Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

For the Shortbread Crust:

Combine 1 cup flour and 2 tsp sugar; cut in butter until well mixed. Press into a greased 8×8″ pan. Bake for 10 minutes. It will not be fully baked and that’s fine.

For the Custard Filling:

While the crust is baking, combine the custard ingredients, starting with the 1 cup sugar, 5 Tbsp flour, and orange peel. Whisk in 1/2 cup heavy/whipping cream and 2 eggs. Stir in the rhubarb.

Remove the shortbread crust from the oven when the 10 minutes is up.

Pour the custard filling over the hot crust. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes, or until custard is set. Cool completely.

For the Cream Cheese Topping:

Allow the cream cheese (3 oz) to soften at room temperature.

Whip 1/2 cup cold heavy cream in a mixing bowl at high speed until thick. Add 1 Tbsp confectioners’ sugar to help stabilize the cream.

In a separate bowl, mix the cream cheese with 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract until smooth. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture using a spatula. Do NOT whip it or it may fall apart.

Spoon the cream cheese/whipped cream mixture over the cooled custard filling and spread evenly. Refrigerate for at least an hour or two. I recommend refrigerating overnight for the best results.

Cut into bars and serve.