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There’s a certain ease and simplicity to free-form tarts like this. Sometimes they’re called a crostata, sometimes a galette. You can call it whatever you want, but I call it a fast way to use great fruit when it’s in season, without a lot of fuss.

At the beginning of summer, when rhubarb is still lingering around, and strawberries are elbowing their way forward, it’s a good thing the two go so well together. And I’m happy to help them hook up.

I remember a neighbor had a big rhubarb plant in their backyard and we used to dip the raw stalks in a cup of sugar and eat them. (Somehow, we knew not to eat the leaves, which are toxic.) I still remember, not just the fact that you could get free food from the earth, but that something could have so much flavor. Some kids aren’t fond of things that are tangy but I’ve always loved the contrast of sweet and tart.

Recently I was so excited to find such beautiful berries that I bought three big baskets of them. I made a little batch of Strawberry Rhubarb Jam, and another batch of Strawberry Vodka, both of which I hope will prolong the season…unlike this tart, which lasted not so long around here.

I first learned to make tarts like this from Jacques Pรฉpin, when he came to work with us and began his shift by rolling out dough for fruit tarts. He actually double-doughed his tarts, rolling out two rounds of dough, and sandwiching the fruit between the two.

Being French, he brushed the top with lots of butter and liberally dusted the top with sugar. Today I usually make them open-faced, but do brush the crust with lots of butter and a generous sprinkling of sugar, which makes a crunchy crust, and is a nice contrast to the tender fruit-forward filling.

When I posted a picture of this tart on social media, with a promise to share the recipe, a friend, Ann Mah, asked me how I dealt with all the juice from rhubarb, which can exude a moderate amount. Hothouse rhubarb is generally redder in color and holds its color better than field-grown rhubarb once baked. However, I’ve never found much of a correlation between if it’s grown indoors or out, and how much juice it exudes.

That said, as insurance, I sprinkle the dough with a little bit of almond flour to absorb any errant juices. But I don’t mind things being a little bit messy; a friend’s Norwegian grandmother once told me that if pie doesn’t fall apart when you slice it, it’s not going to be any good. This tart slices nicely but tastes great. So you’re getting the best of both worlds here, in more ways than one.

Strawberry Rhubarb Tart

I often sprinkle a little almond flour on the tart dough, to soak up any extra juices that may come out of the fruit when it's baking. You can use cracker or bread crumbs, crumbled amaretti cookies, a bit of flour, or leave it out. For those who want to reduce the sugar, feel free to cut the sugar in the filling down to 1/2 cup (100g). For another variation, you could swap out fresh pitted cherries for the strawberries, or mix a basket or two of raspberries or blackberries with the rhubarb, in place of the strawberries. This tart is sometimes called a galette or crostata and is baked free-form. It could also be baked in a tart pan as well. Be sure to cover the baking sheet well if using parchment paper, to catch any juices that may run out during baking. I used an unrimmed baking sheet for this one but use a rimmed one if you want to make sure you're containing any errant juices.
Servings 8 servings

For the tart dough

  • 1 1/2 cups (210g) flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup (4oz, 115g) unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
  • 6 tablespoons (90ml) ice water

For the filling

  • 3 cups (13oz, 380g) diced rhubarb, (trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch, 2cm pieces)
  • 2 cups (10oz, 300g) strawberries, hulled and quartered
  • zest of 1 lemon, preferably unsprayed
  • 2/3 cup (130g) sugar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
  • 2 tablespoons almond flour , (optional)
  • 1 - 1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter
  • turbinado or granulated sugar, for finishing the tart
  • To make the tart dough, mix the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. (You can also make it in a food processor, or by hand, using a pastry blender.) Add the cold butter and mix until the butter pieces are the size of peas.
  • Add the ice water and continue to mix just until the dough comes together. Gather the dough with your hands, shape it into a disk, wrap it plastic, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
  • Put the rhubarb and strawberries in a medium bowl with the lemon zest. Sprinkle the sugar and corn starch on top, but do not mix the ingredients together yet. (If you do, they'll start to juice and may be overly juicy by the time you're ready to use them.)
  • Preheat the oven to 400ยบF (200ยบF). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
  • On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to a 14-inch (36cm) circle and place it on the baking sheet. Sprinkle the almond flour over the tart dough, if using. Mix the fruit together with the sugar and corn starch and place the fruit into the center of the tart dough, then spread it with your hands, leaving 3-inch (8cm) of space between the fruit and the edge of the dough.
  • Fold the edges of the dough up and over the fruit filling. Brush the crush liberally with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar. Bake the tart until the filling is cooked and bubbling, and the crust is golden brown, 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and slide the tart off the baking sheet, onto a cooling rack.

