Rhubarb Frangipane Tarts

In the U household, we don't tend to have desserts after our meals. However, since the tripolatas started school (where they always have pudding) they have been asking, "What are we going to have when we finish our dinner?". Saying 'no' to this question leads to them opening cupboards to see if in fact there is nothing for dessert, then protesting at the lack of said dessert.

When dessert is on offer it's usually yoghurt or fruit, so in a bid to provide them with a treat to chase down their evening meals, I will endeavour to have something on offer each day.

The first of these offerings is a frangipane filled tart. I love frangipane, it's made using one of my favourite nuts and can be used in so many ways. In this recipe, I've teamed it up with rhubarb, which I found out a few days ago is actually a vegetable.

I can count on one hand the number of times I've had rhubarb and I can safely say that the tripolatas have never eaten it before.

Now, due to lack of time and being out of season, I used tinned rhubarb (shook horror). If you are able to use fresh rhubarb, you'll need to stew it in a pan with a little water and sugar, and please DON'T EAT THE LEAVES.

So here's what you'll need:

125g butter

130g castor sugar

2 medium (UK) eggs

1 tsp almond extract

150g ground almonds

2.5 tbsp plain flour

approx. 300g of rhubarb (drained/stewed) 

1 sheet of short crust pastry

Here's what you'll need to do: Makes approx. 18 tarts

1. Whisk the butter and sugar together until the mix is light and fluffy, then gradually add the eggs mixing after each addition. Then add the almond extract and mix again. Meanwhile (if you're using fresh rhubarb), stew the rhubarb and set aside to cool completely.

2. Fold the almonds into the batter followed by the flour. Place the frangipane mix in the fridge to keep cool.

3. Roll out the pastry dough and, using a pastry/cookie cutter, cut out circles. Line a greased pastry/cupcake tray with the circles and prick the base of each case with a fork.

4. Use about 60g of the rhubarb to spread on the inside of each case, then fill each of the cases with the frangipane. Put a dollop of the remaining rhubarb in the centre of each pastry case pushing slightly into the frangipane mix.

 

5. Bake for about 20mins at 175 C in a preheated oven, rotating the tray in the last few minutes of the bake. Once baked, leave the tarts in the tray for a couple of minutes to cool, then transfer to a cooling rack.

6. Serve with custard, cream or ice cream

Eat and enjoy

The tripolatas really enjoyed this, so for my next dessert treat I'll look for something new to introduce to them.

What ingredients would you like to try?