Rhubarb Dream Bars

My Rhubarb plant is in FULL bloom. Or do they say it's ready for harvest? I don't know. But it's HUGE and I could pick some Rhubarb every day for the next few weeks it seems! 

The first recipe I will be baking with my rhubarb is Rhubarb Dream bars. I have never made these before. That always makes me nervous... I don't want to mess it up! But, I need to use up this rhubarb, and since I have a plethora of stalks, I decided to try!

They have a shortbread crust with a custard-like filling. I'm not a huge fan of custard, but the chunks of Rhubarb made it easy to enjoy!

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What You'll Need:

- 2 cups flour

- 3/4 cups powdered sugar

- 1 cup butter

FILLING:

- 4 eggs

- 2 cups sugar

- 1/2 cup flour

- 1/2 salt

- 4 cups rhubarb, diced

My beautiful rhubarb. I cut off the leaves so I could store it in my fridge. I wasn't planning on using it right away, and this way the giant leaves weren't taking up space! *Also, rhubarb leaves are poisonous to dogs. If you have a rhubarb plant, make sure those pups don't eat those leaves! 

This is something my mom taught me. When you prep the rhubarb, trim off the part where the leaf was, and gently take off the stringy parts of the stem. You don't HAVE to do this, it just helps so the rhubarb doesn't get stringy in the bars. *Also, please don't cut your finger doing this. 

First, you want to start with the crust. Combine the flour and powdered sugar in a bowl. Cut the sticks of butter into cubes. 

Place cubed butter in the bowl with flour and powdered sugar. 

Take your pastry cutter and mix all together until you get crumbs.

Once you've made crumbs, press them into a 9x13 pan. Bake at 350* for about 15 minutes, or until it's lightly browned.

When that is baking, you'll want to make your filling. Blend together eggs, flour, sugar, and salt until smooth. 

Once your mixture is well mixed, fold in your rhubarb.

When your crust is lightly browned, pour the filling over it. Bake for another 35-40 minutes (depending on your oven - keep an eye on it!) until the filling is lightly browned. 

Cut the bars once they are cooled and enjoy! As you can see, I let them get a little bit more brown then they should have, but they tasted good! The tart rhubarb with the sweet filling was delicious. The custard-y filling wasn't too custard-y, and this would be delicious warmed up with a big dollop of vanilla ice cream!