Ingredients

Steps

1. FOR THE PASTRY SHELL: Place the butter, flour and salt into a bowl (this process can also be done in a kitchen stand mixer or food processor). Using your fingers, work the ingredients together until they resemble fine bread crumbs and no lumps of butter are present.
2. Add the water a little at a time (or in a steady stream if using a kitchen stand mixer), until it forms a firm but malleable mixture. If you used a food processor earlier, it’d be best to finish this one off by hand.
3. Move the dough to your benchtop and work into a puck-sized shape. Wrap with plastic wrap and allow to rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
4. Preheat your oven to 180°C (360°F). Place the pastry on a piece of baking paper and cover with a second piece of baking paper. Using a rolling pin, roll out the pastry into a circle roughly 35 cm (approx. 13¾ in) wide, and around 3 mm ( in) thick. Allow the pastry to firm up again in the fridge for at least an hour before lining the tin (if lining the tin immediately, be sure to rest it for at least an hour).
5. Remove one piece of baking paper from the pastry and drape the pastry over your tart tin. You may find this easier to do by using a rolling pin. Press the pastry into the knuckles of the tart tin using the flats of your fingers. Use a sharp knife to remove any excess trim from the edges of the pastry. Allow the pastry to sit for 15 minutes or so in the freezer for one final rest.
6. Take one large sheet of aluminium foil and gently press into the edges of the pastry shell, ensuring that the sheet is big enough to go over the edge and completely line the tart. Fill it to the brim with uncooked rice, then fold the foil gently back over the top and place into the oven.
7. Bake for 25–30 minutes, or until the edges of the pastry are a nice medium-golden colour. Remove from the oven and sneak a look under the foil to check the doneness. Cook until the colour is consistent, then allow to cool at room temperature. Remove the foil and rice when cool enough to touch.
8. FOR THE CUSTARD: To temper the egg yolks, add them to a mixing bowl and whisk in a small amount of the hot cream mixture until well incorporated. Then, add the remaining cream mixture and whisk again until combined. Using a hand-held blender, blend until the mixture is shiny and smooth, keeping the head of the blender submerged so that no air gets into the mix. Strain the mixture through a sieve into a jug to use straight away – you want to keep it as warm as possible to ensure that the mixture cooks evenly in the oven.
9. FOR THE RHUBARB COMPOTE AND SYRUP: In a saucepan, bring the rhubarb, sugar and water to the boil, then remove from heat. Once the rhubarb is soft, strain through a sieve and reserve the syrup for the glaze. Set 50 g (1¾ oz) of the rhubarb aside for the gel and spread the remaining rhubarb on a paper-lined tray and place in the oven for about 15 minutes. Once the fruit has dried out slightly into a nice stiff compote, spread 100 g (3½ oz) over the base of the shell.
10. FOR THE RHUBARB GEL: In a saucepan, bring 200 g (7 oz) syrup and the reserved rhubarb to a simmer. Whisk the sugar and the pectin together and add to the saucepan. Return this mixture to the boil, while whisking, then add the citric acid. Remove from heat, then use a hand-held blender to blend for 1 minute, or until smooth and the rhubarb pieces have broken down. Decant into a container and leave to set in the fridge.
11. To BAKE: Place the prepared pastry shell in the oven. Pour the warm vanilla custard over the compote layer. Bake for 30 minutes or until the custard is slightly wobbly in the centre, then remove from the oven and allow to cool.
12. TO GLAZE: Once the custard has cooled sufficiently, melt the rhubarb gel in a small saucepan over a low heat (you can pop the tart into the fridge to the fridge to help the custard to firm up, this will also assist the gel to set faster). Once the gel has fully melted and has started to simmer slightly, weigh out 220 g of the gel into a measuring jug. Pour it into the tart in a circular motion, starting from the inside of the tart and moving outwards. Gently transfer the tart into the fridge and allow to set. Once the gel is firm to the touch, remove the tart from the tin and portion into slices with a hot, sharp knife.