Beaten in a bowl, incorporate in the butter, then add the flour and enough cold water to form a soft dough. Shape into a disc, wrap and chill for 30 minutes, then roll out and line a 20cm fluted tin (3.5cm deep). Prick the base, chill 20 minutes, line with baking paper and baking beans, and blind-bake at 175°C for 15 minutes, then remove the paper and beans and bake for 8–10 minutes more until light golden.
2. For the rhubarb jam, put rhubarb, sugar 1, lemon juice and zest into a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 15–20 minutes until the rhubarb breaks down and the mixture is thick and jammy. Cool slightly, then spread a generous layer over the base of the cooled tart shell.
3. For the custard, gently heat milk and cream in a saucepan until steaming. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks 2 , sugar 2, cornflour, vanilla and salt until smooth, then slowly whisk in the hot milk mixture. Return to the pan and cook over low–medium heat, stirring constantly, for 5–8 minutes until thick, glossy and just starting to bubble. Take off the heat and let it cool for 5–10 minutes, stirring now and then.
4. Pour the warm, thick custard over the rhubarb jam, level the top and bake at 150–160°C for 20–30 minutes until the custard is set around the edges with a slight wobble in the centre. Cool to room temperature in the tin, then chill for at least 2 hours until fully set.
5. To serve, gently remove the tart from the tin, dust with icing sugar if you like, slice and serve chilled or at cool room temperature.
Storage:
Store the tart, covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days. Enjoy leftovers straight from the fridge or allow to sit at room temperature for 15–20 minutes before serving.
