Floor Pie

Since we have a large, healthy rhubarb plant, I often make rhubarb pies in the spring, and again in the fall, when we get our second harvest. In the fall of 2007, I made one, using the recipe from Ken Haedrich's great book, simply called Pie. It was gorgeous--a crisp homemade sugar-dusted butter crust, jam-like sweet-tart filling, perfectly baked. I had remembered to put it on a cookie sheet so the juices that had spilled out were well contained. It was a very satisfying pie-making experience.

Then I went to take it out of the oven.

While the beautiful pie was baking, my pot holder somehow got wet. If you have ever tried to use a wet pot holder to pick up something hot, you know that this does not work. The water conducts the heat from the hot pan instantly, burning you mightily. So that's what happened. I picked up the cookie sheet with the wet pot holder before I realized that anything was wrong and ohh, ohhhhhh, ooooops!!! I dropped the pie to the right of the oven. The whole thing had spilled out onto the floor. I shrieked over and over. My husband and older son thought I was hurt, but no.

It was actually lovely just lying there, half smashed. It didn't know it wasn't supposed to be there. It smelled great. I had worked hard on it. My son, who was three at the time, asked if we could eat it anyway. I told him that only ants and dogs really ate Floor Pie. But, I said, we can have a few bites from the top, where it had not touched the floor. So we three sat there, gingerly selecting small bites from the top. It was really good. But we restrained ourselves and only had a smidgen. Then I threw the rest out. It was surprisingly easy to clean up, all that pie.

Here is a picture of my latest effort. My friend, Ann, who I wrote about in an earlier post, gave me the nifty pie bird. This is the first time I've used it. More reason not to drop another pie--wouldn't want to break the bird.



Here is the recipe I used from Pie:

All-Rhubarb Pie

Alaskan Eskimos and Afghans--Waverly Root tells us in Food (Simon and Schuster, 1980)--eat rhubarb raw. The rest of us, when we eat it at all, like it cooked in a pie. (Rhubarb is, after all, also known as pie plant.) Here's a pie recipe for those who like their rhubarb straight up, without infringement from other fruit such as strawberries or raspberries, two common pie companions. There's a fair amount of sugar in the pie, to counter rhubarb's tart flavor, and a little orange juice and zest for added zing. Rhubarb gives off a lot of juice, so do let the pie rest for several hours before serving to give the juices plenty of time to set.

Makes 8 servings.

[1 recipe for a double pie crust]

Filling
5 cups fresh rhubarb stalks sliced crosswise 1/2 inch thick
1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons orange juice
Grated zest of 1/2 orange
Big pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Glaze
Milk or light cream
Sugar

1. If you haven't already, prepare the pastry and refrigerate until firm enough to roll, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
2. On a sheet of lightly floured waxed paper, roll the larger portion of the pastry into a 12-inch circle with a floured rolling pin. Invert the pastry over a 9-inch standard pie pan, center, and peel off the paper. Gently tuck the pastry into the pan, without stretching it, and let the overhang drape over the edge. Place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
3. Combine the rhubarb, 1 1/4 cups of the sugar, the orange juice, orange zest, salt, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Mix well, then set aside for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
4. Combine the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and the cornstarch in a small bowl, then stir the mixture into the rhubarb. Turn the filling into the chilled pie shell and smooth the top of the fruit with your hands. Dot the filling with butter.
5. Roll the other half of the pastry into a 10-inch circle on a sheet of lightly floured waxed paper. Moisten the outer edge of the pie shell with a pastry brush. Invert the top pastry over the filling, center, and peel off the paper. Press the top and bottom pastries together along the dampened edge. Using a pair of scissors, trim the pastry to an even 1/2-inch overhang all around. Turn the pastry back and under, sculpting the edge edge into an upstanding ridge. Poke several steam vents into the top of the pie with a fork or paring knife, including a couple along the edge so you can check the juices there later. To glaze the pie, brush the top pastry with a little milk and sprinkle lightly with sugar.
6. Place the pie on the center oven rack and bake for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F and rotate the pie 180 degrees, so that the part that faced the back of the oven now faces forward. Just in case, slide a large aluminum foil-lined baking sheet onto the rack below to catch any spills. Continue to bake until the pie is golden brown, about 25 minutes. When done, you should notice thick juices bubbling out of the steam vents along the edge.
7. Transfer the pie to a wire rack and let cool for at least 3 hours, preferably longer, before serving.

Recipe for success
* Because of the red color, rhubarb makes an attractive lattice-top pie.
* Even though this is an all-rhubarb pie, feel free to substitute a cup or two of raspberries for an equal amount of sliced rhubarb.
* If your rhubarb comes with leaves attached, do not eat them. They contain something called oxalic acid, which can cause sickness or even death.

(Blogger's note: Not often do you see a recipe that ends with the word "death," eh? That's some pie!)