Spiced Rhubarb Pie

Yes, I said spiced. Rhubarb has got to be one of my absolute favorite perennial plants. It's incredibly hardy and can grow just about anywhere, even in Alaska. It's bright and sour and adds depth of flavor to just about anything. Yes, it's quite fibrous and can be a little difficult to prepare in the wrong hands - but it's so worth it to keep at least a couple of these beautiful mounding plants alive in your garden. Not only are they a wonderfully flavorful addition to countless dishes, but they look quite nice in the garden bed. I suggest planting them in a sunny spot where you don't mind an eventual big mound of beautiful rhubarb and where it will be for a long time. Perennials mean a permanent commitment!

For this recipe, I'll also be using spicebush berries, which are made from these gorgeous foraged berries native to the Americas. Don't fret, though, if you don't have these! I've got an excellent substitute down the line... You dry the berries for use, of course, and store them in jars or bags. When ready to use, simply grind them in a spice grinder to release the incredible oils and bright orange spice inside. The taste, to me, is like a pink peppercorn made love to a cinnamon stick, and then the spice that came from that union eloped with a big peel of juicy orange. It's truly a spectacular spice that I love to use in many of my baked goods.

This is a foraged spice which means it is not bought and sold commercially. As far as I can tell, the kind of spicebush that grows the berries hasn't been cultivated as of yet, so I couldn't simply tell you to go out and buy the plants. This is a shame since it's such a lovely and unique spice that I think everyone in the world should get to have. I can't tell you where to buy it, so I'll just refer you to Prairie Birthday Farm, which is how I get mine. I'm sure that they could ship to wherever you may be staying if you ask nicely. They're nice, warm-hearted people over there, and they've been kind enough to include me in the possibility of propagating and cultivating the bush in hopes that more and more Midwestern folk will fall in love with native plants and start planting them in their own yards. The transplants won't be ready until spring of 2022, of course, but you can bet that this gal will be awaiting their arrival to her garden with bated breath.

Spiced Rhubarb Pie 
yields one 

Flaky all-butter pie crust

• 8 oz vegan butter, cold, chopped 
• We all know I love Earth Balance and Miyoko's butter!
• 14 oz all-purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
• Ice water, as needed

Rhubarb filling

• 7 cups chopped rhubarb
• Fresh is ideal, but frozen is just fine
• 1 1/4 c granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp spicebush berries, ground in the spice grinder**
• If you cannot get spicebush berries, simply use:
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp pink peppercorns, ground
• Zest of 1 orange
• A pinch of Chinese Five Spice powder
• A pinch of turmeric
• 1 tsp good vanilla extract
• A fat pinch of kosher salt
• 1/2 c cornstarch
• 3/4 c orange juice

For the filling, mix - in a large bowl - the chopped rhubarb with the sugar, spices, vanilla, and salt so that everything is coated. Cover with clingfilm or a tea towel and set aside while you make the pie crust. Ideally, you're going to want to let this soak for an hour or more. 

For the crust, simply cut the butter into the flour and sugar with either a pastry cutter or two knives. If you have a food processor, feel free to use that instead. The idea is to get pea-sized chunks going on throughout the flour mixture before adding ice water. How much? Oh, just enough to barely get the dough to come together when mixed with a fork! It's quite dry where I am right now, so I think I used about 1/4 cup of water. Simply ball together and set in the fridge for an hour.

When you're ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350. While we're waiting for the oven to heat and the dough to cool, let's talk a bit about rhubarb!

Please don't be put off by the color!

As you can see, the rhubarb is green. As you may have noticed from the date on this blog, it's the middle of October. This may confuse you because many people are mostly familiar with rhubarb in the context of strawberry rhubarb pie, which is a late springtime and early summertime delight. The truth of the matter is that rhubarb doesn't just grow in the spring, but in the fall as well. This lovely plant grows in what I like to call the 'in-betweener seasons,' which means the transitional seasons between extreme heat and extreme cold, summer and winter. The stalks start green but turn red as they ripen with the warmth. You won't always see red rhubarb in the cooler months, but that shouldn't turn you off.

