Roasted Rhubarb and Custard Cake
A layered butter cake swirled with roasted rhubarb and custard. The batter incorporates ready-made custard for moisture and flavor, creating a tender crumb studded with tart rhubarb throughout. Baked until golden and topped with a dusting of icing sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 quantity roasted rhubarb, drained
- 18 tbsp butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
- 5 ½ oz ready-made custardhomemade custardequal weightflavor
offers more control
- 2 cups self-rising flourall-purpose flour plus baking powder250g flour plus 2 tsp baking powdertextureadds gluten
requires manual leavening adjustment
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups golden superfine sugar
- icing sugar, for dusting(optional)
Instructions
- 1
Prepare roasted rhubarb first, drain off juices carefully, and let cool
- 2
Butter and line a 9" loose-bottomed or springform cake tin
- 3
Heat oven to 350°F or fan 325°F
- 4
Reserve 3 tbsp custard in a bowl
- 5
Beat remaining custard with butter, flour, baking powder, eggs, vanilla, and sugar until creamy and smooth
- 6
Spoon one-third of batter into tin, scatter some rhubarb, dot with one-third more batter and spread
- 7
Top with more rhubarb, then spoon remaining batter in rough mounds and dips
- 8
Scatter remaining rhubarb over batter, dot with reserved custard
- 9
Bake for 40 minutes until risen and golden, then cover with foil
- 10
Continue baking for 15-20 minutes more until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean
- 11
Cool in tin, then dust with powdered sugar when cool
Tips
Drain rhubarb juices thoroughly to prevent a soggy cake
Don't overmix the batter after adding flour to avoid developing gluten
The rough, uneven topping of batter and custard creates pockets of different textures
Good to Know
Keep covered at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerate for up to 5 days
Roasted rhubarb can be prepared 1 day ahead and stored in the refrigerator. Cake can be baked up to 1 day ahead
Serve at room temperature, optionally with whipped cream or additional custard
Common Mistakes
Do not skip draining rhubarb juices to avoid a soggy, heavy cake
Do not overmix the batter after flour is added to avoid tough crumb
Do not remove foil too early during baking to avoid the top browning too quickly before the center sets
Substitutions
offers more control
requires manual leavening adjustment