Pudding Baking

Rhubarb Rose Galette

Make the most of Britain's short forced rhubarb season with this tangy, fragrant tart

20 minutes, plus resting prep, 30 minutes cook

Serves 8

Ingredients

For the pastry

180g plain flour

125g unsalted butter, cold and cubed

40g polenta

40g caster sugar

¼ tsp salt

1 large egg, cold

1tbsp. cold water

For the rhubarb

10 thin stems forced rhubarb, around 700g

120g caster sugar

1 orange, zest and juice

30ml water

For the frangipane

65g ground almonds

50g unsalted butter, softened

50g caster sugar

1 large egg

¼ - ½tsp. rosewater

Pinch of salt

2 tsp demerara sugar

Method

To make the pastry, add the flour, butter, polenta, sugar and salt to a food processor. Pulse until the butter is no larger than pea sized. Beat the egg in a small bowl and add 3 tbsp. into the flour mixture, reserving the rest.

Drizzle in the water and pulse cautiously until there are no wet spots. Tip onto a work surface and knead 2-3 times to bring together. Pat into a 1” thick disc, wrap in baking paper and rest in the fridge for at least an hour or ideally overnight.

For the rhubarb, the galette requires a circle of stems snugly laying side by side, which will fit into the pastry. Using a 25cm circle of baking paper as a guide, lay and trim the pieces of rhubarb on top of the paper until you have a full circle.

If you run out of full length stems, you can match offcuts to create the desired length.

Mix together the sugar, orange zest, juice and water and lay the stems on a baking tray trying to keep the order of how they are on the paper, giving them a few turns to coat in the juice. Add in any offcuts too to further flavour the syrup.

Preheat an oven at 120°C on a fan setting and bake for 15 minutes until the rhubarb is just tender but still holding its shape. Give the tray a little shake and tilt, gently mixing the syrup which should be a vivid pink. Set aside and let cool.

Add the almonds and rosewater and mix until just combined. Set aside.

To prepare the galette, remove the pastry from the fridge and allow to warm up for 10 minutes. Dust a work surface with flour and roll the pastry into a rough 40cm circle.

Using the rolling pin, transfer the delicate pastry sheet to the baking tray, laying it flat. Spread the frangipane mixture in the centre using the 25cm baking paper circle as a guide for size.

Gently reassemble the drained rhubarb on top of the frangipane, reserving the syrup in a small saucepan. Gather the excess pastry and lay over the edges of the fruit in ruffles to create a rustic crust.

Place the tray into the fridge for 15 minutes and preheat the oven at 200°C. Brush the crust thoroughly with the leftover egg from earlier and sprinkle with demerara sugar.

Place in the oven on shelf 1 and after 10 minutes, turn the temperature down to 180°C for a further 15-20 minutes until the pastry is golden and crisp.

Simmer the rhubarb juices until reduced and thick, then brush this over the fruit of the baked tart. Leave to cool for 15 minutes on the tray and serve slices with ice cream.