Baked Custard and Roasted Rhubarb Recipe
This Baked Custard and Roasted Rhubarb Dessert is a delicious spin on the classic rhubarb and custard. It looks suuuper fancy and is a fun way to enjoy this classic dessert. The baked custard is a set custard baked in a cake tin then sliced when chilled. It is a little sweet, very creamy and super smooth. The roasted rhubarb added brings an added depth of sweet/sour and fruity deliciousness. While this recipe is perfect as is, you can also add a bit of crunch if you want by adding a few spoonfuls of granola, crushed biscuits or crushed meringues.
So how do I make this Baked Custard and Roasted Rhubarb from scratch?
To make this dessert, there are two steps involved;
- Roasted Rhubarb
- Baked Custard
Roasted Rhubarb
To begin making the roasted rhubarb, wash and slice the rhubarb into chunks. Place into a deep baking dish (cover with parchment if needed) and sprinkle the sugar over the rhubarb. Cover the dish with tinfoil and place into a hot oven for 10-20 minutes (time depending on how big the chunks are) until barely soft. To check if the rhubarb is done, poke it with a sharp knife, if it presses in easily, it’s cooked. Remove from the oven and leave to one side to cool.
Baked Custard
This Baked Custard Recipe is essentially a crème brûlée recipe just baked in a large tin and not finished with caramelised sugar. Because of this, it’s a pretty simple recipe where the only hard part is waiting for each stage to cool.
To begin making the baked custard, start off by adding the cream, vanilla and sugar to saucepan. Heat on a medium heat until the cream is close to boiling, you will start to see small bubbles forming. Remove from the heat and immediately add in the egg yolks and whisk briskly. Carefully pour the hot custard into a bowl or container through a sieve to remove any lumps or overcooked egg. Place cling film or plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the hot custard to prevent a skin forming. Allow to cool for at least 1 hour. For best results, place into the fridge overnight but you can also cook it the same day.
How to bake
Preheat the oven to 120°c (240°f) or 110°c (220°f) if fan assisted. Carefully line the cake tin with tinfoil, pressing the tinfoil into the corners gently so you don’t tear it. Whisk the cooled custard to make sure the vanilla is equally distributed and pour the custard into the lined cake tin. To remove the bubbles, you can briskly use a blow torch by quickly brushing the flames over the surface of the custard. Place the cake tin into the larger deep tray. Carefully pour water into the tray, avoiding the cake tin, until the water reaches about halfway on the cake tin.
Bake for 1 hour until the custard has firmed up and when carefully jiggled is not liquid anymore. Allow to cool for a couple minutes before removing the cake tin from the water and allowing to cool fully. Once cooled, place into the fridge for another hour or overnight if possible if you want to slice it. You can also just spoon it out to serve. To serve, add a slice to a plate and add on a large spoonful or two of the roasted rhubarb. Leftovers can be kept in the fridge tightly wrapped or in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are a couple things that could have gone wrong here. Perhaps, when you were making the custard initially, you skipped the straining step or you heated the cream too much. It’s also possible when baking that you didn’t add enough water to the tray and it all evaporated, or the heat was set too high. Unfortunately, if the batter or baked custard has curdled, there is no way to uncurdle it.
Yes, absolutely! It’s possible that you found this recipe a bit later in the year, meaning the rhubarb you can probably get your hands on is thick and very green. Just make sure to taste the stewed rhubarb when you are making it to ensure it is sweet enough, sometimes green rhubarb needs more sugar than pink, early season rhubarb.
It can be served both ways! However, if you do want to slice it like I have in the photos, you will need to wait for the baked custard to cool. However, you can absolutely serve it warm, just spoon it directly from the tin into a bowl and top with the roasted rhubarb.
I love this recipe as it is however it can be fun to add some crunch to it for a different texture. You could add granola, crushed digestives or gingernuts (or your favourite biscuit), crumble or crushed meringues.
For more Gluten Free Dessert Recipes, you can check out my Gluten Free Category, here.
Maybe you want to take a peek at my Dessert Recipes in general? Take a look at my Dessert Category, here.
Baked Custard and Roasted Rhubarb
Equipment
- 1 saucepan or deep sided pan
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Small mixing bowl
- 1 ladle
- 1 Sieve
- 1 8 inch (20cm) cake tin
- 2 deep sided baking tray one should be bigger than the cake tin
- 1 blow torch optional
Ingredients
Baked Custard
- 500 grams cream
- 50 grams caster sugar
- 100 grams egg yolks
- 1 tsp vanilla paste or extract
Roasted Rhubarb
- 300 grams rhubarb washed and chopped
- 70 grams caster sugar
Instructions
Roasted Rhubarb
- Preheat the oven to 170°c (340°f) or 160°c (320°f) if fan assisted.
- Cut the rhubarb into small chunks and place into a baking tray. Sprinkle the caster sugar over it and cover the whole tray with tinfoil.
- Roast the rhubarb for 10-20 minutes (time depending on how big the chunks are) until barely soft. To check if the rhubarb is done, poke it with a sharp knife, if it presses in easily, it's cooked. Remove from the oven and leave to one side to cool.
Baked Custard
- Begin by adding the cream, sugar and vanilla to a saucepan or deep sided pan.
- Heat on a medium heat until the cream is close to boiling, you will start to see small bubbles forming. Remove from the heat and immediately add in the egg yolks and whisk briskly.
- Carefully pour the hot custard into a bowl or container through a sieve to remove any lumps or overcooked egg. Place cling film or plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the hot custard to prevent a skin forming.
- Allow to cool for at least 1 hour. For best results, place into the fridge overnight but you can also cook it the same day.
- Preheat the oven to 120°c (240°f) or 110°c (220°f) if fan assisted.
- Carefully line the cake tin with tinfoil, pressing the tinfoil into the corners gently so you don't tear it. Whisk the cooled custard to make sure the vanilla is equally distributed and pour the custard into the lined cake tin.
- To remove the bubbles, you can briskly use a blow torch by quickly brushing the flames over the surface of the custard.
- Place the cake tin into the larger deep tray. Carefully pour water into the tray, avoiding the cake tin, until the water reaches about halfway on the cake tin.
- Bake for 1 hour until the custard has firmed up and when carefully jiggled is not liquid anymore.
- Allow to cool for a couple minutes before removing the cake tin from the water and allowing to cool fully.
- Once cooled, place into the fridge for another hour or overnight if possilble if you want to slice it. You can also just spoon it out to serve.
- To serve, add a slice to a plate and add on a large spoonful or two of the roasted rhubarb.
- Leftovers can be kept in the fridge tightly wrapped or in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
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