4.94 from 29 votes

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Slice of Strawberry Rhubarb Pie | photo by Zoë François

It is rhubarb season and I am doing my very best to use it in as many desserts as I can. This will thrill those of you, like me, who love this vegetable baked in pies, crisps, tarts (try this brown butter rhubarb tart), quick breads and jam, as much as I do. For those of you who have never fallen in love with it, have no fear, it’s a short season. Ha. Having said that, I do hope you’ll give it another try. It adds a wonderful, tart element to this strawberry rhubarb pie, which would otherwise be too sweet for my taste. I love strawberries, but they are a bit too sweet and jammy on their own in a pie. The marriage of rhubarb and strawberries is perfection, because sometimes opposites attract.

No pie is right without an excellent crust. It needs to be sturdy enough to hold up to the filling, but once a fork goes through it, there should be little resistance and lots of flakiness. Every family seems to have their favorite pie crust recipe, which is so wonderful. I am sharing the crust I use most and you can watch me make this whole strawberry rhubarb pie in my instagram video.

Do you have pie questions or need to troubleshoot your recipe? Check out my guide on how to make pie crust.

Whole Strawberry Rhubarb Pie | photo by Zoë François
Slice of Strawberry Rhubarb Pie | photo by Zoë François
Strawberry Rhubarb Pie | ZoeBakes by Zoe Francois

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

I love strawberries, but they are a bit too sweet and jammy on their own in a pie. The marriage of rhubarb and strawberries is perfection, because sometimes opposites attract.
4.94 from 29 votes

Ingredients

Pie Dough

  • 3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and well chilled
  • ½ cup (85g) lard or vegetable shortening, chilled
  • 1/2 cup ice water more or less may be needed
  • 1 tablespoon vodka

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

  • Egg wash 1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water for brushing over the top.
  • Sugar for dusting top
  • 2 pounds (907g) strawberries, fresh or frozen (cut in half if fresh and left whole if frozen)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 12 ounces (340g) fresh or frozen rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1 cup (200g) sugar
  • 1/4 cup cornstarch

Instructions

  • To make the pie crust: Have all of your ingredients ready and chilled. Combine the flour, salt and sugar.
  • Add the butter. Use a pastry cutter or your hands to work the butter into the flour, until it looks like cornmeal and starts to stick together when squeezed. You want to keep some of the butter in pea-sized pieces. If the butter is too soft and it won't stay in pieces, place the bowl in the freezer for about 15 minutes and then try again.
    Add the shortening or lard in the same way, making sure to keep everything well chilled.
  • Mix together the water and vodka and add to the flour/butter mixture.
    Stir this with your hand or a wooden spoon, but be very gentle. The goal is to keep the pea-sized chunks of butter in tact.
  • When most of the flour is coming together, gently fold the dough with a bench scraper into a ball. It should not be perfectly smooth, but, it should also not seem dry or crumbly. If there is still any powdery flour, you can add drops of water to the pie dough. Elongate the ball into a squat log.
  • Divide the dough into two pieces and create round disks. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least an hour, or overnight.
  • To roll out the pie crust:
    When you are ready to prepare the pie, roll one of the disks out on a floured surface. If the dough seems hard, let it sit at room temperature for about 10 to 15 minutes. This will prevent the edges from cracking too much. You still want the dough to be chilled, so the butter doesn't get too soft.
  • As you are rolling, you can round out the edges with your hands. Cracking edges are part of the beast, but this will help to keep them smoother.
  • Once you have it rolled out to about 1/8-inch thick round, measure the dough to make sure it will fit the 12-inch pie plate. I usually just hold the plate over the dough and eye it. There should be about 2-inches of extra dough beyond the bottom of the plate.
  • Fold the dough over the rolling-pin to lift it. Lift it over the plate and gently fit the crust into the plate. Do NOT trim the edges yet. Set the crust in the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.
  • To make the filling:
    Cook the strawberries and vanilla over gentle heat (use a fork to break up the fruit if using fresh strawberries) until they start to break down slightly. Cook until the strawberries are tender and have released their juices.
  • Whisk together the sugar and cornstarch, then add the rhubarb and sugar mixture to the strawberries. Cook over medium-low heat until the mixture starts to thicken and turn translucent. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature before filling the pie shell and covering with lattice top.
    This step can be done ahead and chilled, but it may increase the baking time by a little bit.
  • To bake:
    Preheat oven to 425°F. It is best, but not a must, if you have a Pizza Stone or Baking Steel in the oven, to make sure you get a nice bottom crust.
  • Freeze the pie until the crust is quite hard before brushing with egg wash and sprinkling with sugar. Set the pie on a baking sheet (in case the juices bubble over) and then set it directly on the preheated baking stone/steel.
  • Bake for 30 minutes and then drop the temperature to 375°F. Continue to bake until the fruit juices are bubbling throughout the pie and it has puffed slightly in the middle. This can take up to an hour, depending on how long you froze the pie. If the edge of the crust is browning too quickly, tent with foil.
  • Allow the pie to cool completely before cutting or it may be too loose to cut. This pie will still have some juice to it and not set up solid, because I don't like a gloopy filling.
    If you want a cleaner slice, you'll want to add another tablespoon or two of cornstarch.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Looking for my other recipe in episode one of Zoe Bakes? You can find my strawberry fool recipe here.

