Apple Rhubarb & Custard Pasty - Pasty Presto, Cambridge

Apple, Rhubarb & Custard Pasty

I do like a pasty at lunch time, traditional Cornish and steak and stilton being two of my favourites, but I've never eaten a sweet one before.  So, when I saw this in the window of Pasty Presto in Cambridge I was intrigued.  The fact it had rhubarb and custard in definitely sealed the deal, so here is what I thought.

Presentation - Score: 5/10

Pasties are never going to make the top of the list in terms of looks, but they do rough and ready really well.  I think the fact that the only differences between this and the savoury pasties were the markings and icing sugar on top kind of tells the story.

However, the pastry was a beautiful golden colour and I couldn't wait to see inside so the Apple, Rhubarb and Custard Pasty scores an average 5 out of 10 for presentation.

Taste - Score: 7/10

Taking the first bite, I was full of anticipation.  As I went to sink my teeth in I took a breath, and got a lung-full of icing sugar!!  After a brief coughing fit, and brushing some of the remaining icing sugar off the top so there wasn't a repeat performance, I took that all important first bite.  The pastry on the outside was delightfully crisp and just that little bit flaky, not so much that my lap was showered in the stuff, but just enough to create a wonderful texture and sound to the bite.

The filling was lovely too, not too sweet, with a good mix of apple, rhubarb and custard to create the flavour - although if I had my own way I'd drop the apple and just go with the rhubarb and custard!

Therefore, the Apple, Rhubarb and Custard Pasty scores a good 7 out of 10 for taste.

Overall - Score: 6/10

I was very pleased that I gave the sweet pasty a try, and would definitely choose it, or another flavour, again.  It was always going to be let down a bit by it's looks, but at the end of the day if it tastes good the looks don't really matter.  All-in-all, a very respectable 6 out of 10 for the Apple, Rhubarb and Custard Pasty.