one crust rhubarb pie
RECIPE BY Miriam O’Callaghan Radio and Television Presenter

This must be the perfect pie. It looks very attractive because it has only one
layer of pastry and you can see the fruit inside! The recipe would also work well
with gooseberries, raspberries or slices of Bramley apples, depending on what’s
in season.

Preparation time: 15 mins + 30 mins chilling . Cooking time: 40 mins . Serves 4-6

what you need
For the shortcrust pastry
100g (4oz) plain flour, plus a little
extra for dusting
50g (2oz) wholemeal flour
75g (3oz) polyunsaturated margarine,
at room temperature, plus a little extra
for greasing
For the filling
900g (2lb) bunch rhubarb
50g (2oz) caster sugar
For the glaze
1 small egg white
1 tablespoon caster sugar
Greek-style yoghurt, to serve

what you do
To make the pastry, sieve the plain and wholemeal flour into a bowl and then tip
in any wheat that is left in the bottom of the sieve. Using a fork or your fingers,
gently rub in the margarine.When the mixture reaches the crumb stage, sprinkle
in enough cold water to bring it together in a smooth dough that leaves the bowl
clean – you’ll need only a couple of tablespoons in total. Give it a little light knead
on a lightly floured board to bring it fully together, then place the pastry in a
polythene bag in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6.

Trimdown the stalks of rhubarb and cut it into 2.5cm(1in) pieces – you’ll need
675g (1½lb) in total. Lightly flour the work surface and roll the pastry to a round
of approximately 25cm (10in). As you roll, give it quarter-turns so that it ends up
as round as you can make it. Now carefully roll the pastry around the rolling pin
and transfer it to the centre of a lightly greased baking sheet. Pile the prepared
fruit in the centre of the pastry, sprinkling the caster sugar as you go. Then turn
the edges of the pastry up and inwards to make a case to hold in the fruit; if any
breaks, patch it back on again – it’s meant to be rough and ragged!

For the glaze, brush the surface of the pastry with the egg white and sprinkle
the caster sugar over it. Bake for 35 minutes or until the crust is golden brown
and the rhubarb is tender but still holding its shape.

Serve straight to the table with a bowl of Greek-style yoghurt.

typical nutritional content – per portion
Energy Kcal (Calories) 247
Fat (g) 12.2
of which saturates (g) 3.1
Salt (g) 0.3
Sugars (g) 13.3