If you aren't familiar with rhubarb's flavor profile, I've asked my husband - who up until recently had never had a straight rhubarb pie - to describe it. His exact words were:

"Oh. Uh. I don't know... Kind of tart?"

I would describe it as sour and vegetal, which is oddly good. Maybe a super-sour celery with a hint of citrus fragrance? It's a truly unique flavor that's got a surprisingly high amount of vitamin C, potassium, and calcium so you can feel good about having more than one slice of this ultra-thick pie. It's got a very nice depth of flavor that is so unique...and also a vegetable! Would you ever think that you could make a sweet pie out of vegetables? It's so good, you can make any pie, cake filling, or jam from it and it'll go down a treat for anyone who tastes it. 

As I mentioned previously, rhubarb is a perennial plant, which means it comes back every year. Strawberries, which go excellent with rhubarb, is also a perennial. They are also a good cold weather plant which means that they can survive underground in the snow. This means they can grow in the same patch together and be just fine! To ensure their survival, a healthy amount of straw and mulch over the beds will do you a world of good. I have some large maple trees on my property that - of course -  shed their leaves when autumn comes. This is a natural mulch, but is so much more than that.

I finished this bed two days before I gave birth!

In nature, autumn leaves aren't meant to be raked up. The leaves that fall are a natural blanket for the underlying vegetation an a cozy home for pollinating insects to lay their eggs until they can hatch in the next year's spring. This protects any plant life from hard frosts and blankets of snow in the winter months.  Nonmigratory birds also benefit from these leaves because worms feast on them and fat worms mean healthy birds. Fat worms also mean healthy soil and healthy soil means healthy biome. Do you see how it's all connected, and how you - in your own small way - can help your own tiny microcosm of plant and animal life? Just something to think about while you finish your pie...  

I don't even know what this is supposed to be. Maybe like a triceratops doing a cosplay of Jack Skellington?

Divide the dough in half and give your dough a good smack or two with a floured rolling pin to soften everything up while keeping the fat still cold. This is great therapy, especially if you have a newborn like me, and you are so sleep deprived and you just need some kind of safe release... It's ideal if you can roll all of this out on a marble surface, but whatever you're using is probably just fine. You can either roll out two discs on floured surfaces or you can sandwich your dough between two sheets of parchment paper that have been lubricated liberally with aerosol pan spray of some matter. I prefer this method, simply because it helps with cleanup and minimizes the chance of overworking the dough. If you're going to use a more intricate design on your pie crust top, however, it may benefit you to use flour and a bit of kneading, just to ensure the pie crust is strong enough to do fun things with. My design was fairly simple, so I kept my rolling method simple. 

Important note: No matter which method of rolling out you use, be sure to lay your pie crust in your pie dish of choice with plenty of overhang and allow it to rest in the dish for at least five minutes while you work on your top. It's imperative that you do this to minimize any shrinkage that would otherwise occur. You can let it rest on the counter, but I personally think it's better to let it rest in the fridge so the dough can get cold again before anything else. When the bottom is ready, give it a quick dust of semolina or equal parts sugar and flour. 

When you're ready, give the filling a good stir. You should have quite a bit of liquid that's come from your rhubarb! Drain that into a small saucepot and whisk in the cornstarch. Slowly bring to a boil over a medium flame and allow to thicken. It'll get quite thick so don't worry! When boiling, immediately remove from the heat and add the orange juice. Give it a good whisk to ensure there are absolutely no lumps and add it back to the rhubarb. Mix everything until it's all well incorporated and pour into your prepared bottom crust.  There will be quite a high rounded top on this, so please keep that in mind when designing your top crust. Make sure you have at least a few vent holes in your design.

Bake your pie at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until the crust is golden-brown and there's slight bubbling of the filling that's showing. Remove and allow to cool for about an hour before cutting into it. This pie is sour, sweet, herbacious, and incredibly satisfying in the fall. The cornstarch helps it set so you can get clean slices, and the orange juice brings out the naturally citrus-like flavor of the rhubarb. The spices compliment the sour-bitter notes with aromatic fragrances that remind us of fall. 

