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Rhubarb Custard Bars (AKA Rhubarb Dream Bars) have a shortbread crust, creamy custard, tart rhubarb and a smooth cream cheese frosting to top it off! It’s one of the BEST rhubarb desserts!
Wanna know one of my favorite things about spring? It’s RHUBARB season!! And you know what that means?! It’s time to bake!
But before you make any decisions on what to make with that rhubarb, consider these old fashioned Rhubarb Custard Bars. They’re easy to make and always a crowd-pleaser!! It’s one of my favorite desserts and a recipe you’ll most definitely add to your annual rhubarb line up! Just go ahead and print it out. You’ll thank me later! 😉
Ingredients Needed
- All Purpose Flour
- Sugar
- Butter – I like to use salted butter.
- Half and Half – or whole milk.
- Eggs – I use large eggs when baking.
- Vanilla Extract
- Rhubarb – You can use fresh rhubarb or frozen (see FAQ’s below for details).
- Cream Cheese – You can use regular full-fat cream cheese or the neufchâtel 1/3 less fat cream cheese, but I don’t recommend fat free.
- Powdered Sugar
- Whipped Topping (aka Cool Whip) – Make sure it’s thawed out completely.
How to Make Rhubarb Custard Bars
Prepare the Rhubarb
Remove the leaves from the rhubarb stalks and discard them. Then cut the rhubarb into 1/2-inch slices. I don’t peel my rhubarb, but if it’s late in the season and the rhubarb seems tough around the edges, you can remove the outer layer with a vegetable peeler.
Make the Shortbread Cookie Crust
Stir together the flour and sugar and then cut in the butter with a fork or pastry blender to form coarse crumbs. You can also do this with a food processor if you have one. This mixture will be very crumbly, which is okay. Press mixture into the parchment-lined pan (or pan greased with cooking spray) and bake.
Make the Custard Filling
Then simply combine all the ingredients (except for the rhubarb) in a large mixing bowl and whisk it until smooth.
Then stir in the rhubarb and pour the filling into the bottom crust and bake about 30 more minutes or until the center is almost set and the edges are golden brown.
Make the Frosting
Once the bars are cooled to room temperature (on the counter or in the fridge), make the frosting. First off, make sure the cream cheese is softened. If it’s not, it’ll be extremely hard to get the mixture smooth.
Beat together the cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth. Then, fold in the whipped topping (homemade or store-bought) and spread it over the baked custard layer.
Refrigerate and cut the rhubarb bars into squares with a sharp knife.
Frequently Asked Questions
You sure can! Simply thaw the rhubarb out and drain the excess moisture before adding it to the filling mixture.
Due to the cream cheese and whipped topping in the bars, you will need to keep these refrigerated. You can cover them with plastic wrap or store in an airtight container. I don’t recommend freezing these bars as the texture will change during the freeze-thaw process.
Yes! Simply halve each ingredient and use an 8×8-inch square pan. The baking times will be decreased 1-2 minutes.
I’ve got several rhubarb recipes (I just love rhubarb!)…..Rhubarb Cookies and Rhubarb Muffins are two of my favorites. Then, when you’re tired of baking with rhubarb, you can whip up a batch of my Rhubarb Sauce (SO good on ice cream!) or my most delicious Rhubarb Berry Jam!
Other Delicious Rhubarb Desserts
Easy Rhubarb Dump Cake
Rhubarb Custard Bars
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust
- 2 cups flour
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 cup salted butter
Filling
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1 cup half and half (whole milk works fine too)
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 5 cups diced rhubarb
Topping
- 6 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup whipped topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a 9×13" pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour and sugar. Cut in the butter with a fork until crumbly.
- Press the crust into the pan and bake for 10 minutes.
- While the crust is baking, make the filling.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, half and half, eggs and vanilla; stir in the rhubarb.
- Pour the filling into the crust and bake an additional 40-50 minutes or until the filling is set.
- Let the bars cool completely.
- To make the frosting, whisk together the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla; fold in the whipped topping and spread over the cooled bars.
- Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
Nutrition
Are they good without the icing? Or do you really need it?
Thanks in advance.
Pretty good without the icing…fantastic with the icing! 🙂
I can’t find rhubarb, what other fruit would be good
Hi Jane – I’ve never tried these with any other fruit, so I’m not totally sure. You could try blueberries or raspberries? ~Kelsey