Strawberry-Rhubarb Slab Pie

What better way to feed a crowd dessert, than with a slab pie? Made in a sheet pan with a sturdy crust and a tangy filling, this pie can be easily transported to any summer barbecue.

Truth be told, I make a version of slab pie in the fall, with apples....my apple pie slices. Everyone here likes those so well that they suggested I put my rhubarb to good use and make up some rhubarb slices. Martha calls hers a slab pie...so why not?

Strawberry-Rhubarb Slab Pie

Printable Recipe

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup butter flavored shortening
1 egg yolk
2/3 cup cold milk
1 egg white
1 1/2 cups frosted corn flakes, slightly crushed
3 cups chopped rhubarb
3 cups sliced strawberries
3 tablespoons flour
3/4 cup seedless strawberry jam
2 tablespoons orange liqueur (sub orange juice, if desired)
1 tablespoon grated orange peel

Glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon orange liqueur
1-2 teaspoons milk
1 teaspoon grated orange peel, if desired

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and the salt. With a fork, cut in the shortening until the mixture is crumbly. Beat the egg yolk into the cold milk and slowly add it to the flour mixture, stirring it together until it forms a ball. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and gently knead a little more flour into it if it is too sticky (avoid handling it too much, or the crust will be tough). Divide the dough in half. Sprinkle a little flour on a piece of parchment paper or a silpat and roll out one half of the dough into a large enough rectangle to cover the bottom and sides of the 15- inch pan. Turn the dough into the pan and gently press it into place.

I used bran flakes this time, but any cereal flakes are fine. This step helps to prevent the pie juices from making the dough too wet.

Beat the egg white until it is slightly frothy. Brush the bottom and sides of the dough lightly with the egg white and reserve the rest for later. Sprinkle the frosted corn flakes evenly over the dough. 

Combine the rhubarb and the strawberries in a large bowl; sprinkle with 3 tablespoons of flour. In a small bowl, combine the jam, orange liqueur, and orange peel. Gently fold the jam into the fruit and pour mixture evenly over the pie dough.

When I make my apple pie slices, I use a 13 X 9 inch pan, but the fruit in this is tart enough that less filling per bite is OK.

 Roll out the remaining pie dough and carefully place it over the top of the fruit. Make a few cuts in the dough to vent, then brush it with a little of the egg white. Bake at 375 degrees F. for 40-45 minutes or until the crust is golden and the fruit is bubbling.

Don't forget to put a drip pan underneath while baking...it might get a bit messy!

In a small bowl, whisk the glaze ingredients together, adding a little more liquid, if needed, to thin. Drizzle over warm pie. Allow the pie to cool for at least an hour for the filling to set.

Feel free to change out the rhubarb with some blueberries or blackberries if you don't care for rhubarb.

Enjoy!

"Holy Moly Guacamole" Avocado Cupcakes

 I can't seem to leave well enough alone. There was another avocado beckoning me. I had to do it. I had to make a sweet treat out of it. The trouble was, I was running out of time....deadlines were looming. Aaack---the pressure! I reached for a cake mix.....

All the while I was thinking and dreaming about Avocados from Mexico, I couldn't help but notice how really adaptable this tasty, green fruit is. Sweet, savory---it really didn't matter----the avocado seems to compliment many flavors. I was especially interested in trying out some citrus flavors with it. How apropos, then, that the cake mix in my hand was lemon flavored. Since avocados have the good fat, I omitted the oil from the recipe and thought to replace the water with some tangy buttermilk. Then, to top things off, a good dose of orange cream cheese icing. Oh. My. Goodness. Easy and delish. And cute, too! Just have a look see:

"Holy Moly Guacamole" Avocado Cupcakes

Printable Recipe

Cupcakes:

1 ripe avocado, peeled and seeded
¾ cup buttermilk
3 large eggs
1 box (18.25 oz) lemon flavored cake mix

Orange Cream Cheese Icing:

¼ cup unsalted butter, softened
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
2-3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
3-4 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pans with liners.

