The Treasure we found in the Flair: a better rhubarb pie recipe
Treasure can be found in so many different forms. Sometimes it’s a new friend or a financial windfall, other times it’s an unexpected gift or just a perfect day. Last night for me, I received a phoned invitation to pick up a warm pie from my parent’s house. That was my treasure of the day!
Sometimes treasure comes in the form of a new recipe for an old favorite food.
When Bryan and Reuben repaired my Flair stove and installed it into our new kitchen, they found treasure and saved it for me. They pulled an old, stained recipe card out of the bowels of the Flair stove. On one side, in tidy, old-fashioned handwriting, was a recipe for Rhubarb Pie. On the other side was a clipping from a newspaper, another recipe, this one for Rhubarb Cream Pie.
This discovery tickled me to no end. I will keep this card forever. It’s a treasure to me. If you’ve read the story of my Flair stove, you know that it was a long emotional roller-coaster that did, actually (spoiler alert!) have a happy ending, in that the Flair stove is now beautifully installed in my new kitchen. And working. Though the kitchen isn’t finished yet, it’s getting closer. One of these days . . . One of these days, I’ll title a blog post “Fait accompli!” It is finished! It’s a Done Deal!
My Frigidaire Flair stove!
But not yet.
I made plans to try out both the recipes right away, to see if they were any better than the rhubarb pies that we make already. It wasn’t something, I knew, that I would get to right away. It was in the back of my mind, at the end of my to-do-someday list, shoved to the back corners of my already-burdened brain. Then I told Mom about the recipe card, and she shared in my tickledness. “Get me the recipe and I’ll make the pie this week!” she said. “I still have rhubarb in the freezer!”
Well, well. More treasure. A mom who wanted to make the pies for me. So I wasted no time in getting the recipe to my Mom, and she made the rhubarb pie on the front of the card, and–mercy me, guess what?--it was fabulous. Mom and I both have a new favorite rhubarb pie recipe! And Gentle Reader, because I like sharing things with you, you might, too. The difference between this recipe and other rhubarb pie recipes that I’ve made, mostly, is simply this: there is a handful of raisins baked into it. Have you ever heard of such a thing? I hadn’t. Mom hadn’t.
Now it’s our favorite. Raisins in rhubarb pie: I wouldn’t have come up with that myself, but now that I’ve tasted it, I am a devotee! Raisins in rhubarb pie for President, say I! (tying my hands behind my back to not make a snarky and timely political comment here——!!!)
Here’s the recipe for you, darling reader. Let me know if you make it, and how you like it!
- 2 cups rhubarb, cut in 1/2″ pieces
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 Tbs flour
- pinch of salt
- 2 Tbs unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1/2 cup raisins, cut in half
- Enough pie pastry for two crusts
- Mix sugar and flour in a big bowl, then stir in rhubarb pieces.
- Beat egg well, and then add to rhubarb mixture. Mix well.
- Pour rhubarb mixture into pie pastry, and dot with butter pieces.
- Sprinkle halved raisins on top.
- Put on top pastry, crimp, slash, and brush milk on top. Sprinkle with sugar.
- Bake in 400 degree oven for 45 minutes or until hot and bubbly, and golden brown.
- Really terrific served hot, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Dandy served cold, too. Room-temperature it is still delicious.
Yummm, now don’t you just feel like making pie?
I sock away freezer bags full of sliced rhubarb every fall, and I only have one bag left–so I’m happy to see my rhubarb leaves pushing up out of the soil in my garden!
I’m going to write a blog post next week about my very favorite pastry recipe–stay tuned, or sign up for email updates, above, and/or sign up for my vomitingchicken.com Facebook page. You’ll be in the proverbial know then, Gentle Reader. And that is a very sweet place to be. 🙂 And if I may be so bold to ask you to share this post with your friends and your family–through social media or email or whatever mode of sharing you like, I’d be so–so–so–grateful!
Thanks for popping by!
*hugs*
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17 thoughts on “The Treasure we found in the Flair: a better rhubarb pie recipe”
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Yumm!! I can totally see the raises being a great addition!! I like a little cinnamon or vanilla too. Now please tell me the crust recipe in on your blog. That looks even better!!
