Rhubarb Tart (Roscommon, Ireland)

Rhubarb, the first fruit to emerge after the long winter season, was always eagerly anticipated in Ireland, and was made into various tarts and pies, depending on the cooking facilities. Nowadays rhubarb has a longer season but there is nothing to beat the flavour of the first tender young pink spears - spring has arrived. The original recipe from Strokestown in County Roscommon said to strew the base of the bastible (a pot oven) with chopped rhubarb, sweeten it with a sprinkling of sugar and cover it with an enriched bread dough. When the cake was fully baked in the pot over the open fire, it was turned out so that it landed upside down, with the sweet juice soaking into the soft golden crust. It was served warm with soft brown sugar and lots of softly whipped cream. Since then the dough has been reinterpreted as a sweet scone dough. This is a perfect example of the way in which recipes originally cooked over an open fire can be adapted to produce the most delicious results today.

For the Scone Dough:
2¼ cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
1½ Tbsp. superfine sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 pinch fine sea salt
¼ cup butter, cut into cubes
1 egg
¾ cup whole milk

For the Filling:
2 lbs red rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 1" pieces (~ 6 stalks)
1¼-1½ cups granulated sugar

To Serve:
soft brown sugar
softly whipped cream

Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C, Gas Mark 8).

Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl. Rub butter into the mixture until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg and milk.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour in the liquid all at once, and mix to a soft dough. Turn out onto a floured board and roll into a 9" round, about 1" thick.

Put rhubarb into the base of a round 9x2" tin or sauté pan and sprinkle with the granulated sugar. Place the pastry round on top of the rhubarb and tuck in the edges neatly.

Bake for 15 minutes then reduce the temperature to 350°F (180°C, Gas Mark 4) for about 30 minutes, or until the top is crusty and golden and the rhubarb soft and juicy.

Remove the pan from the oven and let it sit for a few minutes.

Put a warm plate over the top of the pan and turn it upside down so that the pie comes out onto the plate. Be careful of the hot juices, they will be absorbed by the pie.

Serve warm with soft brown sugar and whipped cream.

Makes 8-10 servings.

Cook's Notes:  This recipe may also be made with cooking apples, in which case you may want to add a little cinnamon or mixed spice to the sugar.