Rhubarb Custard Crisp Bars

Rhubarb Custard Crisp Bars

By all means, use all-purpose or whole-wheat flour here if that’s what you prefer or have on hand. And for the crumble topping, feel free to use pecans (or any other nut) instead of walnuts. The crust is simple to make, but if  you’re more comfortable working with a food processor to blend in the butter and make your crust, that will work just fine, too. Next time I bake these, I’d love to experiment by layering in some fresh sliced strawberries and sprinkling candied ginger on top.

Ingredients

For Crust:

1 cup spelt flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

For Filling:

3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup spelt flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch salt
2 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
3 1/2 cups thinly-sliced rhubarb (about 1 1/2 pounds)

For Crisp Topping:

1/2 cup spelt flour
1/2 cup oats
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
Pinch kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup walnuts, roughly chopped
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Instructions

For the Crust: Preheat the oven to 350 F. Butter a 11 x 7 inch glass baking pan.

Stir together the spelt flour, brown sugar and salt in a small bowl until combined. Work the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or your fingertips until the butter is evenly distributed and the size of small pebbles. The mixture should be dry and crumbly.

Press the mixture firmly into the bottom of the pan to form the crust. Bake for 20 minutes or until the crust is turning a nice golden brown.

For the Filling: While the crust bakes, whisk the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt together in a medium bowl.

In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolk, vanilla, and ground ginger until smooth. Add the dry mixture into the egg mixture and whisk to combine. Add the rhubarb and stir until it’s completely coated.

For the Topping: In a medium bowl, combine the spelt flour, oats, brown sugar, salt, ground ginger, and chopped walnuts. Stir to combine together. Add the melted butter and mix it into the dry ingredients (I use my hands at this point). The crisp topping should be quite clumpy. If it seems to wet or smooth, feel free to add a bit more flour or oats, 1 tablespoon at a time.

Pour the rhubarb filling over the prepared crust. Sprinkle the crisp topping over the top. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top if golden brown. Cool for 30 minutes before slicing. Slice and serve slightly warm. They are best on the day they’re made, but if you have leftovers, they keep beautifully covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days.