I do think of other things than rhubarb at this time of the year. It is just that the compote was ready and waiting. As we progress through the seasons, there will be all sorts of berries and fruits to use as a sauce. Choose whatever suits your fancy as this is a vanilla flavoured custard square and will go with everything.
Custard cakes are light and spongy, not really like a traditional cake, more like a solid version of a custard sauce, something that one would usually pour over fruit compote and blending milk products with fruit is a very popular combination.
The recipe can be doubled and poured into an 8 x 8 inch pan. This is a smaller version that fits in a 5 x 7 loaf pan for those of you who are not feeding the local softball team, four to eight servings depending on how it is cut.
I made this up with some of the latest batch of homemade Greek yoghurt but it can also be changed up with regular plain yoghurt.
You will need:
2 eggs at room temperature, separated
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
6 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
6 Tbsp. all purpose flour
1 cup Greek yoghurt although regular will also work
powdered/icing sugar for the top
Preheat oven to 325 F degrees while the ingredients are collected. If you know in advance that you are making this recipe, pull out the eggs and yoghurt from the fridge and allow them to warm up. The eggs whites will beat more quickly and achieve more volume when not cold.
Grease the short ends of a 5 x 7 inch loaf pan and line the long sides with parchment that goes over the edges and is long enough to hold and remove from the pan after baking and cooling.
Separate the eggs, placing the whites in a separate bowl, putting them aside for later.
Beat the egg yolks & sugar until thick and a light yellow. Add the melted and cooled butter and vanilla.
Beat for and additional two minutes before adding the flour in small increments and beating until it is fully incorporated.
Add the yoghurt by the heaping spoonful, beating well after each addition.
Using clean beaters, whip the egg whites until stiff.
I then added 1/3 of the egg whites to the egg yolk mixture and gently folded them together.
As is usual in my life I got called away in the middle so this photo shows the last of the yoghurt scraped from the measuring cup and not yet beaten into the egg yolk mixture.
Due to the containers I had chosen, it then made sense to mix half of the combined mixture back into the whipped egg whites, followed by the second half.
If your larger container holds the egg yolk mixture then transfer and fold in the egg whites in thirds.
Transfer the batter into the loaf pan.The air that has been beaten into this mixture will act as a leavening agent, making the batter rise.
This is the batter as it is poured into the loaf pan.
See how much of the glass is still visible?
As the mixture heats, the air expands and the loaf rises.
Bake for approx 30 minutes or until the top is lightly golden.
The picture below is the loaf just out of the oven. It has risen all the way to the top, a just like a souffle. And just like a souffle it is immediately going to start and deflate.
This is NOT an issue.
Allow the squares to cool.
Dust with sifted icing sugar.
Run a knife along the two ends without parchment paper. They will have pulled away but it is always good to check.
Lift the loaf out of the pan.
Set on a cooling rack.
Gently peel back the parchment paper.
Cool longer if needed.
This recipe was made with vanilla flavouring but I think that lemon sugar and a little zest might be just the thing to go with a raspberry sauce.
Serve at room temperture alone or with a fruit sauce of your choosing. You can tell what my choice was.
Greek Yoghurt Custard Squares with Rhubarb Sauce from My Kitchen Wand
