The First Spring Pie at Cook'n by the Creek

Let's just say "rhubarb".  After most of my baking life I finally found a rhubarb pie recipe that turns out delicious every time!  I can not tell you how frustrated I would get when one time the pie was ok and then the next one would be too sweet or too sour or way too runny never setting up.  Nothing worse for me to invest time and money for a failure.  Oh we would say "a little too sweet, too sour or even though it's runny it's still good.  It's like playing a sport and coming in second, just not good enough.  The recipe I found (posted at the bottom of the blog) was baked several times before boasting of rhubarb pie success.  I didn't want to "pass it on" and not have it meet the challenge.  I first gave it to my niece, Pam.  I think I have mentioned before her talent for the flakiest, tastiest pie crust ever!  Yes, even better than mine. My rhubarb pie filling won her approval ;) I do use her pie crust recipe but since I still have that awesome home rendered lard I will use it for the rhubarb pie tonight.  One thing, I have never mixed strawberries in my treasure recipe so I can't tell you how it would work.  I am  straight rhubarb person, I really like the sweet/tartness flavor and have never cared to have the flavor over powered with strawberries.  Fresh strawberry pie is very good though.  When I get some fresh berries I will make a pie from the recipe Aola Maxson gave me when we were neighbors and "pass it on", yum!

Life by the creek has been a little testy and quite different for the last 7 weeks.  I will not sugar coat this confession, I have been mean and bitchy at times.  I actually rode the lawn mower to the back field and had myself a good cry.  Not a pity cry but a down right I am "pissed off" cry.  That's me get mean and come up fighting and that is exactly what I am doing.  Heck today after I mowed the lawn I was able to use my crutches, get the weed whacker out, start it, get back on the mower and weed.  That is what happens when mean and determination takes over for me.  Now the hub would do it but I am tired of asking for so much, it's not me and I just can't.  So that being said, I am actually grinning at what my next venture back to my real world will be. Crutches included.   Yada yada I am excited..........I'm almost back!

Ok like always I made a left turn from rhubarb.  How about a little rhubarb history?
ANCIENT HISTORYThe earliest recorded use of rhubarb is 2700BC, although its use is thought to date back much further. At this time rhubarbs use was as a very important drug of the time, being used for a variety of ailments particularly gut, lung and liver problems.
Marco Polo is attributed in bringing the drug to Europe in the thirteenth century when it was referred to as the Rhacoma root.
The drug was so highly regarded and much sought after that in 1657 in England it could command three times the price of Opium.
The first time the plant was seen growing in Britain was in the sixteenth century when the seeds were introduced in an attempt to grow and process the drug here, but the wrong strain was imported and eventually its use in this country went into decline as the British version simply did not work. The rise of modern medicine eventually took over from the wondrous drug.
Ben Franklin is credited for bringing rhubarb seeds to the North American east coast in 1772, yet the red stalks did not catch on until the early 1800s, when it became a popular ingredient for pie. 7
In the late 1800's, rhubarb was brought to Alaska by the Russians and used as an effective counter-agent for scurvy. By the mid-1900s, its popularity was firmly entrenched in the New England states where it was used as pastry and pie fillings and also to make homemade wine. 
Rhubarb leaves are poisonous but the stems and roots are not.
We have two types of rhubarb and I do not know their types other than they are delicious.  So good that our kids and grands eat it raw dipping it in sugar.  One type was given to us by Bill Stavisky from his garden when we moved to Clara and the other from Terry Babcock.  Lucky we picked the cool damp spot because it has thrived.  Part of the day the patch is shaded and I think that has been key to the beautiful healthy stalks and leaves.  When the flower/seed head starts we cut it off to get a second harvest of rhubarb then the second seed head we let grow and quit cutting rhubarb.

Baked in my favorite deep dish pottery pan.

Of course I sample the first piece, wouldn't want to
serve it if it was not good.

Rhubarb pie filling:
4 cups of 1 inch sliced rhubarb
1 TBSP grated orange rind or 1 tsp orange flavoring
1/2 cup of flour
1 2/3 cups of sugar
1 beaten egg
Mix together, pour into a pie crust and put a pie crust on top, seal.  Rub milk or 1/2 & 1/2 on top crust, sprinkle with sugar and bake at 425 degrees until brown.

I have enough rhubarb cut for Rhubarb Crisp tomorrow.  With a little luck someone will stop by and I can share with them.  Always love to Pass it On!