The Perfect Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

I do not know if you can call strawberry rhubarb pie retro but you absolutely can call it a classic! We will be getting our first day of really warm weather today so yesterday while the rain was gently falling outside I decided to make a pie white it was still cool. I was inspired by this recipe but made lots of changes to make it my own. Usually I make this version but you know me, I am always experimenting with food and had to try something a little different!

Here is the inspiration: strawberries from my own garden. This made me very happy, to discover that I had these luscious strawberries ready for some homemade baking. Now these are not enough to make a pie with so I used store-bought strawberries too and the rhubarb came out of my mother-in-law’s garden. There was lots of love in this pie, the biggest and most important ingredient to making your own food from scratch. It is what makes it tastes sooooooooo good!

You put in a big bowl: 2 cups all purpose flour, 1/2 cup pastry flour, 3 tsp sifted icing sugar, 1/2 cup of cold cubed butter, 1/4 cup of shortening and a pinch of salt. You break the butter and shortening into the dough with a pastry blender or forks until you get tiny pieces like in the photo above.

In a measuring glass add 1 beaten egg, 2 tsp vinegar and 1/4 cup of ice cold water. Stir together and add all over the flour. With a fork stir and blend together and until it just comes together. If you still see lots of flour all over the place, keep adding cold water and stirring with a fork until you can bring it together with your hands. Move to a floured surface and shape into a ball and cut in half.

See all those layers? That is a good sign of a good crust. It comes from using cold ingredients and not over-working the dough. Cover each piece with plastic wrap and shape into a disk. Put in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (longer is better). Roll out on disk and place on the bottom of a pie shell.

In a large bowl combine: 2 1/2 cups of rhubarb, 2 1/2 cups of strawberries that have been quartered, 1 1/2 cups of sugar, 3 tbsp of cornstarch and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Add to the pie crust. If your filling is as liquid-y as mine was, you may want to add some flour too. Add the top crust, fold it over the bottom crust and then flute however you prefer. Cut some steam vents on the top, cover in an egg wash, add some decorative touches if you prefer and sprinkle with some sugar mixed with cinnamon.

Am I ever glad I baked this on a baking sheet covered in foil! This was a very liquid-y filling and was dripping out even before I put it in the oven! The foil stuck to the bottom of my pie plate, I have no idea if that is ever going to come off! Bake in a preheated 425F oven for 15 minutes and then reduce the heat to 375F. I only baked mine for 25 more minutes because I do not like a dark crust but feel free to bake yours for up to 45 minutes but keep at eye on it!

The crust was light, flaky, easy to slice with a fork and the filling melted in your mouth! This is my husband’s favourite pie in the world and he was in heaven as we had this for dessert last night.

What a treat to make a homemade pie with ingredients that came from my garden and Lorraine’s! And yes, the grocery store, but still, homemade and home grown? What could be better than that?!