Smith Family Weblog

I used the excuse of Mother’s Day to bake a pie from scratch, using the rhubarb I transplanted from my grandparents’ cabin in Minnesota to my own garden. The plant took well to its new home, even sprouting this beautiful flower.

Come to find out, that’s not a good thing… I lopped it off, and thankfully, the plant continued to produce enough stalks to make a batch of Rhubarbritas (that recipe coming soon), and this Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie from Bon Appetit. I substituted cardamom for cinnamon, because it’s awesome, and also because I like hearing Bryan say, “What’s that weird taste?”

Cook’s Illustrated recently published a recipe for ultra-flaky pie crust. I don’t subscribe, but two kind friends sent it my way. (My friend Chuck wrote a blog entry on the recipe over on Horse Farm Diaries.)

The secret ingredient is vodka, and I think it works pretty well. Cook’s Illustrated is filled with incredibly specific instructions, which is tough for someone who prefers not to measure unless absolutely necessary, but the recommended six one-second pulses in my food processor yielded a crust that still had visible pieces of butter even after rolling.

It wasn’t as good as Gramma’s pie crust, but it was a close second.

My lattice top didn’t bake very evenly, but the final product was good enough to warrant a second slice!