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
Units
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
