Rhubarb & Strawberry Custard Pie

A Sweet Rhubarb and Strawberry Pie ~ Perfect for a Mother's Day Celebration.

I am loving the look, taste and texture of this pie! A flaky buttery crust (with a little cream cheese) filled with bright colored fruits perfumed with a vanilla bean custard filling.

A prefect Mother's Day treat. Make the dough the day before and refrigerate to save time. Sunday morning - you pre bake the crust a little, fill with Rhubarb & Strawberries sweetened with brown sugar, then fill with a three ingredient custard; eggs, cream and vanilla bean gel. Bake - Cool - Eat - Indulge Mom!

Rhubarb is one of those flavors that is deliciously addicting. For those of you who have experienced it's earthy yet tangy taste - it can not be compared to any other fruit. Botanically speaking, Rhubarb is considered a vegetable, but it's most often treated as a fruit. The growing season is from April to September, yet it's stalks will wilt in the field if the weather gets too warm in the summer.

Similar to beets, it's color is released with other ingredients, kind of like a natural dye. Rhubarb also makes wonderful compotes and chutneys. It does need a sweetener to balance it's tartness.  

I have enjoyed rhubarb from an early age; my Grandparents grew this perennial plant at their Long Island, NY home - where it flourished. Rhubarb stalks are bright pink to crimson in color. When purchasing, I like to buy the prettiest deep hued stalks for the pop of color. The color is not indicative of flavor though. 

The perfect pretty, not too sweet pie to serve on Mother's Day... or as long as rhubarb is growing.

Next week's Blog:

A "Zesty" Main Course Salad for Mom.

Enjoy!

Karen 

The ingredients for the crust

Cutting the butter and cream cheese into large clumps for a flaky dough

Bringing the dough together with your hands

Rolling the dough out 4 inches larger than the pan

Pressing the dough into the pan and up the sides

Pricking the dough and filling with beans to weight it down

Beautiful Rhubarb Stalks and Strawberries

The ingredients for fruit and custard filling

Filling the pie first with the fruit

The finished pie

A nice slice of pie with Whipped Cream

Recipe: