Rhubarb and granola custard

Aren’t rhubarb and custard just the perfect combination? For me rhubarb and ginger crumble served up with a large dollop of custard is comfort food at it’s best. That said it’s not always the lightest and this is how I discovered this beauty of a recipe. Rhubarb is roasted in the oven and cooled then layered up with granola and chilled custard for a lighter, more refreshing take on a classic. Now clearly you could just take that serving suggestion and run with it for yourself but if you are up for making the custard and granola for yourself then read on.

I came really late to making custard from scratch. In my student days if I ever made custard then it was by mixing ready made custard powder with a little milk, boiling up some more milk and combining the two. Later, when I became interested in nutrition, I started to question what was actually in the custard powder. I moved away from using custard powder but had it in my head that making custard from scratch was tricky – so instead I spent a fortune buying ready made from the chiller aisle in the supermarket. Once I eventually decided to have a go at making my own, I couldn’t believe how easy it was. I also couldn’t believe how sweet it tasted so I have gradually pulled back on the sugar to get to the recipe I am sharing today.
I’ve broken this up into three parts as you can use the rhubarb, custard or granola in a host of other recipes too.
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Roasted Rhubarb

Ingredients:
Four stalks of rhubarb, washed and chopped into 4cm lengths
1 tbsp syrup (I like the gingery syrup from jars of stem ginger but maple syrup or honey would work)
1 tbsp olive oil
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Method:

• Heat oven to 180C.
• Place rhubarb in rows in a single layer in an ovenproof baking dish.
• Drizzle with syrup and oil.
• Roast for approx.. 15 minutes in middle of oven until the rhubarb has softened but maintains it’s shape. I recommend checking every two minutes from about 12 minutes in as the breadth of the stalks and heat of your oven can make a big difference on this one.

Granola

Ingredients:
1 cup oats
½ cup seeds of choice (I used a mix of sunflower and pumpkin seeds)
½ cup of nuts of choice (I mixed hazelnuts and pecans)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp coconut oil (or butter)
1 tbsp maple syrup
Pinch of salt
Optional ¼ cup ground almonds
 
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Method:

• Heat oven to 160C
• Mix cinnamon, oats, nuts and seeds in a bowl. Add the oil and syrup and rub into the oat mix with your fingers. (If you have ever made crumble then it is the same kind of technique). You may still have small clumps of oil but this is fine, it will melt in the oven.
• Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper and spread the mix evenly across the tray. Sprinkle with salt and bake in the oven for about 20 mins until golden.  Remove from oven and move the granola around every 5 minutes or so to ensure even browning. If you are preparing this at the same time as the rhubarb, then you can bake at the higher temperature but make sure you keep checking that it is not browning too much. Remove from oven and leave to cool on the tray.
• Once the granola is cooled, stir in the ground almonds if using. (Ground almonds work well in this if you are using the granola as a crumble substitute as per this recipe. If you are wanting your granola with milk at breakfast, then you may find that the granola texture doesn’t quite work with the ground nuts.

Custard

If you eat dairy then I would recommend making this custard using whole milk and cream as per the instructions below. If you are dairy free then replace the milk and cream with your milk alternative of choice. You want one of the creamier plant milks such as almond or oat. Homemade almond milk (often creamier than shop bought) works really well.
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Ingredients:
100ml double cream
400ml whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large egg yolks
1 ½ tbsp cornflour
1 tbsp maple syrup
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​Method:
Place cream and most of milk (all but about 2 – 3 tbsp) in a pan and bring gently to a boil. In a large jug or bowl combine the vanilla, egg yolks, cornflour and maple syrup. Whisk together to form a paste and gradually add the reserved milk to thin a little. Once the milk and cream mix starts to boil, slowly add to the egg mix, whisking the egg mix to combine smoothly.

If the custard is thin then return to the pan and heat gently on a low heat whilst the custard thickens. Return to the bowl or jug and allow to cool.
If you are making the rhubarb and granola custard recipe you ideally want the custard to chill in the fridge for at least three hours. If you can’t wait then serve whilst rhubarb and custard are both still warm. It won’t be the same dish but it will still taste great.

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Method for the rhubarb and granola custard.
(you can make 6 – 8 with the quantities above)

• Once each of the components has had chance to cool fully, place 4 x 4cm lengths of rhubarb in the bottom of each bowl or glass. If like me you are a fan of rhubarb and ginger you can chop up a ball of stem ginger per portion and add this to the rhubarb at this stage.
• Add 2 tbsp granola to each glass.
• Share the custard between the portions (if making 8 – otherwise add about 4 - 5 tbsp per portion).
• Sprinkle with a final spoonful of granola and serve.