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Special occasions were always celebrated in the same way in our city, a small party or a trip down south to Middlebury, Indiana. In this city there is a must visit restaurant called Das Dutchman Essenhaus located at 240 U.S. 20, Middlebury, IN 46540 USA. For us, it was a bit of a drive but it was so well worth the numb bums we suffered as a result. Everyone looks forward to the traditional homemade meals with real Amish & Mennonite recipes that have been passed down throughout the years served in the traditional “family style” pattern. (Note: this restaurant is not vegan friendly.) As a kid or adult-kid, the best part of the meal hands-down had to be the eat-in/take home pie. For some reason my family always took our free pie slice home but once we returned we would eat it right away (or if it was too late for breakfast the next day- gasp!).

A friend of the family would always order Strawberry Rhubarb pie, he had an addiction to it. Unfortunately his addiction became a joke around the group since each time he would order it there would be none left. It was only seasonal but was a crowd favorite. We would also take bets if they would have it or not – so funny! Okay, so maybe that’s a personal joke to our family and probably isn’t that funny for all of you but the recipe will definitely interest you.

My sister used to work at Das Dutchman Essenhaus during the summer months of high school but she never got to do anything but peel potatoes and finally was promoted to carrots by the end of two years. Thanks to the internet I found a previous baker from the restaurant who has shared the famous sold-out strawberry rhubarb pie recipe with us all. It wasn’t vegan so I converted it to be perfectly mouth-watering by vegans and non-vegans. Our family friend that loved this pie now lives in Texas but if we have a chance to meet up in the late spring time, I will definitely make this for him. For now, here’s the recipe veganized below or you can bake the original here.

1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp chiaseeds
1 1/4 c sugar
1/3 c all-purpose flour
1/3 c vegan whipping cream (I used Rich’s Frozen Whipped Cream)
1 c chopped rhubarb
1 c sliced fresh strawberries (heaping)
1 unbaked vegan pie shell ( I made this one )

CRUMB TOPPING
3/4 c flour
3/4 c oats, uncooked
1/2 c brown sugar
1/4 c Vegan butter (I used Earth Balance but you can use oil)
1. Beat together first 6 ingredients. Stir in 1 cup Rhubarb and strawberries. Pour into pie shell.
2. Crumbs: mix flour oats and brown sugar together. Cut in shortening with a fork until crumbly. Sprinkle all over the top of pie. Bake @ 350 degrees for 1hour and 15 minutes or until lightly browned.