A Pair of Rhubarb Pies

There's nothing that I love to bake more in the summer than pie. Ok, maybe galettes, but they are pretty much the same component parts arranged a little differently. Anyhow, fruit and buttery crust, and ice cream on top is pretty much the optimal to enjoy just about any summer produce, even better if you can eat it outside somewhere - barefoot with the sun shining on your face.

I hope you don't mind that I am a little behind in sharing what I've been up to in the kitchen, but there is still lots of rhubarb at my farmer's market so here are a couple of rhubarb-heavy recipes that would be perfect for this holiday weekend's (if you are in the US) gatherings.

The Bluebarb is especially patriotic with it's red rhubarb, and blueberry filling. I am not a fan of strawberries and rhubarb baked together, but I love rhubarb with darker berries. The second is a straight-up rhubarb pie sweetened with brown sugar, and flavored with a generous sprinkle of lime juice and zest which was a welcome change from my normal granulated sugar-orange zest combo. I made both of these pies with the All Butter Pie Crust from Sweeter off the Vine using all purpose flour, but they would be great with a whole grain crust too (sub in 1/2 spelt or rye for the all purpose) If you are gluten-free Alanna over at the Bojon Gourmet has a lot of great looking gluten free crusts too, pie for everyone!

Have a great weekend guys!

p.s. Don't forget to check the EVENTS tab above. I'll be doing book signings and other book related events all summer, I'd love to meet you all!

Bluebarb Pie

Makes one 9-inch pie

All Butter Pie Crust (recipe follows)

Filling

1 pound (450g)  rhubarb stalks

1 pound (450g) blueberries

3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar

1/2 lemon, zest and juice

1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped from the pod

1/4 cup (32g) all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

pinch salt

1 egg, lightly beaten for egg wash

1 tablespoon turbinado sugar

Preheat the oven to 400º F and place a rack in the bottom of the oven. In a large bowl combine the sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla bean seeds. Use your fingers to rub the zest and seeds into the sugar until well combined and fragrant. Stir in the flour, cinnamon, and salt.

Cut the rhubarb into 1-inch pieces and add it to the bowl. Add the blueberries and lemon juice, but don't stir quite yet.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out one piece of the dough into a roughly 12-inch circle about 1/8-inch thick and place it into a 9-inch pie pan. Place in the fridge while you prepare the rest of the pie. Roll out the other piece of dough into a roughly 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick.

Stir the filling ingredients together, then fill the pie shell and top with the second crust.

Trim the edges so they are even, then crimp them together. Alternately, cut the second crust into 1 1/2 to 2-inch strips and weave a lattice top.

Slide the whole pie into the fridge or freezer for about 15 minutes or until the crust is very firm. When you are ready to bake, carefully and gently brush the top of the pie with a beaten egg and sprinkle with a healthy dose of coarse sugar.

Put the pie on a baking sheet to catch any drips and bake for 45-55 minutes or until the crust is deep golden brown and the juices bubble. Cool the pie before slicing.

Brown Sugar Rhubarb Pie

makes one 9-inch pie

All Butter Pie Crust (recipe follows)

Filling

32 ounces (900g) rhubarb  chopped into 1/2'' pieces (if your rhubarb is tough or stringy, remove the strings by pulling them down the stalk)

1 1/4 cups (250g) light brown sugar

1/4 cup (32g) all purpose flour

1/2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped from the pod

1 tablespoon lime zest

1 tablespoon lime juice

pinch salt

1 egg, lightly beaten for egg wash

1 tablespoon turbinado sugar

Preheat the oven to 400º F and place a rack in the bottom of the oven. In a large bowl combine the sugar, lime zest, and vanilla bean seeds. Use your fingers to rub the zest and seeds into the sugar until well combined and fragrant. Stir in the flour and salt. Add the rhubarb and lime juice but don't stir quite yet.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out one piece of the dough into a roughly 12-inch circle about 1/8-inch thick and place it into a 9-inch pie pan. Place in the fridge while you prepare the rest of the pie. Roll out the other piece of dough into a roughly 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick.

Stir the filling ingredients together, then fill the pie shell and top with the second crust.

Trim the edges so they are even, then crimp them together. Alternately, cut the second crust into 1 1/2 to 2-inch strips and weave a lattice top.

Slide the whole pie into the fridge or freezer for about 15 minutes or until the crust is very firm. When you are ready to bake, carefully and gently brush the top of the pie with a beaten egg and sprinkle with a healthy dose of coarse sugar.

Put the pie on a baking sheet to catch any drips and bake for 45-55 minutes or until the crust is deep golden brown and the juices bubble. Cool the pie before slicing.

All Butter Pie Crust

2 2/3 cups (340g) all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (255g) unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes

8-10 tablespoons ice water

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

To make the crust, combine the flour and salt in a bowl, cut the butter into 1/2-inch cubes, and add the apple cider vinegar to the ice water.

Working quickly, add the butter to the flour and toss to coat. Then use your fingers or the palms of your hands to press each cube of butter into a flat sheet. Keep tossing the butter as you go to ensure that each butter piece is coated with flour. The idea is to create thin, flat shards of butter that range from about the size of a dime to about the size of a quarter. Sprinkle about 6 tablespoons of the water over the flour mixture and mix gently. If the dough seems very dry, add more water a couple of teaspoons at a time. 

You have added enough water when you can pick up a handful of the dough and squeeze it together easily without it falling apart. Press the dough together, then split it in half, form into discs and wrap each disc in plastic wrap. Chill the dough for at least one hour before using, or overnight. I prefer an overnight rest if possible

Strawberry and Campari Paletas from Sweeter off the Vine

It's popsicle week, y'all! Billy from Wit and Vinegar arranges this annual frozen treat fun-fest and I am so happy to play along this year with one of my favorite warm weather recipes from Sweeter off the Vine!

I have been seriously obsessed with strawberries this Spring. I'm not sure if they are better this year than they have been in the past or what, but I straight-up cannot resist them every time I hit the market. Aside from eating them by the handful, I have been making all sorts of strawberry tarts, shortcakes, and frozen treats like these paletas. They are perfectly bitter-sweet, and perfectly cooling on a hot summer day. You can even turn them into a cocktail of sorts by dipping the pops in a glass of super-chilled prosecco or rose. Love.

See more popsicle week fun here.

Strawberry and Campari Paletas

makes 6-10, depending on the size of your molds

from Sweeter off the Vine

Paletas are ice pops made from fresh fruit; this version combines sweet strawberries and bitter, herbaceous Campari for a grown- up frozen treat. Be careful not to get too carried away with the Campari—too much booze and these pops won’t freeze. For a refreshing cocktail, try serving the paletas dipped in a glass of Prosecco: trust me, it’s delicious.

1 pound (450g) strawberries

5 tablespoons (60g) sugar

1/4 cup (60ml) Campari

juice of 1/2 lemon, about 4 teaspoons

pinch salt

Hull the strawberries and slice them in half. Add them, along with the rest of the ingredients, to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Taste the mixture and adjust the level of sweetness if necessary by adding more sugar, one teaspoon at time. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve and pour into frozen pop molds. Freeze the pops until completely firm, at least 6 hours or overnight.