Rhubarb Custard Pie

RHUBARB CUSTARD PIE

5/30/2022

Rhubarb Custard Pie

Rhubarb Custard Pie is a simple dessert recipe perfect for a sweet spring treat! A flaky pie crust is filled with a creamy and rich vanilla custard and tender rhubarb fresh from the garden. This is one of our favorite ways to enjoy the unique flavor of rhubarb. Lovely served with a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream! This heirloom recipe brings back so many wonderful memories!

Rhubarb Custard Pie

ALL ABOUT RHUBARB:

Rhubarb is a perennial grown locally in the Midwest and is available in the late Spring. If you are not lucky enough to have rhubarb planted and growing in your garden or yard, you can often find it at farmer’s markets or the grocery store.
If you live in a climate where the ground freezes in winter, chances are that you can grow rhubarb! The hardest part is finding rhubarb plants! Rhubarb needs a cold winter where temperatures dip below freezing in order to grow and thrive, and it is considered hardy in zones 3-8.
Because Rhubarb is a perennial, with very little care it will come back year after year – it’s a very tough and hardy plant! Most rhubarb plants need to be dug up and divided after several years for the best plant health. This is also a great opportunity to expand your rhubarb plot or share your plants with family and friends. Once established, rhubarb is a plant that can produce for more than 20 years.
There are many varieties of rhubarb and many shades, from palest green to deep crimson, but the flavor is the same! Your rhubarb sauces, jams and jelly will vary in color depending on your rhubarb, but the flavor and texture is the same!
The stalks are the only edible part of this early spring plant, while the green parts of the leaves are toxic, which is why you never see rhubarb stalks for sale with the leaves attached.
Stalks of rhubarb look similar to celery, but have a strong and very tart taste if eaten raw.

The bright red stalks of early spring rhubarb give this jam its lovely color as well as its tangy flavor. Rhubarb is a favorite for jams, pies and crisps. The season is both early and short – use your first crops for the best results, as the rhubarb stalks will get tough and “woody” as the season goes on. Young and tender stalks are the best!
Rhubarb is technically a vegetable, but it’s used as a fruit for culinary purposes. People are still confused!
To freeze fresh rhubarb, first wash and dry it. Slice the stalks into 1-inch pieces and lay out on a baking sheets. Place the pans in the freezer for an hour, or until the rhubarb is frozen solid. Transfer to sturdy zip lock freezer bags (I usually measure out 4 cups into gallon sized freezer bags). Frozen rhubarb will last for up to a year.
Fresh rhubarb is best for all recipes, but you can also use frozen – just be sure to add any liquid that released from the frozen rhubarb to your recipe.
Rhubarb is healthy for you – it’s loaded with calcium, lutein, vitamin K and antioxidants.

Rhubarb Custard Pie

RECIPE TIPS & VARIATIONS:

You can replace fresh rhubarb with frozen rhubarb for this recipe – just make sure it is thawed and drained well. If using frozen rhubarb, make sure to pat it dry after thawing as rhubarb tends to leach out moisture as it thaws, which can result in a soggy and runny custard. Tossing the sliced rhubarb in a little flour keeps it from releasing too much liquid.
The color of your rhubarb stalks really does make the world of difference when making rhubarb syrup, sauce and jam, and will vary from year to year depending on the type of rhubarb and crop conditions. Look for fresh and tender stalks that are pink or red all the way thru for the “pinkest” bakes. If you use rhubarb stalks that are pinky-green or light green, you can add a drop or two of red food coloring to get a pretty pink hue.
If you love almond flavor, you can add ½ teaspoon of pure almond extract to custard ingredients.
You can also prepare this in a 9-inch tart pan (with removable bottom) rather than a pie plate – very pretty for a garden tea or special dessert presentation.
Try adding a cup of fresh raspberries, strawberries (cut into bits) or blueberries to the filling – simply replace 1 cup of rhubarb with 1 cup of the fresh fruit of your choice.
Gluten Free Rhubarb Custard Pie: You can substitute a good gluten free baking mix for the flour (I recommend King Arthur or Bob’s Red Mill brands).

Rhubarb Custard Pie

LOOKING FOR MORE GREAT RHUBARB RECIPES?