Notes

Serving: Serve the tart on its own, or with Vanilla Ice Cream, White Chocolate and Fresh Ginger Ice Cream, or Cinnamon Ice Cream, or a dollop of crรจme fraรฎche.
Storage: The unrolled dough can be refrigerated for up to three days, or frozen for up to two months. The baked tart is best the same day but can be stored at room temperature for up to two days. (The dough will get softer the longer it sits.)

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61 comments

    • Elise

    Can you show us how to make a double-doughed one?

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Just double the dough recipe, then divide the dough so one part is a bit larger than the other. Then roll the smaller one for the bottom, prepare the fruit and tart dough just as written here, then roll the other (larger) piece of dough so it covers the top and tuck and edges below the tart. Brush the top with butter and sprinkle with sugar, poke a few holes in to the top dough (as you would a pie) and bake until the fruit is bubbling through the slit in the top and the crust is well-browned.

        • Pam

        Thank you! I had the same question!
        I like your almond flour idea too!

    • Cadry

    What a good idea to use almond flour to soak up juices. I bet that adds nice flavor too. I like your Norwegian friend’s grandmother’s attitude about a messy pie.

      • Lola

      Sliced almonds on the bottom crust also works nicely and adds a bit of crunch.

    • Cherie Visconti

    Why do you sprinkle the fruit with sugar and cornstarch early in the process ( since you donโ€™t want juices released) why not just do it later in the recipe at the point where you instruct to incorporate?

    I make versions of this all summer long , usually 2 at a time with whatever fruit or combo is in my kitchen ( great when summer fruit is ending to be used up) my โ€œcheatโ€ , Iโ€™ll call it variation :) is frozen puff pastry sheets . Super fast and easy !

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      It’s to make the recipe “flow” better. When writing it, I separated the ingredients into two lists; the dough and the topping, and thought it would be easier for people to just put everything in the bowl at the same time, rather than go back and explain how to add the sugar and starch again later.

      And yes, frozen puff pastry is a good hack, although this is pretty easy too : )

    • Steve San Francisco

    Can’t wait to make this for my husband who loves to rattle the nerves of waiters by asking for rhubarb pie. Love L’Appart!!

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Thanks! Really glad you liked L’appart – it was quite a story…

        • Bebe

        Some of us went along with you as you lived Lโ€™appart. It was quite an experience!

        • Marsha Evans

        So delicious. The filling was light with just the right hint of citrus. I too used puff pastry but will try your dough next time

          • David
          David Lebovitz

          Glad you liked it!

    • Ann

    Yay! I have been hoarding the last of my strawberries and rhubarb waiting for this recipe. My berries are really on their last legs, so I’ll be baking this today! (And maybe I’ll add a layer of frangipane, as you do in your summer fruit tart recipe.)

    • Miriam

    Why not layer the crust with frangipani, as you do with your apricot and cherry galette? I’ve made that many times and love how dry the crust stays thanks to the frangipani waterproofing.

      • Linda

      I’ve used a layer of frangipani on a strawberry rhubarb pie and it worked well at keeping the bottom crust from getting soggy and was delicious. But I’ll try this for the simplicity of it.

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Frangipane is really good with fruit tarts although there’s more liquid in this tart than, say, an apple or plum tart, so it might get lost in the mix (in terms of texture), but would certainly taste good.

    • Charlene V

    Sounds delightfulโ€”my favorite spring-summer fruit combo! I recently saw a recipe in a book about cast iron cooking where you make the galette in a cast iron frying pan, which sounds terrific for baking (nice and brown on the bottom). Have you ever done this?

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      I’ve not, but it may be troublesome to try to remove the tart from a cast-iron skillet. I also only have a 10-inch cast iron skillet, and this tart is a little larger. Although if you wanted to use one, you could just trim the recipe down a little.

