Rhubarb Tarts

Rhubarb Tarts are beautiful bites of perfection with a buttery flaky crust, sweet marzipan filling, and a tart rhubarb chia seed jam top perfect for celebrating Mother’s Day. Jump to Recipe

Rhubarb Tarts – Baking Sweet When Life Is Bitter

I’m still having a hard time finding anything to say. All my creative energy is going to the kitchen or improving my photography. My words have deserted me.

I feel like I made these a lifetime ago. When my granddad was dying in the hospital, I baked to distract myself. And this is one of the desserts I created.

Out of everything I baked that frantic weekend, these Rhubarb Tarts were everyone’s favorite. I originally made them in mini muffin tins. But those ended up being too small to fit the crust, marzipan, and rhubarb chia jam in a nice looking final product. They tasted delicious but were pretty damn ugly.

So I went out and bought mini 4-inch tart pans with removable bottoms. And those Rhubarb Tarts turned out just as tasty and much better looking.

The Crust

The key to that flaky almost puff pastry status crust on these Rhubarb Tarts is

• Cold butter
• Leaving some chunks of butter unincorporated
• A bit of vinegar and ice cold water
• Letting the dough rest in the fridge before rolling it out and after placing it in the tart pans
• A blind bake

It’s easy and even though it’s a pie crust recipe because it’s so flaky and layered it works well as a tart crust.

The Marzipan

I used a marzipan recipe from the Baked From Scratch May/June 2017 issue. It was my first time making marzipan and I loved how easy it was. The sweet almond paste tastes amazing with the rich buttery crust and tart rhubarb jam.

Piping the marzipan into the tarts is recommended for stress-free assembly. I was too lazy to get out my piping tools but ended up spending more time trying to spread the marzipan than if I had just piped it in.

The Rhubarb Chia Seed Jam

I decided to make rhubarb chia seed jam because I didn’t want to use a lot of sweetener. Chia seeds allow you to make fairly low sugar jams because they act as a binder. I wanted the tartness of the rhubarb to come through.

Mother’s Day

These Rhubarb Tarts are pretty, a little more special than the average recipe, and take some extra time because it’s baked from scratch. I think all moms are beautiful, work hard to take extra time out of their daily lives to give care and attention to their children, and have a major influence in shaping how beautiful (inside and out) the future generations will be. I don’t care what you create, cook, or bake, just make sure it counts and is special.

Check in on Wednesday so you can pair these tarts with a Rhubarb Whiskey Collins, I promise even whiskey haters will love them.

5 from 1 vote

Rhubarb Tarts

Rhubarb Tarts are beautiful bites of perfection with a buttery flaky crust, sweet marzipan filling, and a tart rhubarb chia seed jam top perfect for celebrating Mother’s Day. 

Servings 6

Prep Time 35 minutes mins

Cook Time 55 minutes mins

Resting Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Ingredients

Crust

• 2/3 cups salted butter, cold and cut into small cubes 150 grams
• 2 cups flour 257 grams
• 1 tablespoon vinegar 16 grams
• 1/3 to 2/3 cups ice water

Rhubarb Chia Seed Jam

• 5 rhubarb stalks 4 cups diced
• 1 teaspoon orange zest
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 teaspoon Amaretto
• pinch of Kosher salt
• 2 dashes orange bitters

Marzipan Ingredients (from the May/June 2017 issue of Bake from Scratch)

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 cups almond flour
• 2 and 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons amaretto
• 1 egg white
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons almond extract

Instructions

Crust

• Cut the butter into small cubes and place in a large bowl. I cut them into tablespoon-sized squares and cut each square into 9 little squares. 
• Measure out 2 cups of flour. Sift the flour over the butter. 
• Use your fingers to massage the butter into the flour, leaving chunks of butter unincorporated. 
• Add the tablespoon of vinegar and toss. Add the ice water a tablespoon at a time until the dough is able to hold together when pressed. It should be very cool to the touch, moist enough to hold together, but not wet enough that excess moisture is left behind in the mixing bowl or on your hands. 
• Form into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Store in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. 
• Dust the counter with flour. Roll the dough out until it is about 1/4 of an inch thick.
• Use the edges of your mini tart pans to cut out 6 circles in the dough. Use your rolling pin to roll the circles out till they are larger than the tins. Place all the pie tarts onto a baking sheet. 
• Place the circles of dough in the tart pans and press the dough into the sides of the pan. Put the baking sheet in the fridge and let it rest for 30 minutes. This will help prevent the dough from shrinking during the blind bake. 
• While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. 
• Bake the mini tarts for 10 minutes, occasionally checking to make sure there are no air bubbles. If an air bubble starts to expand, prick it with a fork. You can use pie weights if you want, but I don’t find them necessary. 
• Take tarts out and let them cool completely while you prepare the marzipan and chia seed jam. 

Rhubarb Chia Seed Jam

• Combine the rhubarb, orange zest, and honey in a saucepan and cook on medium heat 1 to 2 minutes until the rhubarb has softened a little and is mostly submerged in juices. 
• Add the chia seeds and reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. 
• Stir in the orange juice, Amaretto, and salt and cook for 2 to 3 more minutes. Turn off the heat and add a couple dashes of Orange Bitters. 
• Pour the jam into a mason jar and let it come to room temperature before putting on the lid and storing in the fridge. 

Marzipan

• Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and mix until everything comes together smoothly.  

Assembly

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  
• Place 1/4 cup marzipan in each tart shell*
• Place 2 tablespoons of the rhubarb chia seed jam on top of the marzipan. 
• Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the crust is a light golden color and the rhubarb jam has darkened to a deep red-brown color.

Notes

*Spreading the marzipan into the tart shells is difficult so I recommend piping the marzipan into the shells.

Author: Megan Wells

Course: Desserts