apple rhubarb pie.

(photos by me)

I thrifted a sweet apple pie top cutter a few days ago and even though I had sworn to take off baking for a couple of days, I really couldn't help myself from heading immediately to the kitchen to make an apple pie. I recently bought a bunch of absolutely gorgeous rhubarb stalks at the farmer's market, so I decided to go for something a little more interesting: apple rhubarb pie. For some reason, I had always convinced myself that I despised rhubarb (perhaps from a bad strawberry rhubarb pie I had in my teen years), but I had recently made a goal to try it again. I must say, the mixture of the apples and the rhubarb was quite delicious, almost like an apple/cherry combination.

Sadly though, I was not happy at all with the crust I chose to make. I was all out of butter (I am a girl who loves a flaky, buttery pie crust), so I went searching around the internet for a basic shortening-based one. I knew from the moment I took the dough out of the refrigerator that it wasn't going to be good. It was all too hard to roll out, kept falling apart, and seemed quite dry no matter how much I tried to moisten it. I was quite sad that I wasn't going to be able to make the perfect apple-cut top that I was hoping for. Next time, I suppose!



Apple Rhubarb Pie

Ingredients:

Pastry for 1 double-crust pie (I prefer this one or this one)
5-6 apples
2 - 3 cups sliced fresh rhubarb
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cloves

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Roll out half the pastry and line a 9 inch pie plate. Trim leaving 1/2 inch over the pie plate.

Peel and core apples, and slice into 1/2 inch wedges. Place in a large bowl with sliced rhubarb. Toss fruit with sugar, flour and spices. Place in the pie shell.

Roll out remaining pastry and cut into 1/2 inch strips. Make a lattice top crust on the pie by crisscrossing the strips over the filling. Trim the strips even with the pie plate. Fold the 1/2 inch of the bottom crust over the ends of the strips. Seal and flute the edges.

Place on the lower rack in the oven and bake for 10 minutes, until the crust starts to brown. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue to bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until crust is golden and fruit is tender.