It’s really, really good.
I’m so happy to finally share a solid strawberry rhubarb pie recipe with you. This is actually a recipe I played around with a few days ago and while I have weeks of content stored in my drafts, I couldn’t hold off on sharing this one.
How awesome are rhubarb desserts? It’s taken me years to warm up to them. Things like strawberry rhubarb pie, rhubarb crisp, crumble, cake, the whole rhubarb shebang. To be honest, strawberry rhubarb pie never stood a chance when I was growing up. Mom always had it around and while everyone else seemed to rave about it, I couldn’t get on board with… magenta celery pie. I mean when you’re 12, you’ll pretty much convince yourself anything and if rhubarb looks like celery, I’m certainly not eating it for dessert.
MY MY MY. Look how the tables have turned. Never did I imagine myself saying the words “my favorite strawberry rhubarb pie” and never did I imagine myself writing about it on the internet because the internet ties up mom and dad’s landline and I want to be a dolphin trainer when I grow up.
Also, what is a blog?
18 years later, magenta celery pie is at the top of my list. Let’s get right into it because I have a hankering this will be your favorite recipe for strawberry rhubarb pie too. It might even make the list of your favorite spring dessert recipes.
Strawberry and rhubarb are meant to be because the sweet flavor of strawberries balances out rhubarb’s tart/sour bite. Rhubarb is fantastic in pies, crumbles, crisps, and the sort because it needs all the sugar it can get. I like to use an almost equal amount of strawberries and rhubarb in the pie filling: about 3 cups of chopped rhubarb to 2 and 1/2 cups strawberries. Strawberries let out so much juice, so I like to have a slightly lower amount.
If you’ve never cooked or baked with rhubarb before, have no fear. It’s sold in the grocery store without its leaves (they’re toxic!) and can be prepped the same way as celery. Give the stalks a good wash, cut off both ends and slice. You’ll want 1/2 inch slices for this pie.
One common issue with strawberry rhubarb pie is the whole “mushy puddle” situation. Bottom line: the filling is known to be a soupy mess. I asked around and found that instant tapioca is usually the fix. I didn’t have any tapioca in my cupboards and wasn’t about to show my face in the grocery store AGAIN that day, so cornstarch was my choice. It was perfect—every time I tried it. I didn’t have a sloppy problem when cutting into the pie using cornstarch, which is exactly what I was hoping for. To combat the mushy puddle situation, I simply spooned the filling into the crust—leaving all the pooled liquid behind.
Also in the filling: orange juice. Just a smidge of it—1 Tablespoon. It pairs so wonderfully with strawberry and rhubarb. Mom likes to use a mix of brown and white sugars, which tugs at my heart strings. All hail brown sugar’s flavor!
Also: pats of butter to make things rich, just as we do with peach pie.
I haven’t even mentioned the pie crust yet! I always use my standard pie crust recipe because it’s the best of both worlds: flaky and buttery. A mix of shortening and butter produce the absolute best texture. I won’t get into too much detail today but shortening helps create that flaky, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Butter gets us that unparalleled flavor. Make sure both of these fats are cold. When the fat melts as the pie bakes, its steam helps to separate the crust into multiple flaky layers. You won’t get that with warm butter and warm shortening.
I used a lattice pie crust topping because it’s classic and beautiful. It’s my go-to way to decorate a pie and you can also see it on top of my blueberry pie. You can also use any overhanging pie dough to crimp and flute the pie crust edges.
By the way, do you SEE those flaky layers in the crust? I want to bake 50 pies this summer just so I can eat this pie crust as much as possible.
Add coarse sugar on top for a little pie sparkle.
You can switch up the pie’s topping. Maybe you want a crumble topping like from my apple crumble pie? Go for it.
My only request is that you finish her off with a pile vanilla ice cream. There’s no other way to eat magenta celery pie, ok?
PrintStrawberry Rhubarb Pie
- Prep Time: 3 hours
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 7 hours
- Yield: 1 pie
- Category: Pie
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This recipe turned me into a strawberry rhubarb pie fanatic! The pie holds together nicely and the homemade pie crust is phenomenal.
Ingredients
- homemade pie crust (my recipe makes 2 crusts; 1 for bottom 1 for top)
- 3 cups (about 300g) sliced rhubarb (1/2 inch pieces)
- 2 and 1/2 cups (about 380g) chopped strawberries
- 1/3 cup (67g) packed light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (32g) cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) orange juice
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten with 1 Tablespoon (15ml) milk
- optional: coarse sugar for garnish
Instructions
- The crust: Prepare my pie crust recipe through step 5.
- Make the filling: Stir the rhubarb, strawberries, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cornstarch, salt, orange juice, and vanilla extract together in a large bowl. Set filling aside as the oven preheats.
- Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C).
- Roll out the chilled pie dough: On a floured work surface, roll out one of the discs of chilled dough (keep the other one in the refrigerator). Turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls until you have a circle 12 inches in diameter. Carefully place the dough into a 9-inch pie dish. Tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth. Spoon the filling into the crust, leaving all of the excess liquid in the bowl (you don’t want that in the filling—discard it). Dot the pieces of butter on top of the filling.
- Arrange the lattice: Remove the other disc of chilled pie dough from the refrigerator. Roll the dough into a circle that is 12 inches diameter. Using a pastry wheel, sharp knife, or pizza cutter, cut strips 1/2 – 1 inch wide. Carefully thread the strips over and under one another, pulling back strips as necessary to weave. Press the edges of the strips into the bottom pie crust edges to seal. Use a small knife to trim off excess dough. Crimp the pie crust edges with a fork, if desired. (Alternatively, you can simply cover the filling with the 12-inch pie dough circle. Cut slits in the top to form steam vents. Trim and crimp the edges. Or a crumble or streusel topping would be great.)
- Lightly brush the top of the pie crust with the egg/milk mixture. Sprinkle the top with a little coarse sugar, if desired.
- Place the pie onto a large baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Keeping the pie in the oven, turn the temperature down to 350°F (177°C) and bake for an additional 30-35 minutes. After the first 20 minutes of bake time, I place a pie crust shield on top of the pie to prevent the edges from browning too quickly.
- Allow the pie to cool for 3 full hours at room temperature before serving. This time allows the filling to thicken up. Cover leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: This a great pie to make 1 day in advance since it is so juicy – the filling will have time to set overnight. The pie crust dough can also be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Baked pie freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature before serving. Prepared filling can be frozen up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Rolling Pin | 9-inch Pie Dish | Pizza Cutter or Pastry Wheel | Pastry Brush | Baking Sheet | Pie Crust Shield
Can you use frozen rhubarb?
Hi Kay, we haven’t tried this with frozen rhubarb, but we don’t see why it wouldn’t work. If you thaw it first, just blot some of the moisture off. Let us know how it goes.
Hi! Can you use frozen rhubarb and frozen strawberries? Thank you!
Hi Ashley! For best results, we strongly recommend using fresh strawberries and rhubarb in this pie. Frozen will add too much moisture to the filling.
This is really a simple recipe for the strawberry rhubarb. I think it acts as a great base for whatever flavors you want to add. The first time I made this added cinnamon to the filling and served with some Trader Joe’s Horchata Ice Cream, it was amazing.
One could probably add some interesting things to this filling, maybe lemon zest? Perhaps some cloves? The possibilities are plentiful.
The act of making the pie also goes great with Mimosas!
If I can’t find rhubarb, what can I use as a substitute?
Hi Gem, You can replace the rhubarb with either more strawberries or the same amount of a different type of fruit.
This recipe is a keeper!! Pie crust was great, too. I did make one small change that I learned from Rose Levy Beranbaum’s The Pie and Pastry Bible. Rather than leaving all those yummy juices behind, I cooked them down and added them to the pie filling. It only took a few minutes to do and the resulting filling had just the right balance of sweetness and tartness AND was not runny at all. It was perfect!!
Omg! My Mom used to make this pie so I tried your recipe yesterday! Fabulous Pie!!! AND I used your recipe for the crust! Amazing and easy to make! My husband and son-in-law commented on the crust immediately with their first bite! I also used your crumbly topping rather than another crust because I didn’t want to roll out the second crust (Now saving for another pie on another day – YUM!). Topping is now my top crumb topping recipe to save!! Thank you for these recipes, for the ease of making them from your videos, etc. My husband is now bemoaning the fact that he has just eaten the last piece ;). Anyone thinking about making this pie, crust and topping – definitely go for it!!! You won’t be disappointed!
This was my very first attempt at making a pie!! I had to go with the all butter pastry because I didn’t have any shortening so I should have left out the final butter cubes but overall the pie turned out quite lovely; not too sweet and perfect consistency of filling. My only struggle was my pastry, it was a bit too chewy and stuck to the top rim. I’ll have to try again with the other pastry recipe.
This was hands down the best strawberry rhubarb pie I’ve ever made or tasted. Just the right mix of sweet and tart. I made the pie crust in the food processor, and it came out perfectly. My husband and I have cut back on sugar, but this was SO worth it!
All in all very successful. It wasn’t quite as sweet as I would have liked. I’m thinking I lost a lot of the sugar when I drained off the juices. May drain as directed to achieve consistency, but add a bit more sugar before filling the pie next time. Everyone still enjoyed it and a big scoop of vanilla ice cream made it delightful.