Something interesting about that recipe – other than the raisins. Have you ever added an egg to a fruit pie before this? My wife and I both make pies – almost always fruit pies – and neither of us has ever used an egg in a fruit pie filling – other than one wild plum custard pie recipe that the little woman invented (to help reduce a bushel of wild plums to something other than preserves and jelly
Now that you have the raisin thing perfected, try subbing dried cranberries one of these days. But give me a break about cutting them in half. What, pray tell, Baker Lady, is accomplished by spending a gorgeous spring day cutting raisins in half. Wait a minute – I should have rhubarb in 5-6 weeks – maybe I’ll try it myself. But my crusts are NEVER as good as yours! Another thing for you to mentor me on!
Gene,
I plan to write a post this month on my very favorite (for now!) pastry recipe and it’s not hard at all. Well–I mean, it’s not difficult to make. And hey, I’ve received more flack on that cutting-raisins-in-half issue and I can assure you 1. I didn’t write the recipe, just copied it and 2. I felt the same way when I first saw it and 3. I suspect it has to do with the raisins plumping up *dangerously* in the pie if they aren’t sliced in half? and 4th and lastly: I timed myself cutting 1/2 cup of raisins in halves and I can assure you it was less than 5 minutes to do so. 😉 Here’s the deal: I could make two pies—-one with the raisins cut in half, and one with the whole raisins thrown, devil-may-care-ish, into the pie willy-nilly—-and I would, if I had enough noise from you gentle readers on this score. Then I could study (*burp*) the results. Would that satisfy? 😉
Follow-up. Re old fashioned cursive handwriting. I just dug out my mother’s recipe box, filled with cards like the one you photographed. Her handwriting is so much like the one on your card that you can’t tell them apart. And her recipe cards have as many smudges and discolorations as yours. She was born 100 years ago, went to a one-room school in rural southwest Nebraska and probably had the same sixth grade teacher as the woman who wrote your card. Even 60 years ago, when I was in the 6th grade, penmanship was a big deal, and we were graded on it. (My lowest marks!) BTW – glad that your mom is feeling well enough to bake a pie!!!
Gene,
You’d be surprised at how many readers have said that their own mothers’ handwriting was exactly like that on my card! And believe me–I’m pretty happy (and relieved!) that my dear mum is feeling good enough to bake pies again, too. 🙂 <---me, selfish child!
Love rhubarb pie and Victorian sauce.
Coffee is on
Victorian sauce? Please share, Dora!
This looks so wonderful! I can’t wait to try it once the rhubarb out back is big enough to start picking. Please hurry with your pastry recipe, it won’t be long! I do also hope that you’ll share the Rhubarb Cream Pie recipe with us if it turns out well, it sounds amazing!
Tina,
Several gentle readers have asked for the cream pie, so I definitely will make it and share the recipe, too. And I plan to share my new favorite pastry recipe this month. 🙂 Stay tuned, chickie!
Looks wonderful. I really like rhubarb however have never seen any here in Mexico. Perhaps I will be able to try it in August when I visit our daughter in the states. She loves to bake pies and cookies so I will tell her to check out this recipe, Thanks for sharing your treasure.
Chef, no rhubarb in Mexico? I wonder if it’s too hot down there for it?
My husband’s two favorite pies are, Rhubarb and Gooseberry.
He likes raisins.
I’m not sure how he’d feel about raisins in his rhubarb pie though! I might just have to try it. The egg in the recipe caused me to stop and re-read it….hmmm, ok add an egg….
Thanks for sharing!
Rhubarb and Gooseberry, actually, to me, taste quite a bit alike. I’m going to try to pick enough wild gooseberries this year to make a pie, although in our area they are very tiny so it takes quite awhile to pick enough for a pie! But I looove gooseberry pie, too.
That card could have been written by my mom! The handwriting is identical and this is the exact same rhubarb pie I’ve been making for years!!!! What a coincidence!!!!
Dayle . . . you by chance don’t live in Nebraska, do you? I’ve had a few other people who live in our area say that that card could have been written by their mothers, the handwriting is so similar. But honestly, you’re the first reader to say that you’ve got the same rhubarb pie recipe! That really is a coincidence!
Hmm… I like rhubarb pie and I like raisin (craisins too) but together?? Plus the Blue-Eyed Farmer would not eat my lovely rhubarb pie if the two were joined. So I’ll enjoy them separately unless I’m making one to take to more enlightened folks.
OOoooh Kay, you oughta try it. It’s sooo good…..even your blue-eyed farmer might like it.