Strawberry Rhubarb Pie with Walnut Crust

I love pie, especially fruit pies. But even more than I love to eat pie, I love to bake pie. During my first two years of college I spent so much time baking for my family and most of what I made was pie. I loved making crust from scratch and creating decorative and beautiful designs in the crust. But while trying to get healthy, pie seems a little counter intuitive. Most pie is a lot of empty calories from white flour and processed sugars. However, this week while grocery shopping, I saw the freshly stocked bin of rhubarb and I could not resist. Its vibrant red color was so enticing, I knew I had to try my hand at making a healthy-ish pie.

Let's be honest, no pie is a hundred percent healthy, but this version eliminates many of those overly processed ingredients that do no good for your body. Instead of making a traditional double crust pie, I decided to go with a crust that cut out flour all together. Walnuts are incredibly good for helping prevent diseases like breast cancer and oats are a much better choice than plain white flour. Coconut oil is still fat, yes. However, it is a healthier choice compared to shortening and butter. Strawberries are an inherently uber sweet fruit, so cutting back on the sugar in the filling did not leave me missing anything. This pie was so satisfying. The tartness of the rhubarb balanced out the sweet strawberries. And the walnuts created a much tastier crust than I could ever have expected. I even let myself eat this for breakfast and did not feel guilty at all!

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie with Walnut Crust

Print Recipe!

Ingredients

2 Cups of Walnuts
1 1/2 Cups of Quick Oats
3 1/2 TBSP of Coconut Oil, melted
3/4 Cup of Brown Sugar
2 Cups of Strawberries, chopped
2 Stalks Rhubarb, diced
1 TSP of Vanilla
1/4 Cup of Cornstarch
Juice of 1 Orange

Directions 

1. To make the crust: Place 1 1/2 cups of walnuts in a food processor and pulse until you achieve a fine almost flour like texture. Repeat step with the quick oats. Combine the two "flours" with the coconut oil in a medium sized bowl until they begin to stick together. Refrigerate for 20 minutes before spreading out in the bottom of your pie or tart pan. 

2. To make the filling: Combine the strawberries, rhubarb, 1/2 cup of brown sugar, vanilla, cornstarch, and orange juice in a bowl.

3. To make the crumble: Combine 1/2 cup of walnuts, 1/2 tablespoon of coconut oil, and 1/4 cup of brown sugar in food processor until ingredients begin to stick together. 

4. Assembly and cooking: Assemble the pie and bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. 

Tip: Once pie is completely cool, refrigerate for 24 hours. After refrigerating for one day, the pie becomes easy to cut into actual slices and is easy to warm up in the microwave. Enjoy!