Rhubarb Custard Pie with Fresh Rhubarb
Spring is such a wonderful time of year, with fresh foods starting to come in and the weather warming up! Rhubarb is a wonderful perenial vegetable that I love to harvest each spring for some delicious treats. This rhubarb custard pie is a yummy way to use some of the fresh harvest, along with all of the lovely eggs from your backyard hens! Living a more seasonal life on the homestead reminds me just how much joy the spring harvests bring.
The inspiration for this recipe is the Brown Sugar & Rhubarb Pie recipe from my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. I’ve made that recipe several times before, but without the meringue topping. I prefer it to the traditional rhubarb pie, because the custard cuts the acid in the rhubarb.
Over the years I’ve pretty much overhauled the recipe and I often make a double batch in a big pan for potlucks or family dinners. But the single recipe makes plenty of dessert for a family of 6.
Easy Rhubarb Custard Pie Recipe
Here’s the quick and easy recipe I’ve developed. I hope you enjoy this as much as my family does!
Rhubarb Custard Pie
Equipment
- 9 x 13-inch cake pan
Ingredients
Easy Crust
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- Pinch salt
- 1/4 cup butter or lard
- 1 egg white
- 1 tbsp water cold
Rhubarb Custard Filling
- 6 cups rhubarb washed and chopped in 1" pieces
- 1 3/4 cups sugar
- 6 tbsp flour
- 4 eggs plus reserved yolk from crust
- 1/2 tsp molasses
Crumb Topping
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp butter
Instructions
Easy Crust
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Use butter or lard to grease a 9 x 9-inch cake pan. Set aside.
- Place 1 1/2 cups of flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder, and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl and combine with a wire whisk.
- Add 1/4 cup of butter or lard to the flour mixture. Use a pastry cutter or fork to cut the butter or lard into pieces about the size of a pea.
- In a small bowl, combine the egg white and water and whisk together well. (Reserve the yolk for the filling.)
- Add the water and egg white to the flour mixture and combine, just until the ingredients stick togther.
- Place the dough in the greased cake pan. Use your hand to pat the dough down and cover the entire bottom and about 2-inches up the sides of the pan for your crust.
- Bake the crust for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove crust from the oven and set aside.
Rhubarb Custard Filling
- While the crust is browning in the oven, combine 6 cups of chopped rhubarb, 1 3/4 cups of sugar, and 6 tablespoons of flour in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, add 4 eggs, the reserved egg yolk leftover from the crust, and 1/2 teaspoon of molasses. Beat the eggs well with a wire whisk.
- Add the egg mixture to the rhubarb and combine well. Pour into the crust and set aside.
Crumb Topping
- In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of sugar with a wire whisk.
- Add 2 tablespoons of softened butter to the flour mixture and use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour until pea-sized crumbs form.
- Sprinkle the crumb topping over the custard and bake for 35 to 40 minutes until the custard in the center set. Remove from oven and cool completely. Refrigerate uneaten portion and use within a few days.
Notes
Rhubarb Custard Pie and Other Spring Recipes
I love having fresh ingredients on hand from my homestead to make from scratch foods. When rhubarb is abundant, I usually have lots of asparagus, green onions, fresh greens, and strawberries coming in. Here are some other seasonal recipes you might enjoy in spring:
Fresh Strawberry Salsa Recipe
Strawberry Jam – Reduced Sugar Recipe
Strawberry Rhubarb Freezer Jam
Rhubarb Cake and Rhubarb Sauce
Easy Veggie Quiche (I like it with asparagus and spring onions)
What is your favorite spring recipe? Leave a comment!
As an Amazon affiliate, I earn a commission on qualifying purchases.
Did anyone notice thst 1/2 cup of butter is barely used? Recipe calls for 3/4 cup butter but within the recipe you use 1/4 cup butter for crust. The only other place for the butter is 2 tbsp for the topping and of course buttering the pan. Wondering if this was an error.
This sounds delicious!!
We all loved it 🙂 Hope you do too!