Baked Yorkshire rhubarb, financiers and crème pâtissière

Method

1. To make the crème pâtissière, place the milk and ginger in a bowl and leave in the fridge to infuse for a few hours.

2. Heat the infused milk, vanilla and agar-agar in a saucepan until hot but not boiling. Beat the yolks, sugar and custard powder together in a bowl. Pour in half of the heated milk into the egg yolk mixture and whisk until smooth. Pour in the remaining hot milk. Transfer to a saucepan and gently cook over a low heat for 2–3 minutes, stirring all the time until very thick. Pour into a bowl, cover with cling film and leave to chill in the fridge until cold. Once cold, lightly whip the double cream then add to the milk mixture, whisking constantly. Keep in the fridge until needed.

3. For the Yorkshire rhubarb, preheat the oven to 170C/150C Fan/Gas 4.

4. Place the rhubarb in a roasting tin with the sugar, zest and juice. Mix well and cover the tin with tin foil. Bake for 15 minutes – the rhubarb should be soft but still holding its shape. Once cooled, remove from the tray and cut the rhubarb pieces in half. Reserve the baking juices from the rhubarb.

5. To make the financiers, preheat the oven to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5. Grease a 12-hole mini muffin tin.

6. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and cook gently until it turns a golden nutty brown. Leave to cool. Combine all of the dry ingredients in a bowl or a mixer and gently stir in the egg whites until a smooth mixture is achieved. Gradually pour in the butter, stirring constantly to mix.

7. Grease each muffin hole and fill it three-quarters full with the mixture. Add a piece of rhubarb to the top of each financier and lightly sprinkle with demerara sugar. Bake for 10–12 minutes until caramelised on top. Remove from the oven, leave to cool for a few minutes in the tin and then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

8. Drizzle the baked rhubarb and financiers with the reserved rhubarb juices, decorate with the grated almonds and serve with the crème pâtissière.