Guest Post: A Rhubarb & Strawberry Pie From Canada

Introducing my first guest post by Janet from the wonderful The Brightside blog, part of the Canadian Homemakers Magazine.  You will find my post about Morris Dancing over at the Brightside!

Thank you for having me over! I normally write at The Brightside a happiness blog, where you’ll find Helen today. She’s got a lovely post up about spotting Morris Dancers whilst having a few days away in Kent.

Right now where I live in Southern Ontario, rhubarb is fresh and just ending its season, while strawberries are just beginning. It’s the perfect time to make Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie – a truly fuss-free recipe!

In fact, this recipe is so simple it’s easy to adapt it to other fruits. Try it with whatever is in season in your own area. If I was lucky enough to be in the UK in the summer, after making a strawberry-rhubarb pie I’d definitely try gooseberry, or later on combine blackberries with apple.

The Simplest Pastry Ever

I learned to make my favourite pastry from my Mum. It’s so fuss-free that at this point I simply eyeball it, but maybe measuring would be a good idea the first time you bake this. :) This recipe makes a tender, rich pastry that’s more melt-in-your-mouth than flaky.

200 g / 315 mL / 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
120 g / 160 mL / 2/3 cups soft margarine
3 tbsp / 45 mL cold water

(Where I live, most soft margarine comes salted, so I don’t add any salt – adjust to your own preference and ingredients.)

Cut fat into flour with two knives or a pastry-cutter. Sprinkle water on top and with floured hands, gently squeeze into a ball. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before rolling out on a floured surface.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

I measured the ingredients I used so you can replicate this recipe exactly, but it’s truly forgiving. You could use more strawberries, or more rhubarb – you only need enough fruit to fill the pie, enough sugar to please your palate, and enough flour to cope with the juiciness of the fruit. I used all the rhubarb in this picture and about half of the strawberries shown.

500 g / 1 1/4 lb rhubarb stalks
400 g / 1 lb strawberries
170 g / 180 mL / 3/4 cup brown sugar
50 g / 75 mL / 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
Ground ginger to taste

Wash and trim rhubarb; chop into 1 cm/1/2-inch slices. Sprinkle with salt; let stand about 20 minutes. Wash and hull strawberries; cut larger ones in halves or quarters.

Roll out pastry and cut out pie lid; roll out remaining pastry and line bottom and sides of pie pan.

Stir strawberries and rhubarb together; stir in sugar, flour, and a pinch of ginger if you like ginger. Scrape mixture into pan; top with pastry lid. Crimp edges and cut vents.

Place pie on a baking sheet to catch drips. Bake in 200°C / 400°F oven for 45-55 minutes – until filling is bubbling and pastry is golden.

If you make this pie with another fruit, you can adjust the sugar and flour. Rhubarb and strawberries are both rather tart and juicy, so they need more sugar and flour than other fruits. On the other hand, I don’t like my pies too sweet, so I only used 3/4 cup/180 mL sugar. If you have a really sweet tooth, you might use as much as a cup/235 mL. Apples probably only need half a cup/120 mL of sugar (and a heaping tablespoon/25 mL of flour) unless you use a super-tart variety. The fun of experimenting is how many pies you get to make! :)

Enjoy and happy pie-making.

Janet Rowe

Many thanks to Janet for her delicious pie!   I am very pastry unconfident, but this seems so easy so will be trying it soon.