Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

I made a strawberry rhubarb pie for a dinner party I had last night and it turned out beautifully! I've never cooked with rhubarb before. I went to the farmer's market planning to find some fruit and bake it into a crisp. I came across some luscious strawberries at the booth of some marvelously grizzled old men from the Eastern shore. These beauties just happened to be sitting right next to bunches of rhubarb, so I decided to try my luck. I chose relatively thin and tender rhubarb. I adapted Joy of Cooking's strawberry rhubarb pie recipe with their buttery crust recipe.

Preheat oven to 425.

Filling:
Without peeling, cut 1 bunch (2-2.5c) rhubarb stalks into 1" pieces.
Add 2.5c strawberries, hulled & halved lengthwise.
Mix with 2/3-1c sugar, 1/4c cornstarch, and 1/4t salt.
Let stand for 15 min, stirring once.
(I used 2/3c sugar and 2c rhubarb)

Pie assembly:
Pour filling into pie.
DOT TOP WITH 2T BUTTER.
(I always forget this step. Seriously. This is one reason I always do the lattice crust, because if necessary you can shove in the butter at the last minute. See below.)

 
 I chose a lattice crust. This seems more difficult than a basic, contiguous pie crust, but is far more forgiving on a weak/breaking crust and looks gorgeous. Lightly brush the top of the pie with milk or cream.

Cook for 30 minutes at 425, then lower the oven temp to 350 and cook for another 25-30 minutes until the juices are thick and bubbling.

Serve with vanilla ice cream. Yum!