Flavoured with ginger and cinnamon, it is everything a good fruit pie should be!
Apple and Rhubarb Pie
I find rhubarb utterly irresistible. When those first pink stems appear in the greengrocers I do a happy little dance!
Returning home with long stalks of tart juiciness tucked under my arm heralds the beginning of spring and a step forward into the light. It makes my heart sing!
Here I’ve combined it with deliciously reliable Bramley apples for a pie packed with flavour.
The beauty of this pie is that it can be made using fresh apples and rhubarb from the beginning of spring until midsummer’s day and beyond.
While it is perhaps prettiest stuffed full of the early pink forced rhubarb, it is just as tasty once the plants which have been left to their own devices get into their stride.
If you, like me, love this useful vegetable (yes, it is!) it is super simple to grow rhubarb in the garden as a perennial in the veg patch, the flower border or even in a large container!
How To Make Apple and Rhubarb Pie
This recipe is for a traditional double-crust pie.
A 20cm pie dish is lined with homemade vegan shortcrust pastry, filled with apples and rhubarb and then topped with a pastry lid.
For step by step instructions and full ingredients list see the end of this post, but please do read on for my hints and tips to help you produce a really tasty pie.
Making Pie Crust Pastry – Tips and Tricks
If you want to make it super simple vegan ready-made shortcrust pastry is readily available in supermarkets. I use it if I’m in a hurry so I won’t be judging you if you do!
However, homemade shortcrust pastry takes this pie to a whole other level.
The secret to making really good vegan pie crust pastry is to make sure everything is REALLY cold.
- Put your water into the freezer so it really is ice cold when you come to use it.
- Use vegan butter and shortening straight from the fridge.
- Pulse the ingredients only as much as they need to combine.
- Handle the pastry dough as little as possible when you are bringing it all together.
- Form the pastry into two discs, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 20 minutes before using straight away, or keep refrigerated for 2 -3 days.
- If you are making pastry ahead of time remove it from the fridge 10 minutes before you want to use it.
- On a lightly floured surface roll one disc out into a circle large enough to fit your pie dish with a slight overlap.
- Roll the second disc out until large enough to cover the top of your pie.
- Fill your pie with the prepared fruit, moisten the edge of the pastry with water, place the lid on top and press around the edge to seal. Cut off any excess pastry.
- Use any leftover pie crust to decorate your pie. I cut flower shapes with a small cookie cutter for this one.
- Cut slits in the lid to allow steam to escape.
Preparing Apples and Roasting Rhubarb
Getting juicy fruit and veg ready for a pie just requires a little bit of preparation.
Roasting Rhubarb
I roast the rhubarb before adding it to the apples and filling the pie. This isn’t strictly necessary but does, like all roasting, concentrate all that lovely flavour. With later crops of rhubarb, it also ensures that you don’t get any woody tough bits in your pie.
Chop the rhubarb stalks roughly into 1 – 2cm lengths, lay them in a single layer in a roasting tin, sprinkle with a little sugar and cover with aluminium foil.
Roast in a preheated oven at 180C/350F for 10 – 15 minutes or until softened. Remove the aluminium foil and roast for a further 5 minutes. Leave to cool.
Preparing Cooking Apples
While the rhubarb is cooling peel and core the apples and slice them into chunks.
Lay a tea towel on a baking tray and place the apple slices on top. Cover with another tea towel.
This prevents them from browning and absorbs any excess liquid.
Mixing It All Together Into Apple and Rhubarb Pie
Rhubarb and apple pie can be too juicy resulting in soggy pastry and no one wants that!
The secret to avoiding the sog is to coat the filling in a little flour to thicken the juices for a perfect pie.
Place the flour and spices into a large bowl and toss your apple pieces until each one has a light coating.
Put the coated apple into your prepared pie crust and then toss the cooled rhubarb in the remaining flour mixture.
Add the rhubarb to the pie and top with the pastry lid.
