Strawberry Rhubarb Pie version 2.0

An attempt to make a more generic strawberry rhubarb pie that wasn't quite so spicelly potent. Not because the spicy pie isn't the way to go, but because some people don't have the same palate for flavor that I do. This time I used a butter dough for the crust that turned out to be much easier for me to manage than the usual shortening dough. The net result was a thicker crust that wasn't quite as flaky as I wanted but was tasty all the same.


THE CRUST:

2C flour
1 t salt

2/3 C cold butter
5-7 T cold water (I add an ice cube to water in a 1 cup measure.)

1) Combine the flour & salt in a mixing bowl. Cut in the shortening. Then add the water 1 T at a time, stirring clockwise with a fork until the dough turns into a nice ball (The butter dough will take 7-8 Tbsp and may want to be kneaded with your fingers in the bowl.) Wrap the dough tightly in saran wrap and put it in the freezer while you cut and mix up the berries.

THE FILLING:

1) Cut 2 green grocery containers strawberries. Remove the leafy part and then cut the strawberry in thirds so that the pieces are as flat as possible. Cut 1 lbs. rhubarb stalks into 1-inch squares.

2) In separate bowl combine:

1C sugar
1/2 cup flour
3/8 tsp. Valencia orange peel
1 Tbsp. lemon juice

3) Add the combined above to the fruit, stir it all up so the fruit is all covered.

4) Allow the berries to sit in the juices while you roll out the crust.

ASSEMBLING THE PIE:

1) Roll out 1/2 of the dough for the bottom crust using plenty of flour. Store the other half back in the freezer while you roll out the bottom crust. Half way through rolling, flip the dough over and roll on the other side until the have a smooth, flat circle. Place in the pie tin. Cut the bottom crust off at one finger's width distance from the rim of the pie plate. Prick with a fork.

2) Roll out the remaining dough for the top as above, again using plenty of flour and flipping the crust half way through, making sure to brush excess flour of the top surface.

2) Spoon filling into the pie crust. The strawberries will have released quite a bit of juice, due to the sugar coating. Spoon the berries into the crust, but leave the extra juices in the bottom of the bowl behind (this may be about 1/4-1/3 cup of juices left behind. If you add them, the pie will be too soupy.)

3) Use your fingers to wet the edges of the bottom pie crust with the ice water. Place the top crust over the pie and cut the top crust off at two finger's width distance from the rim of the pie plate. Fold the top crust edge over the bottom crust edge just inside of the pie plate and flute the edge. Cut a pattern into the top crust to help some of the juices escape during baking.

4) Bake pie for 30 min at 425 F (depending on your oven) and then 30-35 min at 375 F. It's wise to put a cookie sheet on the rack beneath the pie while it's baking just in case some of the juices run over (they will.)

5) Let the pie cool on the counter, then chill the pie in the fridge for a minimum of 3 hours before serving (preferably overnight, which allows the pie to settle thickly together).

I call this the boring pie. It was good, yes, very good. But just not as interesting as my previous version. Also I've decided that a non-spicy pie should be made with bigger pieces of berry, maybe berries cut just in half, or even whole. Next up I think I want to try a whole berry strawberry pie, without additional fruit. I find these pies a little difficult to eat when the berries are big, so I might cut them just in half and do a creamier matrix to bind the berries together. Maybe cook the berries and then make a custard or cream and make it a refrigerated, instead of baked, pie. Maybe with a graham-cracker pecan crust.