Rhubarb & Custard Vertical Tart

⏱ 150 min · Serves 10

Ribbons of poached pink rhubarb stood on end in a crisp sweet pastry case, set into silky vanilla crème pâtissière and glazed to a jewel shine. It looks like a mosaic and tastes like the best custard cream you've ever had.

Per serving: 432 kcal · 7.2g protein · 56.0g carbs · 20.0g fat

Ingredients

• For the sweet pastry: 250g plain flour
• 150g cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 90g icing sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tbsp ice-cold water
• Pinch of salt
• For the rhubarb: 1kg slim forced pink rhubarb stalks
• 150g caster sugar
• 150ml water
• Juice of 1 orange
• 1 tsp grenadine or splash of blackcurrant cordial (for colour, optional)
• For the custard: 500ml whole milk
• 1 vanilla pod, split (or 2 tsp vanilla bean paste)
• 5 large egg yolks
• 110g caster sugar
• 40g cornflour
• 30g unsalted butter
• For the glaze: 3 tbsp apricot jam, sieved
• 2 tsp of the rhubarb poaching syrup

Method

1. Make the pastry: rub or pulse the butter into the flour, icing sugar and salt until sandy. Add the yolk and water, bring together into a disc, wrap and chill 30 minutes.
2. Roll to 3mm and line a 23cm loose-bottomed tart tin, leaving a little overhang. Chill 20 minutes, then blind bake at 180C fan with baking beans for 20 minutes; remove beans and bake 8–10 minutes more until sandy and golden. Trim the edge while warm and cool completely.
3. Poach the rhubarb: cut the stalks into neat lengths roughly the depth of your tart case (about 3.5cm). Bring sugar, water, orange juice and grenadine to a simmer in a wide pan, slide in the rhubarb in a single layer, cover and poach off the heat for 5–8 minutes until just tender but still holding shape. Lift out carefully onto a tray to cool; reduce the syrup to a light glaze and reserve.
4. Make the crème pâtissière: heat the milk with the vanilla until steaming. Whisk yolks, sugar and cornflour to a paste, pour on the hot milk whisking hard, return to the pan and cook, whisking constantly, until very thick and it bubbles for 1 minute. Beat in the butter, scrape into a tray, cover with cling film on the surface and chill until cold.
5. Whisk the cold custard smooth, then spread it into the tart case level with the rim.
6. Stand the rhubarb pieces upright in the custard, packing them snugly in tight rows or concentric rings, cut ends down, so only the pink tops show. Nudge them close so no custard gaps remain.
7. Warm the sieved apricot jam with the reserved rhubarb syrup and brush lightly over the rhubarb tops for a high shine.
8. Chill 1 hour to set, then remove from the tin and serve in thin wedges with a spoon of barely whipped cream.