Rhubarb Tartlets with A Classic French Custard
A pretty little springtime dessert made with a simple butter crust and filled with a classic french custard topped with slender slices of fresh rhubarb. Can be made with all purpose flour, or gluten-free cup for cup flour.
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: French
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 2 cups all purpose or gluten free cup for cup flour – plus extra for dusting
- 1/2 Tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, diced and chilled
- 1–3 Tbs of iced water
For the Custard
- 2 cups milk
- 2/3 cup sugar
- Splash of vanilla extract
- 4 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 stock fresh rhubarb, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 400 F.
- Thinly slice the rhubarb stock into 2-3 pieces. Set aside.
- Add the flour of your choice to a bowl and stir in the salt.
- Add the chilled butter into the bowl. Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour until the butter is the size of small pebbles. Using your fingers, continue to rub the butter into the flour until it becomes a sandy consistency.
- Slowly add the iced water to the flour mixture and lightly knead until it forms a dough. If the dough is crumbly, continue to slowly add water, until the dough will form into a ball.
- Leave the dough in the bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and chill it for at least 30 minutes.
- Bring the dough to room temperature before rolling it out. Lightly flour a flat surface and roll the dough into an 1/8 inch thick circle.
- Using a 3-inch circular pastry cutter, cut individual circles and add them to the tartlet pan. Prepare the tartlet crusts for blind baking. Cut 12, 4″x”4 squares of wax paper. Line each tartlet with the wax paper and fill with dried beans or rice. Pop the pan into the oven and blind bake for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the custard. Add the milk, sugar and vanilla into a sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a boil over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat.
- Remove the tartlet pan from the oven and remove beans and wax paper.
- Add the eggs to the custard mix and stir constantly. Add the custard into the tartlet crusts until each one is filled approximately 3/4 full. Add 3-4 slices of rhubarb on top of the custard and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the custard has cooked all the way through.
Notes
Be careful not to add too much water to the flour mixture while mixing the dough. Too much liquid will create a sticky dough and will ultimately not result in a flaky crust.
You can prepare the crust ahead of time and keep in the refrigerator for 24 hours before rolling it out and into the tartlet pan.
Keywords: Rhubarb tartlet, tartlet recipe, tart recipe, spring dessert, gluten free dessert, gluten free recipe
A Bit About the Rhubarb Tartlets
Not sure if it was COVID-19 that started it, but I have been experimenting with baking and using seasonal ingredients with a passion this spring. I have talked a bit about my baking journey on Instagram, but I will share a bit more of the details on the blog for those who are interested (like I did in the recipe post for Classic Madeleines).
Rhubarb is definitely one of those ingredients I can’t wait to start using when spring arrives. The flavor is so unique to this time of year and I love to play around with mixing and matching it with other spring/summer ingredients. It’s tart – which is why I knew it would pair well with an easy, classic, french custard. The sweet, creamy flavor is an amazing balance with the thinly sliced red stalks and it’s what brings these pretty little rhubarb tartlets together.
Crust Making Essentials
How to Make Pie Crust From Scratch
Now on to the crust for the rhubarb tartlets. Honestly, crust is tricky. I became slightly obsessed with mastering it (I haven’t yet) after testing a few versions for this recipe. Here’s the number one lesson learned – you may not be able to exactly follow a recipe from a book or blog. I would precisely follow instructions and would still find that I needed to add a bit more water for that perfect, rollable dough consistency. So don’t be afraid to try a few things out on your own, even if the recipe says differently.
Another important tip – make sure your butter stays as cold as it can be. I would dice mine up and then pop it back into the refrigerator for a bit before cutting it into the flour. Keep that shiznit cold. When you go to add water, make sure it’s iced. And when you finally have that pie crust dough ball – pop it back into the fridge before rolling it out. Oh and if you really want, after rolling it out and putting it into the pie pan, pop it BACK into the fridge before it goes into the oven. Yes, you’re going to become good friends with your fridge. More tips and tricks below….
What Causes Hard Pie Crust
Once you mix your dough, if doesn’t easily form into a ball you will need to add water. A little at a time is key. If you add too much the dough will become sticky, which will result in a tough and chewy dough (oh no!). Not enough liquid may cause your pie crust to crack and fall apart as you roll it out. Add water slowly until you can form a ball that doesn’t crumble when you pull it apart. This is where I have trouble. My fear of “over watering” always gives me a dry crust, but it can be easily fixed by adding a bit more liquid. Phew.
Why is my Pie Crust Soggy
Well, honestly it could be for mannnnny reasons depending on the filling. But, with this rhubarb tartlets recipe I dealt with the crust shrinking as well as a bit of a soggy bottom during a trial run. A blind bake was in order. Blind baking prevents the crust from shrinking in and away from the pan. It also hardens it a bit, preventing it from becoming soggy once the custard is added to the pan.
I made a few berry pies for practice as well. Some fillings were more liquidy than others, so I read an article from Food52 on pie tips and tricks. Here’s what I learned – don’t be afraid to drain some liquid before adding it into the crust prior to the bake. Sometimes a fruit filling makes too much liquid and that’s ok, but it won’t be ok if it seeps into the crust before it has time to harden/bake (if you’re going for the perfect crust that is). If you’re like me, you hate to waste that tasty goodness so add the extra liquid to a glass with ice, vodka, gin or whatever your into and enjoy while you watch that pie become golden brown. Wah-lah.
More baked recipes coming soon. One includes a crust and it’s a quiche, one involves meringue and the other may be quite similar to this recipe, but uses a different flour and a different seasonal fruit. Stayed tuned.
