Just to give you a little history…

Tasting the first rhubarb tarts of the year is a unique moment: It heralds the arrival of spring and the return of the sunshine! The little detail that makes our tart stand out? Its Alsace heritage, represented through the meringue, offering up a delicious contrast between the soft and sweet meringue and the tang of the rhubarb.

Practical info

Difficulty

Easy

Preparation time

• 1 hour for preparation
• 2-12 hours for letting the pastry rest in the fridge
• 40 min. for cooking

Ingredients

For a tart mould with a 32 cm diameter

Filling:

• 1kg peeled rhubarb
• 100g caster sugar

Pastry:

• 200g sieved plain flour (pastry flour if you can get it)
• 100g butter
• 15g caster sugar
• 5g salt
• 60g milk

Crème patissière:

• 150g caster sugar
• 1 sachet vanilla sugar
• 20g sieved plain flour (pastry flour if you can get it)
• 3 eggs
• 200g liquid crème fraîche
• 100g milk

Meringue:

• 180g egg whites
• 200g caster sugar

Method

Step 1: Filling

Peel the rhubarb stalks and cut them into 1cm slices. Mix the rhubarb with approximately 100g of caster sugar and refrigerate overnight.

Step 2: Pastry

In a large mixing bowl, roughly mix the slightly softened butter with the flour to obtain a mixture with a sandy texture. Add the salt, sugar and milk, then mix until you get a dough. Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for around 2 hours.

Tip: Ideally and if possible, prepare the dough the night before.

Step 3: Crème patissière

Mix the dry ingredients - the flour, sugar and vanilla. Add the eggs and mix well. Then, add the cream and milk, and mix again. Chill in the fridge.

Step 4: Finishing

Grease the tart mould and press the pastry in until its around 3mm thick. Prick the dough with a fork. Drain any excess liquid from the rhubarb and pour it onto the pastry dough. Add the crème patissière.

Step 5: Meringue

Whisk the egg whites together with the sugar until you get firm peaks. See the Cooking paragraph before covering the tart with meringue.

Cooking

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Cook the tart in the oven for approx. 30 minutes, then take the tart out of the oven and leave to cool for 5 minutes. Use an icing bag to top the tart with meringue, creating rose shapes, then put it back in the oven for approximately 10 minutes. Please note: Cooking time may vary between ovens.

Our serving tips

The rhubarb tart makes for an excellent afternoon tea treat, but is also wonderful served as dessert, accompanied by a scoop of vanilla ice cream.