rhubarb tart

The abundance of rhubarb desserts on Instagram inspired me to bake several tarts of my own. I almost forgot we're in the height of rhubarb season! It only lasts from April to June, so I made a dash to Whole Foods to fetch a bundle of stalks and start creating. 

Rhubarb is a species of plant - but treated as a fruit in the kitchen - with kite-sized leaves and greenish magenta-colored stalks. The stalks are firm, sour and edible, and like gooseberries, rhubarb produces a delightfully sweet and tart flavor when paired with a big dose of sugar. Since rhubarb holds a ton of water, I added a generous dollop of tapioca to absorb the water and avoid having a soupy mess on my hands. I suggest using lots of tapioca when baking rhubarb tarts, pies and crumbles. You will thank me later.

Rhubarb has been cultivated in Western Europe for several hundred years. It made its debut in the United States in the early 19th century and it's been a summertime staple in my life for as long as I can remember - my parents cultivated a large rhubarb patch when I was a kid, and on warm summer days I used to carry armloads of leafy stalks from the garden to the kitchen to help make strawberry rhubarb pies and jams. Yummy! 

recipe

for the tart shell:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup bleached cake flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 6 ounces chilled unsalted butter, diced
• 1/4 cup chilled vegetable shortening
• 1/2 cup ice water

for the filling & glaze:

• 5 cups rhubarb stalks, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 cup strawberry jam
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup quick cooking tapioca
• zest of half a lemon

1. Combine the flour, salt, sugar and diced butter in a food processor. Pulse about 5-7 times.
2. Add the vegetable shortening. Turn on the food processor and with the motor running, add the 1/2 cup of water right away, then turn it off. The butter and shortening should look like small peas by now. Pulse 2-3 more times if necessary to break up the butter into pea-sized clumps. Be sure you don't overmix!
3. Transfer the pastry dough to a lightly floured work surface. Working quickly, form the dough into a rough ball and then slice it in half with a butter knife. Form each portion of dough into a flat disk. Wrap each disk tightly in plastic wrap and put them in a Ziplock bag. Refrigerate for a minimum of two hours to firm up the butter.
4. To form the tart shell, quickly roll out one of the chilled disks on a lightly floured pastry marble or work surface. The dough should about about two inches larger than the diameter of your tart pan.
5. Use a pastry cutter to loosen the dough from your work surface, then drape it over the tart pan. Gently press the dough onto the bottom and sides of the tart pan, ensuring it has a solid rim standing half an inch higher than the top of the pan.
6. Trim any excess dough that may be hanging over the sides of the pan. Use it to patch up the tart shell, if needed. Then, using a fork, prick the bottom of the tart shell until it is speckled with small holes.
7. Now, to make sure the tart shell maintains its structural integrity during the prebake, you'll need to weigh it down. Tear off a sheet of aluminum foil and fold it into a square (it should be a few inches larger than the circumference of the pan). Butter one side of the foil and place it in the tart shell, butter-side down, then fill it with dried kidney beans (this is called a foil pouch).
8. Adjust oven rack to middle part of oven and preheat to 450°. Bake the tart shell for 15 minutes, then remove the pouch and bake for several minutes longer until the shell has achieved a pale golden hue. Transfer to a wire rack to allow the shell to cool for at 15 minutes before adding the filling.
9. Preheat the oven to 375°.
10. To make the glaze, rub the strawberry jam through a fine mesh strainer into a small saucepan. Add 3 tbsp of the sugar and stir to combine. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce heat to low and simmer gently for several minutes until sugar has dissolved.
11. Remove the glaze from heat and stir in the tapioca. Set aside.
12. Sprinkle the bottom of the tart shell with 2 tbsp of the sugar, then place the rhubarb pieces in the tart shell, one by one, to form a single layer. You can arrange the rhubarb in any pattern you like. 
13. Brush the rhubarb with the glaze. Use a small spoon to fill in any "cracks" (i.e., tiny bits of space between pieces of rhubarb) with the strawberry glaze, if needed.
14. Sprinkle the lemon zest and remaining sugar over the rhubarb. 
15. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes or until the crust has browned lightly. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving.

If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I'd love to see your culinary creations!

mixed berry pie

Pie, or "bread and fruit" if you're having it for breakfast, is the dessert I could eat every day for the rest of my life. I love the harmony of pastry dough and fruit and sugar and the powerful fragrance it radiates while baking. 

Pie conjures up fond memories of summertime in Colorado where my mother still churns out her near-mythical pies using fresh ingredients from the garden, like gooseberries and strawberries and rhubarb. If you're wondering which kind of pie is my favorite, well, that's like asking me to name my favorite Black Mirror episode - each one is so unique and delightful in it's own way that it's hard to pick a favorite. But mixed berry is definitely at the top of the list!

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The pie crust comes from my great grandmother Thor's recipe box, and the filling includes a medley of strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and red raspberries. Recipe makes two double pie crusts. Serves 4 (yeah, right). Enjoy!

recipe 

for the pie crust:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 1 1/2 cup chilled vegetable shortening
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 5 tbsp ice cold water

for the pie filling:

• 5 cups mixed berries 
• 2 3/4 tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 to 2 tbsp unsalted butter

1. Mix together the flour, salt and sugar.
2. Cut in the vegetable shortening and continue mixing until the dough forms pea-sized clumps.
3. In a separate bowl, beat the egg and then add the ice water and vinegar. Mix to combine. Add to the dry ingredients.
4. Mix the dough lightly with a fork to combine the dry and wet ingredients.
5. Turn out onto a lightly-floured work surface and knead the dough a couple of times. Divide into four equal parts.
6. Smush down each of the four portions into a 1-inch thick disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and put in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to firm up the butter. You can refrigerate the dough for up to two days. Proceed with step 7 when ready to make the pie.
7. Preheat the oven to 450°.
8. To make the pie filling, mix together the tapioca and sugar and blend until smooth. Stir the mixture into the berries and allow to sit for 15 minutes.
9. Roll out one disk of pie dough into a circle about 1 1/2 inches larger than the diameter of the pie tin. Drape the dough over the pie tin, pushing the dough against the sides and bottom of the tin.
10. Pour in the berry mixture. Dot with the butter. 
11. Roll out the second disk and drape it over the pie. Remove excess dough and use a fork or your fingers to create a decorative trim. Use a knife to carve a decorative pattern or shape on top of the pie. This method is my usual go-to because it's easier than the fancy-ass pie lattice I did for this photoshoot.
12. Bake the pie in a 450° oven for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350° and bake for about 40 to 45 minutes, or until the top has achieved a golden brown and the berry mixture is bubbling gently.

If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I'd love to see your culinary creations!