Combine the avocado and the buttermilk in a large mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes, or until mixture is nearly smooth. Add the eggs and the cake mix and continue to beat for an additional 2 minutes. Spoon batter into 24 cupcake liners; bake for 18-20 minutes or until the tops spring back when touched. Cool completely on wire racks before frosting.

For the icing, combine the butter, cream cheese, orange peel and vanilla in a medium sized bowl. With a hand mixer, beat until smooth. Add the orange juice, blending well. Stir the powdered sugar into the mixture and then beat until smooth, adding additional sugar until desired consistency is reached. If icing becomes too thick, add more orange juice, a teaspoon at a time. Pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Seriously good. Seriously easy to make. Do it.

Avocado-Bacon Scones with Smokey Tomato Butter

The challenge: to create an original recipe showcasing avocados from Mexico in a new and different way. No tacos, no cilantro, no salsa....emphasis on new and different. Was I up for it? You betcha! Did I know what I was doing. No way! Did it work anyway? Yup!

It's funny how I go about creating recipes sometimes. I think up a name first. Scones were on my mind lately--I had just had a really tasty, albeit caloric little sucker, from, of all places, Target. They carry little mini-scones in some pretty tasty variations. So, as I was digesting my tasty little morsel (honey-almond, I believe), I was thinking about how I could make an avocado into a scone. It would have to be savory and have a really cool sounding spread to go on top. Hmmm....avocados, tomatoes, bacon, onions, chives....I could make this work. Plus---avocados (from Mexico!) were on sale for a dollar apiece! The fates were with me.....

Truth be told, I've never in my life made a scone. This meant that a little research was in order. Oh, I googled "avocado scone" and nothing much came up (which was kind of good, seeing that this had to be original). I figured that avocados kind of had the consistency of a banana, so I started there. When it was all said and done, this is what I came up with:

Avocado-Bacon Scones with Smokey Tomato Butter

Printable Recipe

Smokey Tomato Butter

1 plum tomato
½ cup unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon chopped chives
½ teaspoon liquid smoke
¼ teaspoon sea salt

Avocado-Bacon Scones

4 thick slices bacon
1 ripe avocado
½ cup buttermilk, plus 2 tablespoons for brushing
2 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon chopped chives
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Coarse salt for sprinkling



Cut an X into the bottom of the tomato. Blanche the tomato in a pan of boiling water for 10 seconds, then transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice water. Peel and core the tomato, remove the seeds and chop coarsely. Place the chopped tomato into the bowl of a food processor, along with ½ cup unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon chives, ½ teaspoon liquid smoke and ¼ teaspoon sea salt. Pulse until well-blended. Set aside.

My daughter gave me a food processor for Mother's Day....I had to put it to good use. I imagine that you could blend the butter mixture with a hand mixer or a blender.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Fry the bacon until crisp; crumble and set aside.

Mash the avocado in a small bowl; stir in 1/2 cup buttermilk and the chives.

Into a bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt; add the butter and blend the mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.

I also used the food processor to blend the butter into the flour mixture...I went ahead and put the bacon and chives in with the flour and blended it all together. I'm guessing that not everyone will want to use a food processor, though, so I wrote the recipe as if I still didn't have one.

Stir in the crumbled bacon and then add the avocado mixture, stirring until the mixture is sticky, yet manageable. If the dough is too sticky, add additional flour, one tablespoon at a time. If too dry, add more buttermilk. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for just a few seconds. Divide the dough in half and pat each half into a circle, about 6 inches in diameter. Place the circles of dough on a large baking sheet lined with a silpat or parchment paper. Cut each circle into 8 wedges and separate slightly. Brush each wedge with buttermilk and sprinkle with coarse salt.

Many of the scone recipes I was looking at used heavy cream to make a nice crumb. I chose buttermilk since the avocado provides some good healthy fats (we'll ignore the fact that I also put bacon and butter in there, lol).

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until just starting to turn brown. Serve warm with tomato butter.

They weren't as green as I thought they would be. Probably a good thing....

All in all, a pretty tasty little appetizer....or bread course to serve with a salad....or a good side to have with soup....