I love rhubarb.  But there are two problems with it: first, it’s next to impossible to find. Second, for some reason more than half of the recipes I attempt aren’t “all that”.  I think I baked 4 different rhubarb recipes this year and this is the only one that deserves a blog post.

This comes as no surprise, because not only am I crazy for rhubarb, but I love pie in general and specifically I love apple pie.  In other words, this pie is pretty much a triple threat.  Until now I had only eaten Strawberry Rhubarb pie.  When I first tried this pie I did think, “it’s good but no Strawberry Rhubarb.”  However, I have to admit that on day 2, when the flavors had continued to combine, it was a definite winner.  Even more exciting, I may have finally found my crust of choice.  Crust for me is an ongoing challenge.  While this week wasn’t ideal for crust-making due to the heat, I did pull it off. (Thanks, Alton Brown!)

In the coming days I will be taking a short road trip to Vermont.  While there, my main dessert of choice will, stereotypically, be Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.

Rhubarb Apple Pie
source: Cooking Light

Use a pie crust of your choice.  I finally settled on Alton Brown’s crust, but use whatever you feel comfortable with.  (Or use a pre-made frozen crust, but shhhh don’t tell.)  This is a single-crust pie.

3 ½ c sliced fresh rhubarb (approx. 1 ¼ lb)
1 c sugar
1 T lemon juice
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
½ t ground cinnamon
3/8 t salt, divided
1 c all-purpose flour, divided
½ c packed brown sugar
6 T cold butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 c chopped walnuts (optional)

• Prepare crust from your favorite recipe.  Roll into a 12-inch circle to fit a 9-inch pie plate.  Fit into pie plate with attractive edges and refrigerate uncooked crust while preparing filling.
• Preheat oven to 425.
• Combine rhubarb, sugar, lemon juice, and apples.  Toss and sprinkle with cinnamon, ¼ t salt, a 3 T flour. (If you like a thicker/less juicy pie, add a little bit more flour.)  Spoon into prepared, uncooked crust.
• Combine remaining flour, remaining salt, and brown sugar.  Cut butter into flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse meal.  Stir in walnuts (optional).
• Sprinkle crumb mixture evenly over rhubarb.
• Bake at 425 for 15 minutes.
• Reduce oven temperature to 375 and bake for 30 more minutes or until pie is bubbly and crust is golden.
• Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.  Refrigerate as necessary to help pie to thicken and set – this was key for me.

Serves: 12
Calories: 296