Our first Food Fridays Please Explain will be all about pies and pie making with Ron and Melissa Silver, co-owners of Bubby’s. Bubby's opened over 25 years ago as a wholesale pie business, but it has grown into a string of restaurants. They’ll share their secrets to the art of pie making, from the making the perfect filling to rolling out a flaky crust. Ron is also the author of Bubby's Homemade Pies. 

Bubby's Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie (Courtesy of Bubby's) 

Makes One 9-inch Double-crust Pie

It’s serendipitous and practical combination: Sour rhubarb heightens the flavors of the strawberries, while the berries add flavorful natural fruit sugars to the rhubarb.

Pastry for a 9-inch double crust pie,chilled, such as bubby’s All-butter pastry pie dough or basic butter and shortening pastry pie dough 3 cups strawberries, halved or thickly sliced3 cups (1 ½ pounds) rhubarb, cut into ½ to 1/3 - inch pieces1 cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling on the top crust 4 ½ tablespoons all-purpose flour1 teaspoon orange zest ⅛ teaspoon salt2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed

Roll out the pastry and line a 9-inch pie tin with the bottom crust. Roll out the remaining dough for the top crust. Rechill the pastry if necessary.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the strawberries, rhubarb, sugar, flour, zest, and salt. Mix the ingredients briefly by tossing them as you would a salad. Scrape the fruit into the pastry- lined pie tin. Dot the fruit with the butter and cover it with the top crust. Trim and crimp the crust; chill the pie for 10 minutes in the freezer. Cut vent slits if not using a lattice and sprinkle the top crust lightly with sugar.

Bake the pie on a lipped baking sheet for 10 minutes, or until the crust looks dry, blistered, and blonde. Turn the oven down to 375 degrees F, and bake for at least 30 minutes more, or until the crust is golden brown and visible juices are thickened and bubbly slowly through the slits in the top crust.

Cool the pie completely before cutting it, at least a few hours. Serve it at room temperature. Store the pie uncovered at room temperature in a pie safe or cover the pie with a layer of cheesecloth (so that the pastry can breathe) up to 3 days.

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