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26 thoughts to “Strawberry Rhubarb Pie”

  1. I’ve been hesitant to make this pie for years now I have no excuse.! Your tutorial was wonderful!

  2. I love the tips you gave about the pie crust, I now understand about adding the shortening or lard. Also the tip about adding vodka to the crust, it makes perfect sense to me now, I can’t wait to try it!!! Both of my parents just loved Strawberry/Rhubarb pie and I also believe it’s my favorite. My Mother couldn’t wait til the rhubarb grew in the spring, she always made this and other rhubarb desserts, her Rhubarb cake was absolutely delicious!!! Thank you for the tips on the crust and thank you for showing new chefs/cooks programs, and getting us out of the same old shows!!!

  3. I made the Strawberry Rhubarb pie. I’ve been making pies for years and am always searching for a great pie crust recipe. This is it! My husband raved about it. “The best pie you’ve ever made!”. Now, he wants me to make fillings ahead and freeze them so I can bake a pie when he has a craving.

    THANK YOU, ZOE!!

  4. 5 stars
    This is the best pie in the world. I thought I preferred a higher ratio of rhubarb to strawberries but I was wrong. I froze a ton of the strawberries I picked this year and found a good source for frozen rhubarb so I can make this pie all year long!

  5. 5 stars
    Hi Zoe! I made your rhubarb strawberry pie after watching you make it on your new show and it was delicious! I wanted to just let you know that the instructions never say at what point to add the shortening in, I thought I would let you know.
    We are loving watching your show and can’t wait for season 2! Thank you so much!!

    1. Hi Taylor,

      Thank you so much for watching the show, I am so thrilled you made the pie. I fixed the instructions to include the shortening, thank you for letting me know!

      Cheers, Zoë

  6. 5 stars
    I am trying to perfect Pie Making in my “Almost Retired” years…LOL and this crust was simply AMAZING!!! Although my pie was UGLY haha… It tasted Awesome… Gonna keep practicing. Thank you for sharing this!

  7. Your show is absolutely wonderful – I have so much fun watching it – look forward to it every week. Wish I lived next door!!!!

  8. 5 stars
    My pie turned out perfectly! Strawberry Rhubarb pie can be tricky to get right but you made it easy! The lattice crust was not as difficult as I expected and freezing it is a trick I will use again!
    Thank you for supporting and showcasing local vendors and talented entrepreneurs!

  9. Question about the amount of flour in the pie crust. Your recipe here on the web site shows 3 cups (375g) and when you do the show today it showed the 3 cups but (390g). This will be my 1st try at making a pie crust from scratch and I want it correct.

  10. 5 stars
    I made the strawberry and rhubarb pie filling and it’s the perfect amount of sweetness and tartness together. We enjoyed it with a scoop of French Vanilla ice cream. Thanks for a great recipe. Although I didn’t use the pie dough recipe, I will on the next pie.

  11. 5 stars
    I forgot to mention that I used this recipe in a regular 9 inch pie dish. It’s not deep. I do have some leftover pie filing and I use it for ice cream. Yum.

  12. 5 stars
    Hi, Zoe!
    I love your show on the Magnolia Network, and recently bought your latest cookbook, Zoe Bakes Cakes. I’ve made a few of your cakes—Bundt Pound cake with raspberries and carrot cake—absolutely delicious. Plus I’ve made your focaccia. Delicious! Just curious: do you have a cookbook dedicated to pies or will you be writing one soon?

    1. Hi Ann Marie, Zoë doesn’t currently have a book on pies, but she hopes to in the future! She’s currently working on a cookie book!

  13. 5 stars
    I just watched the first episode of this show, and I loved it! The strawberry rhubarb pie was beautiful. In the episode, Zoe mentions you can use different berries in the pie – I’m wondering if I just wanted to make a strawberry pie, what the quantity of berries would be in total? Looking forward to watching all of your episodes and getting more inspiration!

  14. 5 stars
    I love this strawberry rhubarb pie recipe! Every time I make it, it comes out perfect. It’s not overly sweet and has just the right amount of rhubarb in this recipe. If you let the pie cool completely the filling will not run all over the place. Its my go to recipe.

  15. 5 stars
    This recipe is perfect. I don’t have a deep dish pie plate, so I had some extra filling and made it into a gluten-free strawberry-rhubarb crisp! It would also be amazing as a topping on ice cream.

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