I think of rhubarb as a staple of british cooking, the basis of comfort food of my childhood - rhubarb and apple crumble with lots of custart (out of a packet of course). But rhubarb wasn't recorded as a food crop in Europe until the 18th Century after Marco Polo brought it back from his adventures in south east asia where the roots were used in chinese medicine (particularly for its laxative properties....). Even in the UK it was first grown as a medicine from seeds imported from Russia. Its first recorded use as a food in britain was in an1806-7 cookbook by Maria Eliza Rundell where it was used in a rhubarb tart. My favourite uses for it also include a cinnamon and rhubarb tart where the filling is completed with double cream, a little flour and sugar, rhubarb polenta cake where the cornmeal soaks up the ruby red juices of the rhubarb and (of course) rhubarb and apple crumble.
When I couldn't resist the bright pink stems in the local farm shop one Saturday morning I wanted to do more with them than stew them and eat them with yoghurt and honey (although that's not a bad way to eat it either). I had some sweet pastry and creme almond lurking in the freezer from before christmas which provided the inspiration for a rhubarb and almond tart. Given it was completely made up I was really pleased with the outcome. The sharpness of the Rhubarb cut through the sweetness of the almond paste and pastry, yet we could still taste all the different parts (and no soggy bottoms).
To make these line some small tart tins with the sweet pastry and blind bake them at 200 C to make sure they're crisp. As they came out of the oven remove the lining paper and baking beans and brush with beaten egg and put them back in the oven for a couple for a couple of minutes. Stew the ruhubarb and reduce down to a thick paste. Add as little sugar as you can to make it palatable (the contrast between the sharpness of the rhubarb and sweetness of the almond paste is the joy of this tart) and put it in the bottom of the sweet pastry case. Top with the almond paste and scatter with some flaked almonds. Put the tarts back in the oven until the paste has set and browned on the top. Cool on a wire rack before removing from the tins and dusting with a little icing sugar.
I'm always surprised and delighted when somehting I invent works and these were really good (even if I do say so myself). Even Mr Vitty who isn't a great fan of either rhubarb or almond liked them. When I make them again I'll use more rhubarb to get a deeper layer and try and make the rhubarb paste thicker so it doesn't leach quite so much into the almond layer. Even so, if I bought these in a cafe to have with an afternoon cup of Earl Grey I wouldn't have been disappointed.
