Springtime is my third favorite season. It's often wet, cold, muddy and buggy. (Speaking of cold, we had a fire in the wood stove this morning. If you look carefully at the photo below you'll see the dated proof.)
Not that I'm complaining...well, okay, I am, but not too much....
Where was I? Oh, yeah. Springtime. There are some wonderful things about the spring. The appearance of those first hardy flowers bring a smile to my face. The wonderful aroma of lilacs takes me back to my childhood when I picked them by the arm full. Lily of the valley, apple blossoms and tulips are some of my other favorites.
This year's Ottawa Tulip Festival is a fait accompli, but if you haven't visited Canada's capital region in springtime, make plans to go next year. You won't regret it. I especially enjoyed the handmade tulip sculptures (pictured on the left above). Created by artists and students, they were a delight to behold.
Another thing I love about springtime is rhubarb. It's a fruit I associate with the end of winter, (YAY!) and I remember my mother canning and making all sorts of things with it. I'm not as prolific in the kitchen as she was, but this recipe is a keeper. I've made it so many times my recipe book is a mess! Just take a look...
If you can make out the printing (yes, I did calligraphy way back when), you'll see it's called Mryt's Rhubarb Custard Pie. Our neighbor in St. Marys gave me this recipe at about the same time we learned John's mom was quite ill. As her name was also Mrytle, I always think of these two ladies whenever I make this pie.
You can name it anything you like, of course. Once you try it, I'm confident it'll become one of your favorites too. It's quick and easy to make. As it's baking the house fills with mouth-watering aromas, and it's absolutely delicious to eat. Another bonus is you can use either fresh or frozen rhubarb. If I have more than I need, I'll measure 2 cups of diced rhubarb, pop it into a Ziploc freezer bag, and toss it in the freezer for future use because Mryt's Rhubarb Custard Pie is perfect for any season of the year.
Okay, enough chit-chat...here's the recipe:
Mryt's Rhubarb Custard Pie
Prepare pastry for one 9-inch pie
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons butter (melted)
2 eggs
2 - 2 1/4 cups diced rhubarb
In bowl combine sugar, flour and cornstarch, mix well. Then add butter and eggs. Stir until well blended, then add rhubarb. Pour into unbaked pie shell.
Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees, bake 45 minutes.
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