Rhubarb Custard Pie

RHUBARB CUSTARD PIE

Rhubarb Custard Pie

INGREDIENTS:
1 unbaked pie shell (homemade or frozen)
Egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon milk
Cinnamon sugar
3 cups (about 13.5 oz.) rhubarb (sliced into 1/2-inch thick pieces)
1 -1/2 cups (300g) granulated sugar
3 large eggs (beaten)
1 cup heavy whipping cream
4 tablespoons flour (divided)
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon almond extract (optional)

SERVE WITH:
Sweetened whipped cream

HOW I MAKE THIS:

PREPARE PIE CRUST: For this pie we’ll be using a single pie crust on the bottom of a 9x2-inch dish glass pie plate. Prepare pie crust per your favorite recipe, or use 1 refrigerated pie crust.
Sprinkle the bottom of pie plate with flour (this will prevent the crust from sticking to the bottom of your pie plate when serving). Roll out chilled pie dough on a floured work surface until you have a circle 12 inches in diameter. Carefully place the dough into pie plate. Tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth. Fold any dough hanging over back into the dish to form a thick rim around the edges. Flute the edges with your fingers or crimp the edges with a fork. Brush edges with egg wash and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before baking.
Preheat oven to 375°F and adjust oven rack to the lowest position possible.
BLIND BAKE PIE CRUST: Remove pie plate from refrigerator, line crust with aluminum foil or parchment paper, covering edges to prevent browning, and fill with pie weights, filling the whole way up to the rim of the pie plate. Bake for 15 minutes or until dough looks dry and pale in color.
Remove foil/parchment and weights, rotate plate. With a fork, prick holes all over the bottom of crust and bake 13-15 additional minutes until crust is light golden brown. Remove pie plate from oven. Let the baked crust cool completely before adding filling.
Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.
Wash rhubarb in cold water, pat dry, trim the ends, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces. (RECIPE NOTE: If your rhubarb has thick stalks, slice the whole stalk lengthwise and then chop.)
PREPARE RHUBARB FILLING: In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, heavy cream, vanilla extract, almond extract, salt, sugar, and 3 tablespoons of the flour until well blended.
Toss rhubarb with remaining 1 tablespoon of flour until evenly coated.
Place cooled pie plate on a large rimmed baking sheet. Place rhubarb in cooled pie crust and pour egg mixture evenly over rhubarb. Place a pie crust shield on top of crust or wrap edges with aluminum foil.
Bake at 350 degrees until filling is set and a thermometer inserted into center of pie registers 175 degrees, about 60 to 70 minutes. The custard should be set – it will continue to thicken as it cools. Rotate pie plate half-way thru backing. If pie is browning too quickly, remove pie crust shield and tent aluminum foil over the whole pie.
Transfer the pie to a rack; cool completely until filling has set – at least 3-4 hours.
Serve at room temperature or chilled.
Best served within 3 days; refrigerate leftovers in a covered container.

YIELD: 8 servings

RECIPE NOTES:

You can replace fresh rhubarb with frozen rhubarb for this recipe – just make sure it is thawed and drained well. If using frozen rhubarb, make sure to pat it dry after thawing as rhubarb tends to leach out moisture as it thaws, which can result in a soggy and runny custard. Tossing the sliced rhubarb in a little flour keeps it from releasing too much liquid.
The color of your rhubarb stalks really does make the world of difference when making rhubarb syrup, sauce and jam, and will vary from year to year depending on the type of rhubarb and crop conditions. Look for fresh and tender stalks that are pink or red all the way thru for the “pinkest” bakes. If you use rhubarb stalks that are pinky-green or light green, you can add a drop or two of red food coloring to get a pretty pink hue.
If you love almond flavor, you can add ½ teaspoon of pure almond extract to custard ingredients.
You can also prepare this in a 9-inch tart pan (with removable bottom) rather than a pie plate – very pretty for a garden tea or special dessert presentation.
Try adding a cup of fresh raspberries, strawberries (cut into bits) or blueberries to the filling – simply replace 1 cup of rhubarb with 1 cup of the fresh fruit of your choice.
Gluten Free Rhubarb Custard Pie: You can substitute a good gluten free baking mix for the flour (I recommend King Arthur or Bob’s Red Mill brands).

Original recipe published May 2013; revised and reposted May 2022.

© SnowflakesandCoffeecakes. All images, attachments & content are copyright protected. All rights reserved. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words, or link back to www.snowflakesandcoffeecakes.com for the recipe.

Tried it and loved it? Snap a picture and share it with me on Instagram @SnowflakesandCoffeecakes and by using the hashtag #SnowflakesandCoffeecakes