Perfect Rhubarb Pie

June16

 I love this recipe for Perfect Rhubarb Pie because it’s so simple. Added bonus: Vodka crust!

Growing up, I didn’t eat a lot of rhubarb.

Maybe there wasn’t a lot of rhubarb in West Texas as that time because fruits and vegetables didn’t fly around the world like they do today.

Perhaps Papa Daddy didn’t like rhubarb. Or it might not have been on Aba’s radar screen. Regardless, I found rhubarb late in life and I fell in love.

My favorite way to enjoy rhubarb is, like most people, in a pie. I love this recipe for Perfect Rhubarb Pie because it’s so simple. Tart, but sweet (like me!). I know the recipe looks long and involved, but that’s the fault of the delicious Vodka Crust. Use a refrigerated pie crust, if you prefer.

I’m going to be taking some time off to pursue some other writing projects. I’ll be posting some of my previous recipes with (much) better images. I’ll be checking my email so please leave comments, suggestions and share my recipes (please!).

Thanks for the fun.


Holiday Bacon Cheese Straws

December5

Presenting! Store-bought puff pastry dough… the Alice in Wonderland of the bread world! Small or big… and everything in between, just like Alice!

Holiday Bacon Cheese Straws Mama's High Strung

Want a little nibble for your tea party? Make these Bacon Cheese Straws just 3 or 4 inches in size. Want something impressive to go across a salad plate? Twist and stretch these until they’re almost a foot long!

Best part: only three ingredients!

It’s very forgiving and can easily be twisted and shaped. Of course, it’s the Parmesan cheese and bacon that gives these straws their amazing flavor, but you are the one who creates the enchantment.

I added a little “hook” on the end to make them look like candy canes… something deliciously festive.

Big or small…who needs a pill to do either when you’ve got these on your plate? Alice would agree!

clarified butter, also known as drawn butter, is unsalted butter that has had the milk solids and water removed from it… so all that is left is the golden yellow butter fat.
 

GingerDEAD Men Cookies

October27

This is a repost of one of my favorite Halloween recipes… GingerDEAD Men Cookies!

Mama's High Strung GingerDEAD Men

I wrote this recipe for my friends at Right@Home. What makes this recipe so simple is the “secret” ingredient: boxed cake mix! Let the kids help decorate these little men with their favorite candy or sweet topping. Make them scary or BOO-tiful… but get creative! Fun Gingerdead Men Cookies for a great Halloween!

 

Gadget Tree: Rolling Dough Docker

December2

Lee asks: I got this at a Secret Santa exchange, but have no idea what it is!

 Rolling Dough Docker

You were gifted, Lee, with a “rolling dough docker,” a very common baking tool that’s like a rolling pin…but, in this case, with spikes. The process of “docking” makes dozens of little holes in the dough you’re working with, which allows steam to escape while baking.

The rolling dough docker is used on flatbreads, pizza dough, pie crusts (when blind baking) and pastry dough to keep the dough from bubbling up unevenly. That way your dough is flaky, crisp and flat, which is important if you’re topping or filling the baked dough with something.

Your rolling docker, also called a pastry pricker, is made of stainless steel and plastic, so it’s probably dishwasher safe.

A rolling dough docker is a kitchen gadget that’s great to have if you bake a lot… but a fork usually can get the job done just as well!

 

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Hi…
I’m Christina Chavez

I was a TV journalist for many years, but with a house full of kids I decided to come off the road, go to culinary school and follow my passion for cooking. Mama’s High Strung is all about food… everything from creative recipe ideas to some really cool kitchen gadgets and cooking tips. I live in Chicago, but I love to travel and write about my food discoveries! You can reach me by email: mamashighstrung@gmail.com