        • Charlene V

        Thank you. I will have to give it a try when my kitchen remodel is finished. So far Iโ€™ve not experienced too many problems such as what you described in lโ€™appart! So far Iโ€™ve made biscuits very successfully in my toaster oven, so I may have to make strawberry shortcake in the meantime.

    • Anne

    This looks so good and so easy, I’m going on an immediate search for fruit! I love the idea of the almond flour too, especially since I have a ridiculously large bag of it to use up–despite my frequent baking of the super yummy almond croissants you featured in “L’Appart.” Thanks!

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Yes! Those almond croissants from L’appart are really good…and easy, too. Happy you like them : )

    • Margaret

    Years ago (the 70’s) I lived in Canada, and a neighbor gave me rhubarb from her garden… Being from Texas I’d never seen it before since I don’t think it grows well in hot climates. I made a rhubarb custard pie from the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook that my Mom gave me before I left home and it was the best pie I’ve ever tasted, even to this day. After I returned to Texas I tried making it again from grocery store rhubarb, and it was awful. I lost my BB&B cookbook but recently found a similar recipe in one of Marion Cunningham’s
    cookbooks. I’ll have to try making your tart — it looks delicious.

    • Krystal

    I love your friend’s Norwegian grandmother’s attitude about pie – in fact, I think it’s applicable to most desserts!

    I’ll have to give this a shot and serve it to my rhubarb-averse boyfriend (without him seeing me make it, of course!).

    • easknh

    My husband and I make several large batches of strawberry rhubarb vodka every year. The color and flavor totally bleeds out of the fruit, although both fade a little over time. It is delicious served over ice with a little bit of something sweet; we like homemade lime cordial but it would be good with a splash of Rose’s or some lemon or lime ade.

    On a different note, I recently saw a recipe for pickled strawberries. What would you do with those?

    • Deborah

    Oh, boy, can hardly wait to try this!!!
    But in the meantime, Iโ€™d like to ask a question, if I could, about your almond cake, which is one of my go-to favorites. Iโ€™d like to take one to Missoula (from Seattle); can the cake be frozen for a day before traveling? If not, can you suggest changes to successfully adapt the recipe for baking at 3,200 feet (1,000 meters)?

    • Simon Beachley

    And on another note, my Husband and I and two friends will be in Paris for the New Years Eve 350th Anniversary of the Opรฉra National de Paris. Lucky us, but we would like a recommendation or two for dinner after (and other nights. We’re staying at the Hotel D’Angleterre at 44 rue Jacob. Appreciate your help, Simon.

    • David
    David Lebovitz

    Simon: I never go out to a restaurant on New Year’s Eve but you can check the suggestions in my FAQs. You might also want to check if Verjus is open, although since it’s six months away, not sure if they (or others) are taking reservations yet.

    Deborah: IHigh-altitude baking isn’t my area of specialty, but that cake can be frozen.

    easknh: The pickled strawberries are delicious with cheese, especially goat cheese, but are also good on morning toast, for those who want breakfast on the less-sweet side.

    • Charles Shere

    In my experience a galette is what youโ€™re describing here, flaky pastry rolled or stretched out, sliced fruit filling, edges curled over, baked on a sheet. A crostata on the other hand has a short crust, often latticed, and filled with jam. At least in Piemonte. Two different things. And how I love both.

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Interestingly, I’ve never seen an open-faced fruit tart sold as a galette in France. A galette is usually a buckwheat crรชpe or a Galette des rois. (Tarts like this one are usually referred to as a just a tarte.) A crostata does have a lattice top but I see that in the U.S. (and perhaps elsewhere?), an open-faced fruit tart like this sometimes gets referred to as a crostata.

    • Sunnycovechef

    As soon as get back home into my kitchen I am going to make this. I have been baking my rhubarb with honey for a compote, it produced a nice tart flavor.

    • Taste of France

    To me, rhubarb rhymes with raspberries. My grandma, who had an enormous garden, grew rhubarb and raspberries, which she turned into jam. However, given the price of raspberries vs. strawberries and that I have both in my garden but neither gives enough fruit, I will go with the strawberries that you suggest.
    I recently made a rhubarb clafoutis, with not a ton of sugar so it was very tart, and I loved it like that.

