Light and refreshing, this Vegan Rhubarb Panna Cotta Tart is made with a creamy rhubarb filling and gluten-free crust. It makes for an easy summer dessert!

I felt like I just walked into an old French country kitchen.

In the summer of my sophomore year in college, I had the opportunity to do a summer study abroad trip to Paris for a Creative Food Writing Course. My English professor was a chef before and had lived in Paris for a while. She returned almost every year, taking a new group of students to learn about the food culture in Paris.

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Prior to our trip, my professor arranged a dinner for our small class at her home. There was only a handful of us, but I remember we were all in awe with her old French country-style kitchen. The kitchen island was made of rustic wood with a chopping board top. The kitchen walls are lined with spices from all around the world. She had a small antique stovetop with a small antique bread oven (picture the wood-fired ones but about the size of a box). I felt like I had stepped into another world.

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When we were done with dinner, I watched my professor pull out the strawberry-rhubarb galette she had put in the small oven not too long ago. I watched in fascination the amount of care she puts into slicing the galette and serving it with a scoop of ice cream for us. It was the first time I had rhubarb and when I fell in love with it. I love the tartness of it combined with the sweetness from the strawberries and buttery crust and just sitting in her kitchen makes me feel like I was in Paris already.

Every year when rhubarb season arrives, I think back to that memory, a group of students of different cultures, backgrounds, and ages sitting together in a rustic kitchen chatting away until it was late for us and we all had to leave. It reminded me of how incredible food can be in bringing people together.

When was the first time you had rhubarb?

Let’s start making this Vegan Rhubarb Panna Cotta Tart!