Nothing says summer more than rhubarb pie! This recipe is our new family favorite: the filing is intensely pink and sweet tart, encased in a golden pastry crust and sprinkled with a buttery crumble topping. It’s like a rhubarb crisp and pie, all in one! Watching the sun set with a slice of this pie topped with melty vanilla ice cream will make all your summer dreams complete. Here’s everything you need to transform those green-pink stalks into a dazzling dessert!
Ingredients in this rhubarb pie recipe
If there’s one type of produce that we go mad for in spring and summer, it’s rhubarb. It’s extremely nostalgic for both of us: we grew up eating Grandma’s rhubarb crisp and rhubarb bars. But neither of us had a family pie recipe: until now! Rhubarb pie can be a little tricky, but we have a few tips to make this a no fail recipe. Here’s what you’ll need:
1 Homemade Pie Crust Rhubarb Granulated sugar Cornstarch Vanilla extract Orange zest All-purpose flour Brown sugar Cinnamon Salt Salted butter
The secret to no-fail rhubarb pie
Here’s the thing about fruit pies: the liquid content can vary based on the ripeness of the fruit. Your rhubarb pie might turn out perfectly one day, but the next time you make it it might be too runny. In our recipe testing for this rhubarb pie, we found it’s easy to get a really runny filling! Here’s how to make rhubarb pie not runny and perfectly set:
Allow the rhubarb to macerate for 30 minutes. Stir it together with sugar and let it sit at room temperature. This draws out the fruit juices. Pre-cook the filling with cornstarch for 5 to 6 minutes. Cooking the filling on its own gives it time to interact with the cornstarch, making a thick and gooey filling. Don’t cook it too long, or the rhubarb will become mushy: just enough so the juices form into a thick sauce.
That’s it! Pour this filling into the crust and the rhubarb pie comes out perfectly set, every time!
For the crust
The pie crust for this rhubarb pie recipe is our Homemade Pie Crust recipe, which comes out flaky and buttery. Make sure to allow for about 15 minutes for making a homemade pie crust, 15 minutes to chill, and then about 10 minutes to roll it out and place it in the pie plate. Make sure to use a standard pie plate for this recipe: not deep dish! Instructions for rolling it out are in the linked crust recipe. You can also substitute any pie crust recipe or store-bought pie crust if you prefer!
Rhubarb pie flavor notes
This rhubarb pie recipe is our favorite for a few reasons:
Orange zest brings out the sweet tart flavor. You can leave it out, but we’ve found it adds a nice complexity to the filling. The crumble topping seals the deal. The buttery crumble topping is crunchy and adds another pop of sweetness: it’s like eating rhubarb crisp and pie together! The cornstarch helps to make a thick filling. It’s a hefty amount of cornstarch, but you need it here to compensate for the water in the rhubarb. You can use arrowroot powder as a 1:1 substitute for cornstarch.
And that’s it! We hope you’ll enjoy this rhubarb pie recipe for all your summer occasions: like Mother’s Day, 4th of July recipes, and more! Let us know what you think.
More rhubarb recipes
Got more rhubarb? Here are a few more rhubarb recipes we love:
Try Classic Rhubarb Crisp Mix up an Easy Rhubarb Compote or Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp Opt for classic Rhubarb Bars Go for Rhubarb Muffins or Rhubarb Streusel Bread Opt for Rhubarb Sauce
This rhubarb pie recipe is…
Vegetarian. 4.7 from 3 reviews