    • Hope Anderson

    I can’t wait to try this! I make a lot of galettes and always sprinkle a mixture of ground nuts (hazelnuts, pistachios or almonds), sugar and flour on the pastry before adding the fruit. It both soaks up the juice and adds texture and flavor.

    • Puteh Gurm

    any suggestions for changing the rhubarb in the recipe.. i cant get rhubarb where i live, Singapore.

      • Hope Anderson

      There’s no substitute for rhubarb, but you can use many other kinds of fruit in a tart like this. Just make sure that what you use tastes good when cooked.

      • Dawn

      Agree with Hope, but Hawthorne fruit and / or tamarind could help get the tartness of rhubarb.

    • Aida

    temperature 400F?

    • Paula

    Well, it looks yummy, but I’ve always thought a strawberry rhubarb pie was a waste of strawberries.

    It sure is a pretty tart, though.

    • Suzanne

    A no fuss but delicious recipe! I usually get scared by making my own tart/galette dough, but this one was totally doable, even without an electric mixer (just knives and a spoon in the end). I used 90g of sugar, but would even use less the next time. Thanks for the recipe!

    • susan

    This was easy and delish. Doubled the recipe and made 3. One for dinner party, 1 for friend and 1 for left overs next day.
    Never liked rhubarb but I kind of even craved this. Crust was devine. Thanks DL

    • Colette Saint-Pierre

    Excellent recipe, perfect kick-off for summer baking. I used pistaschio flour because that’s what I had on hand. It added a nice flavour. Thank you David on the tip of not mixing fruit & sugar until ready to use. Very much appreciate your detailed instructions and tips in every recipe you publish.

    • Rebecca

    Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! This is one of the best, and easiest, crusts Iโ€™ve ever made. Iโ€™ve used it to make two different fruit tarts already! Rhubarb is a bit hard to come by where I live, so Iโ€™ve Taken liberties with the filling. I made the first using a mix of strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries, which was beautifully sweet-tart. The lemon zest added the perfect bright note. The second time I used a mix of peaches and blueberries, and substituted a bit of cinnamon for the zest. Both iterations were fantastic. And the crust stayed wonderfully crisp and flaky, even on the bottom of the peach version – no doubt thanks to the tip re: almond flour.

    • VK

    Wonderful recipe! The almond flour really does the trick. I made the crust with white whole wheat flour instead of regular AP, and it was amazing! Perfect not too sweet summer dessert!

    • Lynne

    How happy was I to have read this post and then find beautiful rhubarb at the farmers market in Santa Fe this past weekend. The tart came together beautifully and my guests who swore they didn’t eat dessert had seconds. Thanks David!

    • Ellen

    My second tart in two days is in the oven. I wanted to take one to a friend who just had surgery so I made one yesterday to practice. With rhubarb and strawberries from the farmersโ€™ market, this tart is delicious! I did use a double crust and baked it in a deep dish pie plate for ease of transport. I am also taking my copy of Lโ€™Appart to my friend to read while sheโ€™s recuperating. I almost envy her reading it for the first time while eating this scrumptious tart. Thanks, David!

    • Maria

    This was great! I didn’t use almond flour but didn’t have any issues with juice leakage/sogginess. Only ended up with 2 cups of rhubarb so I used tart cherries to make up the difference and it was ace!

    • Lenita

    I made this strawberry rhubarb tart a few days ago. It was wonderful. And in the U.S., at least where I live, we call it a crostata (with the fold-over pastry).

    • Sarahb1313

    I got the last of the rhubarb and the first of the strawberries at the farmers market in the Adirondacks this weekend. And this was screaming my name! I am partial to very little sugar in my fruit desserts, not because I have a problem with sugar (Nickmamed affectionately โ€œsugar-slutโ€), but because it often seems cloying with fruit. One of the reasons I hate traditional apple pie (Why so much sugar??)
    So, I started sprinkling in the first 1/3 cup, and just felt it was sufficient. The berries were so sweet from the market vs the store, I bet I could have gotten away with even less.
    Perhaps with less luscious berries I might add more…
    No lemon, so added a spoon of sweet balsamic for some acid and brightness.
    No complaints. I know I changed a few things, and usually, David, I rarely do with your recipes. But it was all about the fruit and crust. And we were a happy bunch this beautiful afternoon!
    Thanks again for the recipe!

