Page 128: Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

Okay, now I really feel like a cheater.  Only when forced to sit down and document my progress did I realize that I've been taking a lot of liberties with the handful of remaining recipes. Let me explain...

I was down to four recipes and it was Thanksgiving - so I thought this pie would be the perfect recipe to knock out in honor of the holiday.

However, rhubarb was nowhere to be found at the three grocery stores I visited last Wednesday. Maybe this is because it's just not rhubarb season, or maybe it's because I live in one of the most remote places in the country. Regardless, it was simply not available.  After several minutes of google research whilst standing in the produce department of grocer number three (what did we do before iPhones?), I learned that cranberries can be substituted for rhubarb in strawberry-rhubarb recipes because they have a similar sour quality. One blogger also advocated the substitution of swiss chard simply because she bought it on accident and couldn't tell the difference (though subsequent google searches strongly advised against this particular substitution).  

It was Thanksgiving after all, and cranberries were so readily available... so I made the switch. I was a woman on a mission with just four recipes to go. So yes, I consider this recipe done.

I cooked the cranberries down with a half cup evaporated cane juice then used them as directed in the recipe.  This addition of sugar probably made the whole thing sweeter, but it turned out pretty good anyway. Besides, since when did extra sugar ruin anything?

I learned my lesson from last year and made the dough only when I was ready to make the pie, and even left it in the fridge for just a smidge under the 20 minutes suggested. It was so much more manageable this time and rolled out easily.  However, the final version still didn't really taste like a pie crust and certainly lacked the flakiness of traditional pie crust.  However, if you have eat gluten free it's probably a pretty good pie considering your options.

While I was at it I made a baby pie in a ramekin so I could sample without cutting into the pie before dinner.

The filling was a tart and sweet combination, and overall I thought it was pretty good.  Not as good as my Mom's pie crust for sure, but considering it doesn't have butter and is made from spelt, I'll take it.

THREE recipes to go!