I love this pie because it uses one of my favorite 'surprise fall' ingredients and gives me a break from pumpkin. Don't get me wrong - pumpkin and apple are life! But you do need a break from these two juggernauts of autumn flavors and I think that this pie is just the ticket. Variety is the spice of life, as they say. 

As always, I want to send out a special thank you to my good friends at KC Farm School at Gibbs Road for their tireless efforts in agricultural education and advocacy for the community, and for their help and generosity during my pregnancy and birth journey. The friends I have made during my time working with this farm and the community I have found during the pandemic because of this organization has meant more to me than I could ever write. Thank you.

I'd also like to take a moment to say thank you to the nursing students at Research Medical Center, who happened to be at the farmer's market at KC Farm School on Wednesday, October 13th, of 2021, that checked my blood pressure and alerted me to the fact that I had suddenly developed gestational hypertension. This is a condition that isn't serious in and of itself but it does have a 50/50 chance of developing into preeclampsia, which can be a life-threatening condition for both mother and baby. Because of them, I went immediately to the hospital after the market and was able to get induced and safely deliver my baby. Thank you. 

Actually, my entire birth story was awesome and it was all thanks to the incredible nurses and nursing students of Research Medical Center. If you're at all curious, you can find my birth story here on IGTV Live! It's a long one, so be forewarned. 

Finally, I'd like to thank you for joining me for a portion of your day. I know that reading food blogs aren't always the most exciting thing to do with your time, but the fact that even a tiny portion of your day was spent with me makes me feel special. I hope that I can provide education and insight to food and growing it for yourself. I also hope that I made you laugh. 

Happy cooking and happy eating!

Chocolate Sugar Cream Pie

Best of all, this pie is vegan!

Mirror glaze? Jelly Cakes? Of course, they're all gorgeous, but what has caught my eye as of late is the new trend of "Desperation Pies." I must not be the only one who's attention has been grabbed, as Bon Appetit has written about them, as well! This pie is a twist on an American classic desperation pie, known as a Sugar Cream pie...also known as a Hoosier pie! What is so amazing about this pie is that there are no eggs in it. This is great if you have a dietary restriction, a food allergy, or even just plain don't feel like driving to the store when you're out of eggs. Either way, it's an impossibly silky texture with only a few simple ingredients. Here's how to make it!

Vegan Sugar Cream Pie

*marshmallows optional

• 1 can full-fat coconut milk
• 1/2 c almond or hemp milk
• 1/2 c or 3.5 oz white sugar
• 1/2 c or 3.5 oz brown sugar
• 1/3 c dark cocoa powder
• 4 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 4 Tbsp tapioca starch
• 1 tsp instant coffee
• The freeze-dried kind, if you please!
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• ** 1 tsp cardamom
• I just really like cardamom and chocolate, but you can omit this if you like
• 1 pie shell, unbaked
• If you need a recipe, follow this one!
• 14 oz all-purpose flour
• 4 oz vegan butter such as Earth balance or Flora
• 4 oz vegetable shortening
• Enough vodka to bring it all together, usually 1/2 c
• Simply blend this by hand or in a standing mixer with a paddle attachment, wrap, and chill for an hour before rolling out to use. So easy!

Roll your pie dough out into your chosen pie dish and chill while you let your oven preheat to 325 degrees F. I suggest also lining a sheet pan with aluminum foil so you may set your pie on later. Even better, set the baking rack of your oven to the lowest point, so that the crust will be closer to the bottom. It's imperative that your dough be quite cold when it goes in the oven, so you'll get a flaky crust! Please note that you may parbake this crust if you like, but in all honesty I've never noticed much of a difference so you may as well save yourself the extra step and just bake it straight.

