English Rhubarb Pie

How to prepare english rhubarb pie

1. Cut the rhubarb into pieces and place in a pot together with the orange juice (from 1 orange, and if you don't get 100 ml, top up with water), orange zest, vanilla seeds and sugar. Cook over low heat just until the rhubarb loses a bit of volume and softens slightly (about 5 minutes from when it heats up). Remove the rhubarb with a slotted spatula into a bowl. Boil the remaining sauce for 2-3 minutes over high heat until it thickens into a syrup. Pour the syrup over the rhubarb. Let it cool.
2. Prepare the vanilla custard according to the recipe here (use the vanilla pod left over from the rhubarb compote). Cover with plastic wrap and set aside until needed.
3. Beat the butter and powdered sugar with a mixer until creamy. Add the flour and mix with a fork just until the flour is absorbed by the butter. The dough doesn't need to come together, just no visible flour.
4. Transfer the dough to a bag and flatten it with your palms into a disc shape. Refrigerate the dough for about 20 minutes, just until it firms up a bit.
5. Place the dough between two sheets of plastic wrap and roll it into a thin sheet (about 3 mm). Cut discs from the dough that match the size of the individual bowls you'll use for the pies. Refrigerate the cut discs for 30 minutes to firm up. Then prick the discs all over with the tines of a fork.
7. Divide the rhubarb compote among 4-5 individual ceramic bowls (it should come to about 1/3 of the height of the vessels). Add vanilla custard almost to the top (leave room only for the crust). Cover the cream with a disc of dough, pressing well on the edges so it sticks to the rim of the vessels, so the filling doesn't overflow.
   * I used 4 ceramic dishes: 3 soufflé dishes of 150 ml and 1 of 200 ml; I had about 3 tablespoons of vanilla custard left over
8. Bake the pies at 175°C for 15 minutes (just until the crust gets a bit of color).
9. Serve cold. Store in the refrigerator.

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