Gingernut rhubarb crumb bars

I grew up in a house without store-bought biscuits. Before you start to feel too sorry for me, I should qualify by saying that my mother made any biscuits we ate. With maybe one exception. The only packet of biscuits that could ever be found in our pantry were gingernuts - dark, spicy and rock hard... and as such, totally uninteresting to children. I only started to appreciate gingernuts when I began drinking tea - they're ideal partners, especially if you're partial to dunking. And this weekend, I discovered something else they're brilliant with: rhubarb. 

Sydney's been out of sync seasonally the last few months. The summer sun has barely receded and my winter coat has languished in my wardrobe. You could be forgiven for thinking it's spring, not autumn. Especially by the look of the rhubarb - rich red fat stalks, bundled in bunches and impossible to resist. This recipe sandwiches wonderfully pink fruit between a layer of dense, spicy biscuit crumb and a comforting, cinnamon-flecked oat and almond crumble. It's pretty near perfect as far as bar cookies go: sweet and tart and crunchy, with the gingernuts providing a peppery punch. Another reason to keep a packet in the pantry. And the first slice for the cook.

 

Gingernut rhubarb crumb bars
Adapted from a recipe by Kate Gibbs, as published in The Sun-Herald

If you can't get hold of gingernut biscuits, any ginger-infused cookie (like Anna's) would work just as well I'm sure.


250g store bought gingernut biscuits
1/4 cup almond meal
100g butter, melted
5-6 stalks rhubarb, cut into 2cm lengths
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
100g chilled butter, diced
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup slivered almonds



Preheat oven to 180 deg C. 

Place biscuits and almond meal in a food processor and process into crumbs. Add the butter and proces to combine. Press into the base of a greased 20 x 30cm tin lined with baking paper. Refrigerate for one hour. Layer rhubarb evenly over chilled gingernut base.

To make crumble, place flour, cinnamon, butter, sugar and oats in a food processor and pulse into crumbs. Fold through almonds, then crumble the mixture over the rhubarb. Cook in centre of oven for 30-35 minutes, until golden.

Let cool completely in tin, then refrigerate til ready to serve, then cut into squares.