Rhubarb tartlet with jasmine & coconut

“Rhubarb is a harbinger of spring in Scandinavia, the first and most-loved sweet ingredient of the season. You can almost feel the anticipation in the air, the countdown until the first hot-pink stalks are available at the markets. There is something so fittingly northern about the hardy and super tart stalks that need quite a bit of sugar to bring out the beautiful flavour. But rhubarb is not in fact native to northern Europe—it only reached Europe via the Silk Road in the 1300s. This tart was inspired by that travel, combining rhubarb with the delicate floral flavour of jasmine, the creamy sweetness of coconut, and a bit of brightness from lemon zest.” — Marie Frank

Makes 6 (7.5cm) tartlets

Lemon Sweet Pastry Shell
½ cup / 65g icing sugar
9 tbsp / 125g unsalted butter,  at cool room temperature (about 18°C)
2 tsp lemon zest
1 egg
1¾ cups / 220g all-purpose flour
2½ tbsp / 15g almond flour
½ tsp salt

Coconut Pastry Cream
1 cup / 240ml whole milk
1 cup / 240ml full-fat coconut milk
½ cup / 100g granulated sugar
3 tbsp / 30g cornstarch
5 egg yolks
salt
3 tbsp / 40g virgin coconut oil

Jasmine Poached Rhubarb
450g rhubarb,  cut into 10cm batons
¾ cup / 150g caster sugar
5 tbsp / 75ml strong jasmine tea
1 tbsp lemon juice

Make the pastry shell

Sift the powdered sugar to remove any lumps. Line a quarter sheet pan with parchment paper.

Combine the butter, lemon zest, and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, and mix on low speed until combined. It doesn’t need to be creamed, just mixed until no lumps of butter remain.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg, and mix on low speed until combined, 1–2 minutes.

Whisk together the all-purpose flour, almond flour, and salt in a medium bowl, then add to the bowl of the mixer and mix—still on low speed—until it comes together, 1–2 minutes.

Gather the dough into a ball, flatten into a disk, and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes.

Unwrap the chilled pastry and place the disk between two sheets of parchment paper, then roll out to 3mm thickness.

Place the tart rings on the prepared pan. Cut six 24 x 2.5cm strips of pastry and line the walls of the tart rings with the dough. 

Cut six 7 cm disks out of the pastry and place in the tart rings, using your fingers to gently press to seal against the sides. Trim the edges of the tart rings with a paring knife. Any leftover dough can be pressed into a flat disk, covered in plastic wrap, and frozen for up to 4 weeks.

Place the tart rings in the freezer until the dough is firm and very cold, around 30 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 180°C with the fan on (convection). 

Bake the tart shells until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to let cool completely before removing the rings. 

Make the pastry cream

Heat the whole milk, coconut milk, and ¼ cup / 50g of the caster sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat until simmering.

Whisk the remaining ¼ cup sugar and the cornstarch together in a medium bowl to remove any lumps, then add the egg yolks and whisk together until combined.

Slowly pour about ½ cup / 120 ml of the hot milk mixture into the egg yolks while whisking to combine, then add the remaining milk and pour the whole mixture back into the saucepan.

Cook, whisking constantly, until the pastry cream begins to thicken and bubble, 1–2 minutes. Season to taste with a pinch of salt.

Remove the pan from the heat, whisk in the coconut oil, and blend with an immersion blender or whisk until smooth.

Pass the pastry cream through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean heatproof container and cover with a piece of plastic wrap gently pressed against the surface. This will help prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until completely cold, 2–3 hours.

Assemble the tarts

Use a Microplane grater to gently trim the edges of the tart shells so they are even. 

Whisk the pastry cream to loosen, then transfer to a piping bag and pipe an even layer into the tart shells. You can also use a spoon to dollop six blobs of pastry cream into the shell, then use an offset spatula or the back of a spoon to level the surface. 

Lay the rhubarb batons on a cutting board and use the tart rings as a mold to trim the rhubarb to perfectly fit the tartlets. Gently lay the batons over the pastry cream to cover the surface of the tartlets.

Jasmine Poached Rhubarb

Preheat the oven to 180°C. 

Place the rhubarb in a single layer in a small baking dish and cover with the sugar, jasmine tea, and lemon juice

Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit snugly on top of the rhubarb and poach in the oven for 10–12 minutes, checking for doneness every 2 minutes after you reach  8 minutes. The rhubarb is done when a sharp knife easily pierces the batons with only a little resistance.

Remove the pan from the oven and leave the rhubarb to cool in the syrup overnight in the refrigerator.

This is an edited extract of More Than Sweet by Marie Frank. Published by Hardie Grant North America.

📷 Line Klein.