Press with your fingers to seal the edges and brush the pie with a little milk.
Decorate and add slits to allow steam to escape before popping it onto the oven to cook.
Once the pie is cooked, the pastry is browned and the fruit is soft it is important to leave it to stand for a few hours.
If you cut into it too soon you will be confronted with a large pool of fruit juice.
Give it at least four hours, preferably more, to allow the filling to cool and thicken and to make slicing a much easier prospect!
Eat it at room temperature or chilled from the fridge.
Storing Apple and Rhubarb Pie
Apple and rhubarb pie keeps well, refrigerated, for 3 – 4 days but only if you don’t have a teenage boy in the house with a seemingly bottomless stomach!
It also freezes well. Freeze it cooked or uncooked, wrapped well.
- If you are cooking a frozen pre-baked pie bake it at 175C/350F for 30 minutes until hot. Check frequently for burning and cover pastry lid with foil if necessary.
- If your frozen pie is uncooked, bake it at 200C/425F for 15 mins then reduce the temperature to 190C/375F for 40 – 45 minutes. Check for burning and cover the pie lid with foil if necessary.
Serving Suggestions
It tastes great with hot vegan custard or cold vegan vanilla ice cream!
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Apple and Rhubarb Pie
Equipment
- 20cm/8 inch pie plate
- rolling pin
Ingredients
For The Pie Crust
- 300 g plain, all purpose, flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 150 g vegetable shortening eg Trex cut into pieces and CHILLED
- 75 g vegan butter or margarine cut into pieces and CHILLED
- 100 ml iced water
For The Pie Filling
- 3 large Bramley cooking apples about 800g/28oz
- 4 sticks rhubarb about 300g/10oz
- 60 g caster sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 3 tbsp cornflour
To Finish
- 1 tbsp soya milk to glaze
- 1 tbsp caster sugar to sprinkle on top
Instructions
Make The Pastry
- Place the flour, salt and butter into a food processor and pulse briefly until it looks like breadcrumbs with some larger breadcrumbs still hanging around.
- Add half the iced water and pulse briefly until clumps start to form.
- Add most of the remaining iced water and pulse until the pastry begins to come together.
- Press a little between your fingers, if it feels too dry and crumbly add the remaining water and pulse briefly again.
- Remove from the processor, form into a ball without overworking. Cut in half, make each half into a disc, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for 20 minutes before using.
Make The Filling and Line The Pie Plate
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F
- Chop the rhubarb stalks roughly into 1 - 2cm lengths.
- Lay them in a single layer in a roasting tin, sprinkle with a little sugar and cover with aluminium foil.
- Roast for 10 - 15 minutes or until softened.
- Remove the aluminium foil and roast for a further 5 minutes. Leave to cool.
- While the rhubarb is cooling, peel and core the apples and slice them into chunks.
- Lay a tea towel on a baking tray and place the apple slices on top. Cover with another tea towel.
- Place the flour and spices into a large bowl and toss your apple pieces until each one has a light coating. Remove apples and put to one side.
- Toss the cooled rhubarb in the remaining flour mixture.
- Lightly grease a 20cm/8 inch pie plate.
- On a lightly floured surface roll one disc out into a circle large enough to fit your pie dish with a slight overlap. Place in the prepared pie plate.
- Roll the second disc out until large enough to cover the top of your pie.
Fill The Pie and Bake
- Preheat oven to 190C/375F
- Fill your pie with the prepared fruit, moisten the edge of the pastry with water, place the lid on top and press around the edge to seal. Cut off any excess pastry.
- Use any leftover pie crust to decorate your pie.
- Brush with milk, sprinkle with a little caster sugar.
- Cut slits in the lid to allow steam to escape.
- Bake on the middle shelf of the preheated oven for 30 - 40 minutes or until the pastry is brown and crisp and the fruit is cooked.
- Leave to cool for 4 hours before cutting.
