Rhubarb Crumble and Custard
Sweet and tart rhubarb crumble with cinnamon brown sugar oat streusel, served with creamy vanilla bean custard.
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Ingredients
Vanilla Bean Custard
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ⅛ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 2 tbsp corn starch
- 3 egg yolks
- ½ vanilla bean, seeds scraped (or 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste)
- 1 ¼ cups whole milk
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
Rhubarb Filling
- ½ tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 1 ½ lbs fresh rhubarb (or frozen and thawed), cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp fresh lemon zest
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
Crumb Topping
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ¾ cup light or dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- ½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
Custard
- In a saucepan whisk together the sugar, salt and cornstarch. Add the egg yolks, vanilla bean, and a small amount of milk, whisking until smooth. Whisk in the rest of the milk and cream.
- Over medium heat, cook the custard, while whisking constantly, until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter.
- The custard can be served warm, but I prefer it chilled. The cool, creamy custard spooned over the hot crumble is lovely.
- Cover the custard with plastic wrap, resting right against the surface, and refrigerate until needed. Stir the custard until smooth before serving with the rhubarb crumble.
Filling
- Preheat the oven to 350F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Brush a deep dish pie pan or a 9 or 10-inch baking dish with the softened butter.
- Toss the rest of the filling ingredients together and spread into the pan. Bake for 10 minutes while you make the crumble topping.
Topping
- In a bowl (I just use the same one I mixed the filling in), combine the flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon and salt. Drizzle with the melted butter and stir until moistened and crumbly.
- Remove the pan from the oven, and stir up the filling. Sprinkle the topping over the rhubarb.
- Return the pan to the oven, and bake for 40-45 minutes, until the filling is bubbling and the topping is golden brown.
Serving
- Cool the rhubarb crumble for about 30 minutes.
- Serve scoops of the warm crumble, with cool and creamy custard on the side.
Notes
- Rhubarb crumble is best served warm, the day it's made, but it still tastes good the next day, even cold. Leftovers should be covered and refrigerated, and eaten within 2 days.
- Refrigerate the leftover custard and eat within 1 week.
- Recipe is adapted from The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook.
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