In The Kitchen - Fool for Rhubarb Pie by Nana White

Many years ago, my mom told me that she liked Rhubarb Pie. I had no idea what she was talking about until I started researching what it was. I have never eaten Rhubarb Pie. 

CREDIT: Crisco

I began asking mom what it tasted like. She said, 'it is sometimes tart and sometimes tangy' and it is so good while her face lit up. I could see her mouth begin to drool as she described a Rhubarb Pie to me. She also said, 'they would eat the pie with homemade Vanilla Icecream' and that was a treat. 

I never did get mom a Rhubarb Pie and she never made one while I lived at home or even into my adult years. After researching the Rhubarb plant, I was not interested in trying this pie for myself. 

Rhubarb is a vegetable if you did not know that. But when it is cooked, one must add a great deal of sugar for it to get the sugary sweetness one is longing for in each bite of pie they enjoy. 

Rhubarb can be made into jam and served as an accompaniment to roasted meats. 

I asked mom if this plant could be eaten in its original form and she said, 'oh yes - grab a jar of sugar, remove the leaves and chomp down - really just putting the Rhubarb in the sugar and then sucking on the stalk". I asked her why she removed the leaves and she said, 'They can make you extremely sick'. When I researched this plant further, I did read that the small leaves are poisonous and must be removed before ingesting the Rhubarb. 

Did you know that Rhubarb stocks become very toxic and poisonous in late summer? They do. I found that to be quite interesting. It is best to harvest this plant in the Spring and early Summer. I have never even seen a Rhubarb plant - so I do not know what I would be looking for. Do you? Have you ever grown any? 

I do not know about you, but I am not really interested in trying Rhubarb Pie. It does not sound appealing to me at all, but my mom sure did enjoy the ones she ate. I wish now, I would have gotten her a piece of Rhubarb Pie when she lived with us. I would have loved to see her face while she was eating it. I can only imagine what it was like though, because as I am typing this post out - my mouth is watering just thinking about the tart and tangy taste. I guess I could compare this sensation to when I eat a lemon. 

When my husband got his Cookbook out for me a few months ago, I found a recipe that Nana White had shared for Rhubarb Pie.

FOOL FOR RHUBARB PIE

4 egg whites

1tsp. Vanilla

1 tsp. Vinegar

1 c. minus 1 T. sugar, sifted

8 oz. Rhubarb

1 T. butter

1/2 c. sugar

2 c. whipping cream

Heat oven to 225*. Grease or spray a 9-inch pie pan. Beat egg whites until foamy. Add vanilla, vinegar, and 1 tablespoon sugar; beat to blend. Continue to add sugar, a tablespoon at a time, continue beating until all sugar is added and stiff peaks form. Spread the meringue in the pan in a concave fashion, as if it were a pie shell. 

Bake 1 hour, then turn off the oven but leave the pie shell there until the oven is totally cool about 1 more hour. Chop rhubarb into small pieces. Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add rhubarb and 1/2 cup sugar. 

Cook, stirring occasionally until rhubarb is tender and the mixture is falling apart. Crush some of the bigger pieces with a fork to make a smoother mixture. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator. 

When the meringue is completely cooled, beat the whipping cream until still. Fold in the rhubarb mixture. Use this to fill the meringue. 

***

Looking at this recipe, had I known this was in the cookbook my husband had - I might have tried to make my mom one of these Rhubarb Pies. I suppose now, this will be one of those would have, could have moments that will go down in history. 

Do you like Rhubarb Pie? Have you ever made one? Share your memories with me of eating Rhubarb Pie. 

Enjoy! 

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