To make your sugar cream pie, simply combine all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl with a whisk. This is the most-important step to getting a lump-free custard, so make sure that all of the dry ingredients - cocoa powder, sugars, flours, etc. - are all in there and all well-mixed. Slowly add your 1/2 cup of almond milk and stir in with a whisk. Add in half the coconut milk and stir until completely combined and utterly smooth, being sure to scrape the sides well. The last thing you want in this pie is patches of dry stuff! 

Add the last of the coconut milk, scrape all sides with a spatula, and stir well. You may even put this mixture in the blender, if you like, to ensure that it is as smooth as it could be! Cover this mixture with plastic wrap and let sit for about 10 minutes to hydrate. 

When you're ready to bake, place your chilled pie dish on the foil-lined sheet tray and open your oven door. Uncover your chocolate mixture and give it a good, slow stir with a spatula first, and then a whisk. You do not want any sedimentary action in your bowl! Everything should be floating when you put your pie custard into the oven, and that's how you get such a silky texture. Get ready!

Pull the bottom rack of the oven halfway and place your sheet tray and pie pan upon it. Grab your custard, give it a final stir with a spatula, and pour it straight into the pie shell. It should fill it all the way up to the top! If you have any bubbles, you may pop them with a quick blast of a torch, but it is not necessary. Finally, gently push the pie on the rack back into the oven, being slow and steady so you won't spill this extra-liquidy filling everywhere. Close up the oven and bake at 325 for 45 - 60 minutes, depending on the weather. This pie will take quite a while to set up, but you won't have to worry too much about over-baking it because there are no eggs to scramble!

In the meantime, while we wait, may I speak for a moment about the history of Desperation Pies? If you'd like to skip this part, just click here to your next step...

You might know a desperation pie not by type, but by name: Vinegar pie, Sugar Cream Pie, Shoofly Pie, even Water Pie... These pies came out of the kitchens of American cooks during times of economic hardship, such as the American Civil War or the Great Depression. I even recall hearing Caroline Ingalls mention "Vinegar pie" during an old rerun of Little House on the Prairie as a child. It sounded old-timey and disgusting, but this funny treat has gained quite a bit of notoriety recently! I suppose it's no surprise with the pandemic. I personally am glad that these forgotten treats are making their way back onto the table. I just love eating history!

A desperation pie is a pie that's simply made with few ingredients that may be found in a pantry. I know that "water pie" doesn't sound great, but you must admit that it does intrigue, by only name alone. How could something called 'water pie' be tasty? Or Vinegar pie? Quite simply!

Humanity has always been resourceful. Sugar cream pie, or Hoosier pie, itself is said to be an Indiana staple brought over from the Quaker settlers. We love a sweet treat, but resources are likely scarce on the prairie when you're trying to build a barn and keep wolves away at the same time. It's traditionally made simply with milk, flour, and sugar. We can't have dairy, of course, so I made one for us with coconut and almond milks instead. It is only a happy coincidence that this pie is made vegan, and is just about the tastiest, creamiest pie I've made in quite a long time! Why is that?

Eggs are wonderful when it comes to baking. They lend an unctuous fattiness to anything and help achieve creaminess in any recipe. The risk when baking with eggs, however, is that they may overcook and then scramble in your custard, leaving you with a less-than-desireable texture. What's lovely about this particular pie is that there's no risk of scrambling eggs, so you can leave it in the oven for as long as it needs to be, which is to say "until it's set."

Is your pie set? Has it bubbled or is it no longer jiggling? Great! Let's take it out and let it cool on the counter for about 30 minutes, before popping it into the fridge and letting it chill until cold. This could take 2 hours, but it is ideal that you do this overnight. Then, cut and serve! It's cool, refreshing, and oddly light for such a dark-colored pie!

To top it, you can leave it plain with some powdered sugar, whip up some coconut cream, or toast some vegan marshmallows for a s'mores-like treat! This pie is chocolatey without being too fudgy and heavy, and it is such an impressive thing to have in your fridge when you feel like giving yourself a little treat after a hard day. 

Thanks so much for joining me today! I hope you learned some cool stuff. 

Happy cooking and happy eating!