    • Peggy

    Wow, what a great recipe! Thanks! I’ve been making strawberry-rhubarb pie (in a pie pan) for years and my husband loves it. I tried this and he likes it even better, because not being inclosed, the bottom crust doesn’t get soggy. Thank you again. I’ve made it three times in the last three weeks!

      • Peggy

      Answer to Jonathan:
      I roll it between 2 sheets of waxed paper, then peel off the top and turn the other upside down and peel off on the baking sheet. The only problem is that waxed paper is only 12 inches wide, so there’s some overlap, but it works ok. And because this dough is so moist, it still sticks a bit but better than having it on a floured counter, I think!

    • Ellen

    This was fantastic! Strawberry and rhubarb is my favorite fruit combination and the butter and sugar on the crust made a wonderfully delicate crunch. It was the hit of a dinner party. Thanks so much for this simple and amazingly delicious dessert. Too bad itโ€™s the end of rhubarb season.

    • Jonathan

    My biggest issue was with step 5–any advice on successfully moving the crust from the floured surface to the baking sheet without it falling apart too much? I didn’t have the massive fall-apart that I’ve had with pies, but I still had to do a lot of patching with bits that fell off. Thanks!

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Sometimes you can fold the dough, after you roll it, in half, then in half again (so it resembles a quarter of the dough) then lift and transfer it that way, then unfold it in the tart mold. I don’t usually do it with this dough since I find it rather sturdy, but that’s one strategy. Another is to roll it around a rolling pin, and transfer it that way, unrolling it over the tart pan.

    • Barbara

    Simply too much fruits for the amount of dough! Reduce the amount of fruits or increase the amount of dough. Otherwise youโ€™ll have a big pie of mess!!

    • KerryN

    I love this tart and the almond flour works so well. My crust is not as smooth looking as yours is… and it cracks quite a lot when I am rolling. Do I need to do something differently or add more water? I added just 6 tbsp and the dough held together when I tried to gather it into a ball but I didn’t knead it much.

    • Jeannine

    I grew up in northern Wisconsin, where my family had a plethora of rhubarb. My grandma made many variations of rhubarb desserts, my favorite being a “crumble”, often combined with strawberries. In our current home, in central Wisconsin, our two German shepherds promptly and gleefully disposed of the rhubarb growing in our yard, so now I buy it at a grocery store…not as all as satisfying as snapping a thick stalk from those enormously-leaved plants from my youth. Thank you for bringing back sweet memories…I had forgotten the pleasure/pain of unbearably sour rhubarb paired with too-sweet sugar…combined to make the perfect summer treat. :)

    • Mary V

    Wonderful recipe for an easy, delicious summertime treat. Pastry is simple and rolls out beautifully. Have already made it 3 times in the past week and will continue making it until the end of the summer strawberry season.
    How would frozen strawberries work? Also, peaches are just ripening on our tree.

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Frozen strawberries generally work well in place of fresh but don’t let them thaw before baking as they’ll exude too more juice. If you try other fruits, let me know how they work out. (If you use peaches, I’ll cut the sugar down to a tablespoon or two.)

    • Hope

    This recipe is THE BEST. It always works. I usually double the tart dough and keep one in the freezer so I can make a galette whenever the mood strikes. As long as you keep the weight constant, I’ve found that you can change up the fruit, just adjusting the sugar a bit as needed. Maybe an extra tablespoon of almond flour if your fruit is very wet. I’ve used peaches, nectarines, pears and apples with great success. Thank you, David, for this fantastic recipe!

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Happy you liked the recipe!

    • Karen

    Oh my, what an excellent recipe. I used frozen rhubarb, be sure to drain it well as it defrosts, I also gave it an extra squeeze just before using. This held together great, bursting with flavour, nice crust, and super presentable. A winner on all fronts! Merci David!

    • Deborah Pascuzzi

    Made the recipe as written but did follow the suggestion to use only 1/2 cup sugar. Neither the rhubarb nor the berries were at their best. Nevertheless this was an absolute home run. Dough made the day before and after sitting on the counter about 20 minutes it rolled like a dream. Built the tart on a sheet of parchment paper and slid my pizza peel under the paper to transfer the whole thing to the rimmed baking sheet. My partner now things this should be the standard dessert for every dinner party.

A

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