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Rhubarb Bars with a shortbread crust and tangy rhubarb custard filling are a fun, easy spring dessert. Browse all the best rhubarb recipes!
Finally, the brown-grayness of winter is giving way to a brilliant spring, and I have been enjoying every second of it. The fresh produce stands in the county are opening and selling beautiful produce.
Asparagus and rhubarb are some of my favorites. And spring is the only time you can find rhubarb unless you freeze some for next year, which I will show you how to do.
How To Freeze Rhubarb
My mom always froze rhubarb, and it was handy to have on hand to make these bars or a pie in the winter.
All you need to do is wash the rhubarb, dice it up, and freeze it 4 cups per bag. Easy Peasy. 4 cups is a perfect portion to thaw out and make these bars or a pie.
Rhubarb Bars
These rhubarb bars feature all the goodness of spring. The recipe’s simplicity allows the rhubarb to shine in all its tangy glory.
The crust is a simple shortbread made from a crumb mixture of flour, sugar, and butter.
The buttery sweetness of the crust perfectly complements the zing of the rhubarb. With less than an hour from start to finish, what excuse do you have for not making them?
Rhubarb Custard Bars
Many of you have made the recipe with success. Below are several tips to help those who have run into problems. Let me know in the comments if you have questions.
I’ve gotten comments on a white crust forming on top of the bars, and I believe this is from beating the egg mixture too long.
Also, several people have commented that they would like it if the bars weren’t quite so sweet. This is a personal preference; feel free to cut the sugar to one cup if you prefer a more tart rhubarb dessert.
Another issue is people not baking them long enough. Continue to bake them until they are no longer jiggly, even if that is longer than the time stated in the recipe. The temperature of your starting ingredients can vary from cook to cook, not to mention variations in oven temp accuracy.
Be sure to cool the bars completely before cutting them, preferably in the fridge.
Rhubarb Bars Recipe
To make rhubarb bars, you will need the following:
For the crust
- all-purpose flour
- butter
- powdered sugar
For the filling
- eggs
- sugar
- all-purpose flour
- salt
- rhubarb
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, combine the flour and powdered sugar. Using a pastry blender cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Pat the crumbs into a well greased 9 x 13 in baking pan. Bake the crust at for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.
- While the crust is in the oven, mix together eggs, sugar, flour, and salt. Gently stir in the diced rhubarb. Pour the rhubarb mixture over the hot crust.
- Return bars to the hot oven. Reduce oven temperature to 325° F and bake for 30-35 min or until the filling is set and no longer jiggly.
- Cool for 30 mins on the counter. Refrigerate and chill completely before cutting into bars.
Best Rhubarb Recipes
Fresh rhubarb and sweet strawberries topped with a crunchy oatmeal crumble make a Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp that no one will forget. Bakery style streusel-topped Rhubarb Muffins are tender, studded with tangy rhubarb bits, and topped with a crunchy brown sugar streusel.
Check out a few more of our favorite rhubarb desserts: Old Fashioned Rhubarb Pie, Rhubarb Coffee Cake, Rhubarb Crunch, and Rhubarb Sauce with Strawberry Jello.
Rhubarb Bars
Ingredients
For the crust
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup cold butter cubed
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
For the filling
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 cups white sugar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 4 cups rhubarb, diced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, combine the flour and powdered sugar. Using a pastry blender cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Pat the crumbs into a well greased 9 x 13 in baking pan. Bake the crust at for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.
- While the crust is in the oven, mix together eggs, sugar, flour, and salt. Gently stir in the diced rhubarb. Pour the rhubarb mixture over the hot crust.
- Return bars to the hot oven. Reduce oven temperature to 325° F and bake for 30-35 min or until the filling is set and no longer jiggly.
- Cool for 30 mins on the counter. Refrigerate and chill completely before cutting into bars.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
{recipe originally published May 2014 – recipe notes and photos updated 5/23/23}
Sounds like a great recipe. I will be trying it soon. It sounds a lot like the rhubarb pie my MIL has made a lot, and now I do. Two things about that. One, we stir the filling partway through the cooking. I don’t know if people can do that with this recipe, but it helps with the crust on top thing. Also, we then put a meringue on top and bake that. So good! We love rhubarb here, and eat quite a lot of it, so this will be a nice addition. Thanks for the recipe.
I tried these bars last night and they were delicious.I followed the recipe exactly,however I use my kitchen aid stand mixer for cutting in the butter.I do the same with pie crust and it works well and is quick.Thank you for a new recipe for my rhubarb.It will be a regular in my family.
Made them twice so far……very delishious!!! I also added a tsp vanilla to the filling, used salted butter so eliminated the salt.
thanks for sharing this recipe.
Thanks, Maggie. Vanilla sounds like a delicious addition.
Made them tonight! Yummy!
Thanks, Rosemary.
I have these in the oven right now. I used the rhubarb out of the freezer and am thinking that is why mine weren’t done after 35 minutes. I left them in for another 20 minutes.
These came out beautifully and were quite popular. I did have to cook them for a bit longer, and I think the next time I will cut the sugar – especially in the crust.
Thank you!
I’m glad you enjoyed them. Thanks for sharing your experience, Carla.
Absolutely yummy but MUCH too sweet…..& I even cut the sugar in half in the rhubarb filling and now wish I’d also cut the powdered sugar in the shortbread. Next time I’ll try 1/2 the sugar on both parts. Great texture and custard-like filling though….will just do a bit of tweaking next time !
Thanks for sharing your experience, Mary. I love hearing feedback on what people thought. I guess I have a serious sweet tooth. Ooops. 🙂
I am going to try these bars. In reading other people comments about them being too runny I wonder if adding some cornstarch or flour would help?
so after a little more research I am finding people recommend instant tappico pudding for a thickner instead of cornstarch or flour.
That would be very interesting to try. Thanks for sharing your research.
There is actual tapioca flour you can buy. I had trouble finding it in the stores but the local Amish market always has it in stock. It works great for fruit pies. Better than all purpose flour. If I don’t have it on hand than I prefer cornstarch. I have found flour to be unpredictable. If the chosen fruit has more moisture than usual it will not thicken as well. Just prior experience.
Yes, adding a bit of cornstarch or flour might help. Also be sure to bake them long enough. I’m wondering if my oven runs hot and that’s why mine were done faster. So be sure to bake them until they don’t wiggle when the pan is shook and then cool completely or even chill them before cutting them. I would love to hear your experiences!
Very good but sweet
Thanks for sharing your opinion, Elsie.
I made these bars from the rhubarb from our garden and it was really delicious! Because our rhubarb is really sweet, I cut the sugar in half and have decided that the next batch I make will have a streusel topping from another rhubarb recipe that I have, and I may even cut the sugar even more!
Thanks for sharing your experiences, Renate. A streusel topping sounds delicious!