Tastes yummy but filling did not set quite liquidy
Hi Betty! If the filling didn’t set, the pie likely needed to bake for longer. An easy fix for next time!
Our local strawberries are available now so I tried this recipe. My husband and I both agreed. This is the best strawberry rhubarb pie we’ve ever tasted. Thank you so much.
Such an easy – and tasty recipe!! I’ve made it 3+ times already and it never lasts long in our house. Instead of a top crust, I use the crumble recipe from the apple pie. So delicious! Because there’s butter in the crumble recipe, I don’t add the dots of butter on top of the filling. There were a couple of times when I didn’t have enough rhubarb so I just added more strawberries to make up for the total amount – still delicious!
Hi Sally! Hoping to make this pie for Canada day. How long would the pie need to bake if I were to divide this up into 4 small pies? The dishes are 1.75″ x 6.25”.
Hi Rachel! We haven’t tested mini pies so are unsure of the exact bake time. Pies will be done when the filling is bubbling and the crust is golden brown. Let us know how they go!
I used a different recipe for the pie crust, but Sally’s filling instructions. Deliciously sweet//tart.
A huge success as a surprise for an American guy in the Netherlands who could only remember his grandmother’s rhubarb pie in Georgia US. Thank you Sally! I keep the recipe in my favourites.
Even with throwing out all the juice and I did think that was a waste, I had a soggy bottom especially when we heated up the pie to go with ice cream. So I would do a prebake on the bottom if I ever do this recipe again.
I use Tapioca instead of flour about 3 tablespoons. Going to try your recipe today. Happy baking
Does the pie need to be refrigerated after it is baked? Or can it stay on the counter?
Hi Melissa, we recommend covering leftovers tightly and storing in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
This is an amazing recipe – the best of any I have found
I really wish there was a nutritional information posted for it though. (Trying to make a low sodium kind for a family member.) Thank you again, I’ve made it twice in one week it was that delivered.
Is it possible to freeze the pie unbaked?
Hi Denise, You can freeze the unbaked pie, but we find that the filling is always a bit too thin and the bottom crust stays a little soggy. It’s best to freeze the baked and cooled pie instead.
Made this for Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day, and it was simply perfect! Deliciously tart and sweet, and it set up beautifully! I’ll definitely make this again!
Ran out of cornstarch so I replaced it with 1/3 cup flour. It turned out perfectly! Thanks for the good recipe 🙂
This is an excellent recipe.Perfect proportions of rhubarb to strawberries. I did add a touch of cinnamon You can use arrowroot powder in place of cornstarch to thicken. Arrowroot works well to thicken any leftover liquid and filling and cooking it into a yummy jam.
Instead of discarding the liquid after filling the pie I had the thought to thicken it in a saucepan for a topping. I transferred the liquid to a sauce pan and wisked it over medium heat until it thickened. I turned it to low for about 10 minutes to make certain it was cooked through. Yum. I can’t wait to put it over vanilla ice cream.
So so good! I even used frozen strawberries because fresh were not available with fresh rhubarb from my garden and I was worried that the filling wouldn’t set because it was quite runny when I put it in the oven…it set beautifully and tasted amazing! My first time making a strawberry rhubarb pie and a complete success! Thank you Sally for another awesome recipe!
Question about the filling. How long before making the pie can I prepare the filling and hold in the fridge? Can’t bake it until Thursday but have strawberries I need to use. Thank you
Hi Geri! The filling may get too wet if left in the refrigerator for more than a day. We would give it a quick freeze to prevent this. Prepared filling can be frozen up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
A beautiful and easy recipe, bit it wasn’t as sweet as we would have liked. I think some of the sugar got poured out with the liquid left behind in the bowl.
If I only have frozen strawberries, could you suggest how much more thickener to use?
Hi Carla, for best results, we strongly recommend using fresh strawberries in this pie. Using frozen and adding more cornstarch to thicken could make the filling rather “gummy” tasting.
Hi Sally, I’m curious about blind baking–when it’s advisable and when not? Thank you!
Hi Miss Ashley, Check out this post on how to par-bake pie crust and it will explain when we blind bake and when we don’t. Hope that’s helpful!
What a fantastic and easy recipe! Tastes like a strawberry rhubarb pie should taste, no cinnamon to change the flavor. The hint of orange juice is just enough to be perky. I did use my microplane to zest about a teaspoon ….because, why not? I only juiced about a third of an orange anyway….I used the Williams Sonoma pie crust edge mold for a decorative lattice…used the braid one, and the rope one for the outside edge. Too pretty to cut. Thank you.
This is the best and easiest recipe. I made it and it was great. My grandsons could not stop eating it. One half of the pie was gone in ten minutes. Thank you so much.